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Uncategorized

Since Last We Spoke, 8-27-18

I thought I would be heading straight from Camp Pendleton to Ft Drum, but as these things do, that work went away, so I am unexpectedly home for a few days before I head to the CLE for a family wedding over the Labor Day weekend. I don’t hate this–I can catch up on much-needed admin time, and get a head start on planning for my sessions at IAFN that have many moving parts that require careful mapping (I am still looking for a few more folks to facilitate, BTW, so please get in touch if you’re interested in the gig). Aside from indulging my wife’s folly this weekend of some camping (if you follow either of us on Facebook you know of what I speak), I had some downtime to catch up with the interwebs. Here’s what caught my eye since last we spoke:

Nothing about these findings are surprising

Well, this is–not good

Male entitlement to women’s attention and affection is a public health issue

Powerful.

A new bill has been introduced to fight black maternal health disparities.

This is next up on our collective watch list here in our household–have you seen it?

Many of you know I don’t work on planes–I took advantage of about 12 travel hours this past week and polished off Educated. Highly. Recommend.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Testimony

Looking for Volunteers to Help Facilitate at My Workshop

If you are planning on attending the IAFN conference this year in Reno AND you are not committed to teaching or meetings on that Wednesday the 24th, please consider the following request–I am looking for volunteer facilitators for a new day-long testimony workshop we are doing that day. It will begin immediately after the keynote speaker that morning and go until 5pm. I need about 4 additional people (I have already compiled a great crew of facilitators, thus far, but it’s a large session, so I need a few more) with the following qualifications:

  • Minimum 5 years working in forensic nursing
  • Must have testified or provided expert consultation at trial 10 or more times
  • Must be able to easily discuss the evidence base that supports forensic nursing practice and ethical testimony

I have nothing but my eternal gratitude to offer for your participation (plus a cocktail or two in Reno)–you will not receive any discounts or compensation of any sort for assisting. I would love to be able to do that, but this site does not generate that kind of scratch. Sorry. But you will get to participate in a terrific day or learning, mentoring new(er) forensic nurses and teaching alongside other experienced colleagues. If this sounds remotely interesting, please contact me and include a copy of your CV with your email. I will get back with folks shortly after the Labor Day holiday. Facilitators will receive details for the workshop by the end of September.

Thanks for considering it!

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
DV/IPV

Domestic Violence Related Mass and Spree Killings

Battered Women’s Justice Project is hosting an upcoming webinar, Domestic Violence Related Mass and Spree Killings. The session will be held September 17th at 2pm CT. From the website:

Dr. Neil Websdale will define mass and spree killing and explain the differences between familicidal, felonious, and non-felony related forms of these offenses. The Webinar will concentrate on two forms of “public” mass and spree killings. The first form consists of those cases where the complex dynamics of domestic violence are of central significance and appear to be the principal precipitant of the killings. These cases involve offenders killing former or current spouses/partners and/or those such as family law attorneys, allied professionals, and/or friends who may have supported the spouse or partner. The second form involves those public mass killings, usually shootings, where domestic violence forms but one aspect of the case but may nevertheless be central to developing an understanding of the killings. Dr. Websdale will use case illustrations to flesh out themes across case types, examining, for example, the gendering of these offenses, the signaling of offenses, histories of intimate terrorism, planning and preparation, the possible role of mental illness, the social isolation of offenders, fascination and proficiency with weaponry, threatening changes in the life circumstances of offenders, and the role of suicidal feelings, depression, rage, extreme hatred, and vengefulness.

BWJP archives their webinars, so if you can’t attend live, you can check their site later for the recording. Register for the session here.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

 

Categories
Testimony

Research Article Review Template

Oh hey–I made you a thing! Actually, I built you a thing out of some solid, already crafted parts and few original ideas, so let’s not get carried away here. An FHO reader asked if I had a concrete way for people to sit down with a research article and analyze it for its relevance for practice and testimony, so here you go. It’s a mash-up of some of the best of what I have found online from a variety of sources (that I have used) for journal clubs (part I, Research Outline), plus some of my personal perspective regarding analysis (part II, Reader Synthesis). Good for a step-by-step through a research article solo, or as part of a collective discussion. Hope it’s helpful.

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Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Articles of Note Child Abuse DV/IPV Elder Abuse/Neglect Sexual Assault

Articles of Note: August 2018 Edition

It’s time once again for Articles of Note, our mostly monthly romp through the peer-reviewed research. As always, this is not an exhaustive list; simply what has caught my attention upon reviewing what’s new and noteworthy–and relevant to practice. All links lead to PubMed unless otherwise specified. Enjoy!

 

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Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Sexual Assault

The National TeleNursing Center: Transforming Care for Sexual Assault Patients, Providers and Communities

IAFN has a webinar coming up, The National TeleNursing Center: Transforming Care for Sexual Assault Patients, Providers, and Communities. The session will be held September 5th at 1pm ET. It’s free for IAFN members and includes 1.5 CEUs ($35 non-members).  From the site:

Join us to learn how the National TeleNursing Center (NTC) piloted the use of Video Conferencing Technology (VCT) to support SANE/SAFE and emergency department clinicians caring for sexual assault patients across 3 states with diverse communities (tribal, rural, Military). Presenters will discuss the NTC teleSANE practice model based on Duffy’s Quality Care Framework. In addition, presenters will discuss evaluation findings from this 5-year pilot project in relation to its impact on patients, clinicians, and the broader community. Presenters will share important lessons learned that can help other agencies looking to implement this innovative teleSANE practice model to increase access to SANE/SAFE expertise.

Register here.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
DV/IPV

Handling Strangulation Cases at the Front Lines

The Strangulation Prevention Institute has a webinar coming up with Drs. Ralph Riviello and Jacquelyn Campbell, Handling Strangulation Cases at the Front Lines (Part I). The session will be held August 28th at 10am PT. Note: this is a two-hour webinar. It appears nursing CEs are available for a cost of $25. Hopefully, this will be archived on their site. From the announcement:

Part 1 – “He choked me.  I thought I was going to die.” will cover:

  • Updates on the Danger Assessment Tool and new research on Traumatic Brain Injury
  • Understanding the impact of an of anoxic injury, traumatic brain injuries and delayed consequences
  • How to explain the medical aspects of strangulation and suffocation to victims
  • What to do when the victim answers YES to question about being “choked”
  • Tools from the Institute to help front-line workers
  • Emerging practices at Family Justice Centers and DOVE
  • How to support a survivor who has been strangled and potentially suffering from the long-term consequences of strangulation such as traumatic brain injury
  • Practical tips from the panel, the field and survivors

Objectives:

  • Improve our understanding of the immediate, delayed, and long-term health consequences of non-fatal strangulation
  • Discuss promising practices emerging at Family Justice Centers, hospitals, and/or multi-agency organizations
  • Review the Danger Assessment Tool and new research
  • Provide practical approaches for front-line staff at Centers on how to best provide services and support for survivors of strangulation

Register for the session here.

[photo credit]

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Uncategorized

Since Last We Spoke, 8-13-18

Home this week, with my father-in-law visiting, before I head to Camp Pendleton Saturday. Amazing how much you can pack into a week at home, especially during the summer. It felt like we never quit this weekend, although we took time Friday night to head to our synagogue to stand with our community on the eve of the Unite the Right rally here in DC (which, thankfully turned out to be a whole lot of not much at all compared to all the counterprotesters). I mostly took to the interwebs to follow the protests yesterday evening, but I managed to catch up on a few other things, as well–here’s what caught my eye since last we spoke:

Catholic hospitals: proliferation actually translates to reduced access to some types of care

A wonder people hesitate to report

Love all these women vets running right now

DC restaurants weren’t having any of it this weekend

Healthcare gaslighting

The stories don’t seem to end for the military

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Child Abuse

The Tale (A True Story of Child Sexual Abuse)

Did you see the HBO film, The Tale? I haven’t, but I was fascinated by this Fresh Air interview with the filmmaker, Jennifer Fox. It’s a pretty thorough examination of many facets of child sexual abuse (for a radio interview), and while it’s obviously not everyone’s experience of abuse, there are some fascinating revelations about other people’s reactions, the grooming behaviors used, and the filmmakers own complicated feelings about her abusers (there were two–a man and a woman, both coaches). She also speaks at length about language: survivor vs victim. If you’re in the headspace for it, it’s worth listening to the full interview:

 

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Testimony

Concede What Is Possible

I had a question from an FHO reader this week: if there was only one piece of advice I could give a newly minted forensic nurse about cross-examination, what would it be? That’s easy.

Concede what is possible.

It’s funny because we were working on a testimony project last week and this issue actually played itself out in front of us in a very real way, so the timing of the question is perfect, really.

I’ve watched more clinicians get themselves into trouble on cross by failing to simply concede things that could be possible are, in fact, possible. Often times it comes from a place of wanting to be helpful to “their” side (pro tip: it’s not helpful). Other times it is because people confuse possible with probable (possible is any chance at all that a thing could be; probable is more than 50% likely. Even when I don’t believe something is probable, there’s a good chance I would have to admit it’s still possible.)

If a clinician digs their heels in on the question of whether something is possible, the resulting questions can leave them looking biased or argumentative. Ultimately, it can undermine the most well-intended testimony.

Concede what is possible. We don’t take the stand to make an attorney’s case. We take the stand to educate judges and juries about what we know, what we saw, what we did, and sometimes, what we believe, based on science and our clinical experience. Simple as that.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Sexual Assault

Studying Homeless Young Adults and Their Experiences with Human Trafficking

The National Criminal Justice Training Center is hosting a webinar, Studying Homeless Young Adults and Their Experiences with Human Trafficking. The session will be held August 28th at 1pm CT. From the website:

Presenter – Dr. Dominique Roe-Sepowitz

Upon completion of this webinar, you will be able to:

  • Leverage new knowledge about issues facing homeless young adults including mental health and medical needs, childhood maltreatment, and family relationships
  • Discuss the substance abuse experiences of a sample of homeless young adults
  • Review the sex and labor trafficking experiences of homeless young adults in Arizona

Register for the webinar here.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Child Abuse

Pediatric Strangulation Case Review and Assessment

A brand new resource is now available from IAFN: Pediatric Strangulation Case Review and Assessment. Although it’s more expensive than items I normally post, it’s such a fantastic educational opportunity, it’s hard to pass this one up. The cost is $199 for 20 CEUs (IAFN members can obtain a code for $50 off). There are also institutional access options available. From the website:

IAFN Pediatric Strangulation Case Review and Assessment is an accredited e-learning module developed by the International Association of Forensic Nurses. It contains 29 cases of living pediatric strangulation patients evaluated and treated in the medical setting, presented in conjunction with evidence-based knowledge on pediatric strangulation evaluation and treatment. 

Assess your knowledge acquisition through review of:

  • Definitions and terminology
  • Anatomy and physiology
  • Manner and associated signs & symptoms
  • CE post-testing: 20 credits 

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
DV/IPV

Beyond Halal And Haram: Muslims, Sex, And Relationships Safety Card (and Webinar)

Futures Without Violence has a brand new resource, Beyond Halal And Haram: Muslims, Sex, And Relationships Safety Card. It’s available as a free download. “The goal of this safety card is to be both a survivor-centered resource and a useful conversation starter for health care providers, counselors, social workers, mentors, or other adults working with high-school and college-aged Muslim youth who are doing universal education around healthy relationships and assessing for violence. The card provides information on healthy relationships and sex, guidance, and resources for support, how to help a friend and cultural and religious factors that play into decision-making.”

Additionally, there is a corresponding webinar being held on August 17th at 1pm ET. From the registration:

There is a dearth of resources for American Muslims related to sex and relationships, and some American Muslims may encounter cultural barriers that prevent them from discussing these issues with family and community members. High levels of discrimination against Muslims and Islamophobia also propel the need for more understanding about how to provide trauma-informed, developmentally appropriate, and culturally responsive violence prevention services to this diverse community. Health centers and community-based settings play a crucial role in reaching high school and college-aged American Muslims with messages about healthy and unhealthy relationships. This webinar will describe an evidence-informed universal education intervention on relationships and its impact on health, which can be used in a variety of settings. This intervention features a new safety card specific to American Muslims, which contains information on healthy relationships and sex, guidance, and resources for support, how to help a friend and cultural and religious factors that play into decision-making. This card was developed as a collaboration between Futures Without Violence, HEART Women & Girls, and Advocates for Youth, with additional input from Muslim youth from diverse communities across the country.

EDIT: THE ARCHIVE OF THIS EVENT CAN BE FOUND HERE

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Sexual Assault

Providing Gender Inclusive Care To The LGBTQ Population After Sexual Assault

RTI’s Forensic Technology Center of Excellence is hosting a webinar, Providing Gender Inclusive Care To The LGBTQ Population After Sexual Assault. The session will be held August 30th at 1pm. From the website:

This webinar will discuss considerations to best serve sexual assault victims of the LGBTQ community, particularly transgender survivors, and present case studies to illustrate gender inclusive responses to sexual assault.

To ensure the care and safety of all sexual assault victims, it is imperative that sexual assault forensic examiners and investigators examine their practices to ensure all needs of the LGBTQ Community are met. This webinar will discuss and explore safe care of the sexual assault victims within the LGBTQ community and will focus on the transgender community to better understand the spectrum of gender. The presenter will discuss the difference between gender and sexuality and discuss ways to look at forensic practices to increase gender awareness and inclusion. The webinar will illustrate practical ways to incorporate education, awareness, and improve services provided currently to ensure victims from any culture may feel safer reporting sexual assault. Additionally, the presenter will discuss reasons why victims may not access care and look at the increased risk of sexual violence in the LGBTQ population. Further discussion will include the implications for investigators, forensic science examiners, and others working sexual assault cases involving gender minorities.

Detailed Learning Objectives:

1. Define the LGBTQ Community & explore the spectrum of gender

2. Explore the increased risk of sexual assault in the LGBTQ community

3. Discuss modifications to consider during a sexual assault examination, investigation, and processes

4. Deconstruct barriers to accessing care and reporting after a sexual assault

Register here.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Uncategorized

Since Last We Spoke, 7-30-18

Greeting from Columbia, South Carolina, where I will be working at the National Advocacy Center for the week with some of my very favorite collaborators. I had plenty of airport time in the last 48 hours, and a significant amount of time sitting in an actual airplane during that time (about 11ish total hours), so aside from watching movies–lots of movies–I read plenty. Here’s what caught my eye since last we spoke:

This Ronan Farrow longread on sexual misconduct by Les Moonves at CBS (you can also listen to the story via the link)

The rage I feel about this story (and even more so at the President’s heartless tweet in response)

White fragility

SASCA getting some love in the press; proud to have supported that effort

Remember her name: Nia Wilson

It was the online version of road rage

The whole conspiracy behind the story is bonkers

Love this story–good job, Air Force

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
DV/IPV Sexual Assault

Campus Sexual and Dating Violence: The Role of Campus Health Centers

Futures Without Violence has an upcoming webinar, Campus Sexual and Dating Violence: The Role of Campus Health Centers. The session will be held August 8th at 1:30pm ET. CMEs are available for physicians, but sadly, it doesn’t look like nursing CEUs are available for this one. From the announcement:

Intimate partner and sexual violence (IPV/SV) is highly prevalent on college campuses, impacting student health and educational attainment.  Campus health centers are a vital component of campus-wide efforts to prevent and respond to IPV/SV.  Though survivors are often discouraged from reporting or discussing their experiences through traditional pathways, health care providers on campuses are in a unique position to be able to offer support, as well as to provide universal education to all patients about healthy relationships and how violence can affect health and academic performance. This session will provide tools and resources for campus health center staff to address (IPV/SV) in their clinical practice, as well as engage in a range of campus-wide efforts. Presenters will outline best practices for implementing a comprehensive IPV/SV protocol that includes staff training, routine assessment in clinical encounters, student outreach, and partnership with other campus departments and community-based victim services providers.

This webinar is co-hosted by Futures Without Violence Health Resource Center and the American College Health Association.

As a result of attending this webinar, participants will be better able to:

  • Discuss the impact of IPV/SV on health and educational attainment
  • Implement a universal safety card-based intervention to prevent and respond to IPV/SV within their campus health center
  • Utilize the ACHA Addressing Sexual and Relationship Violence: A Trauma-Informed Approach toolkit
  • Identify next steps in preparing their campus health center to address IPV/SV

Register for the webinar here.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Sexual Assault

Medical Consent and Intoxicated Patients

Re-upping this post because there’s been some discussion on the IAFN listserv about intoxication and it’s worth reminding people there’s no BAC at which a patient must be before they are able to ask for emergency medical care (which is generally what a sexual assault medical forensic exam is considered). The same standard required to sign papers for a mortgage, or buy a car, or have elective surgery, or drive a car, is not the standard by which someone should be assessed for being able to consent to a medical-forensic exam. Please do not take my word for it (I do not provide legal advice–this is not legal advice). Please consult your hospital attorneys, risk managers and other smart professionals who get paid big money to help you make these decisions. However, if you need some supplemental materials to help them with the task, may I suggest, after you review the SAFEta website, some of the following:

A guide to decision-making capacity (Jones & Holden, 2004)

Assessment of Patients’ Competence to Consent to Treatment (Appelbaum, 2007; FULL-TEXT)

Mental capacity, legal competence and consent to treatment (Buchanan, 2004; FULL-TEXT)

Refusal of Emergency Medical Treatment: Case Studies and Ethical Foundations (Marco, et al., 2017)

Bonus for our readers in the UK, Consent to Treatment–adults who lack capacity (as part of BMA’s medical student ethics toolkit)

I hope people will consider moving away from strict quantitative determinations and employ a set of clinical assessment criteria that are more likely to be accurate across populations. I would also encourage you to consider what the existing standard is in your Emergency Department, including your Fast Track (or equivalent) and consider using those policies as a yardstick by which to measure the policy for your medical-forensic exam patients, depending on where those patients are also seen (so possibly different if outside your ED, maybe even more so if seen in a community-based clinic).

Again, not legal advice–simply food for thought based on my own clinical and professional experiences.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

 

Categories
Uncategorized

Since Last We Spoke, 7-23-18

I am working in Germany this week and didn’t think I’d have time to get a post up today. But then 2nd-night jet lag kicked in, which is usually the worst night for me, and all of the sudden I had plenty of time to read. So here’s what caught my eye in the middle of the night last night (since last we spoke):

Great reporting out of Minnesota on what’s not being done on sexual assault

The joy of missing out

President Obama’s excellent summer reading list

Sen. Booker at the border

This story is infuriating

The loveliest of essays on making a life from scratch

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Uncategorized

Better Presentations

I am regularly asked about tips for putting together better (read: engaging) presentations. IAFN is just around the corner, and many of you are undoubtedly thinking about the talks you will be giving, so I was especially happy to run across a great (and brief) post on the subject over at Seth’s Blog. He provides 5 actionable ways to create better presentations, and I endorse the whole thing, particularly #5:

Be here now. The reason you’re giving a presentation and not sending us a memo is that your personal presence, your energy and your humanity add value. Don’t hide them. Don’t use a prescribed format if that format doesn’t match the best version of you.

It’ll take you a minute to read, and you’ll be glad you did.

 

Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.

Categories
Articles of Note Child Abuse DV/IPV Elder Abuse/Neglect Sexual Assault

Articles of Note: July 2018 Edition

It’s time once again for Articles of Noite, our monthly romp through the new peer-reviewed literature. As usual, it’s not exhaustive–just the articles that have caught my attention and feel relevant to our practice. It feels like there’s a lot of good stuff to be found in this month’s roundup–I encourage you to spend some time wandering around the list. With the exception of a few noted citations, all links lead to PubMed abstracts.

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Have you checked out the FHO store lately? You can find our newest research brief, Aging Bruises Based On Color, plus our original guide, Injury Following Consensual Sex. Both available now for electronic download.