Male nurses and SANE

casi, ASN, RN · Aug 25, 2005

I say go for your dreams.

There may not be much of a need for male sane nurses, and hospitals might be hesitant about hiring a male sane nurse. I guess I would get in by working as an ER nurse and obtaining the SANE certification. I would think that if they saw that they had a good nurse on their hands that has a passion for helpping victims of sexual assult they would use you as a SANE nurse. I would definately think it was a plus if they could give the sexual assult victims a choice between a male and a female nurse.

I don't know all the interworkings of hospitals or SANE nursing, I'm still a student, but I'm sure there's a way.

I also have to say I think it's wonderful you want to do this. It takes an awesome person to go into that area of nursing.

Frosty · Aug 25, 2005

Thanks Casi !

I didn't know I did either, to be honest with you. I had always thought more along the lines of counseling or something. The forensic aspect of ithad never occured to me. Thanks to all of you who have posted here. It has really made me do some soul searching and look deep to see where my convictions lay.

Frosty · Sep 9, 2005

Just a quick update for those interested.

Since I started considering working with male rape victims, I have started working on some issues myself. I was gang raped 15 years ago while in the military. This was ongoing for about 11 months. This said, I have joined a group to help male sexual assault victims.

I know this is a sensitive issue for many, but I simply cannot ignore this part of my past. If I cannot turn my suffering into healing for somone else, then THEY won. I can only follow my heart.

As I have been doing this, I have been doing more research and discovering whatever I can find. One thing I do know is this. In the last year in my service area, 78 people were turned away from rape crisis center due to not having a single volunteer on staff. The 3 area local hospitals have no nursing staff trained in doing rape kits, followup, etc at all. The local police handle all of this. The rape kits are being done by nurses who are given direction by police officers. While I agree that male nurses taking care of female victims would be traumatizing, I was heartbroken to learn this information. I truly feel that a nurse, male or female, trained in forensics and SANE could provide a better healing environment than having the police have to discuss and direct nurses in front of the victim.

I still am not sure, as I am facing opposition on many fronts, nurses, educators, advocates. I just wish that society would redirect this energy into education others about the needs of male victims too.

palesarah · Sep 9, 2005

Frosty, I'm so sorry to hear of your experience. I think you have a lot to offer as a future SANE nurse and hope you don't give up on your plans. It's sad that there are no forensic trained nurses in your area. Perhaps you could find some other nurses interested in training together and start some sort of program in your area?

A nurse who works per-diem on my unit is a SANE nurse, and was telling me a bit about it recently. From what I recall, in my area, SANE nurses volunteer for on-call slots, and can cover several hospitals. I'm not even certain if they are paid when they are called in. But there is always a trained SANE nurse available to every hospital in the area.

Frosty · Sep 9, 2005

palesarah,

I am still checking out various avenues to forensics in the area. I mentioned my goal to work with male victims to my advisor. She informed me the only SANE work being done in the area is in another state 3 hours away. Something has to be done! First tho, I have to survive my classes! :chuckle

Change does not happen overnight. One spark alone might not ignite a fire, but combined with others, that spark becomes a flame.

jlamb · Sep 13, 2005

Thanks for the positive response to my last post. I worried that I was being too strong, but I felt the need to do so anyway.
Jlamb -are you meeting with any success with the Governor's Task Force?
Timothy - I understand 100% where you are coming from. The incidents are underreported. Also the stastistical information is rather outdated This was 15 years ago. Male self perception and empowerment has changed a lot in the last decade. Also, as more people are informed, more men become willing to come forward. For myself, I think a career could be made in say San Fransisco or Chicago working exclusively with male victims.
Forrest

The task force begins its work in Oct. Like you say, change takes place slowly. It will be interesting to see what comes of all of this. Our goal is to have a SANE center in every county in Oklahoma. In my area, the SANE nurses are volunteer. This is not to say it will always be so. In fact, we want to be able to compensate them in some way.

At the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center where I attend, we recently got into an ethical discussion of male on male rape, and female on male rape. To anyone out there who doesn't believe the last, whether you agree with it or not, it happens. Period. A female on male along with male on male rape took place this past week in our jurisdiction. I won't tell you the ages--it would astound you and make you ill.

Making a living as a SANE nurse may not be accomplished at this time. Nursing isn't all about making money, it is about caring enough to give time and energy to care in which you believe. I have just spent 7 long hard days taking care of the evacuees of Katrina. We had 1400 of all ages, had a multitude of serious illnesses, two deaths, and two births. All of those hours for every medical person on the base were volunteer, and will be for the next year.

If you really want to be a SANE nurse, when the training opportunity presents itself, go for it. Take all the other forensic nursing classes and law classes as well, then you will be able to make a living doing forensic nursing. Just remember, do it for the RIGHT reason, which isn't just money.

Jackie

Corvette Guy · Sep 13, 2005

I was a victim of gang rape occurring over a period of 18 months while serving in the military.

May I ask what military branch you served? I find [not calling you a liar, btw] this hard to believe to have gone on for 18 months in the military! Sounds more like prison, to me.

Frosty · Sep 13, 2005

To anyone out there who doesn't believe the last, whether you agree with it or not, it happens. Period. A female on male along with male on male rape took place this past week in our jurisdiction. I won't tell you the ages--it would astound you and make you ill.

No, it would not astound me. Earlier in life it would have, but not now. While I am pursuing my interest in forensic nursing, I am researching the various facets of male rape. Very little surprises me anymore. Pains me, yes.

Thank you so much for your support on this topic. It has meant a lot. I am sure now this is what I am meant to do, and not for the money either. Life is too short to focuas on money alone.

Frosty · Sep 13, 2005

May I ask what military branch you served? I find [not calling you a liar, btw] this hard to believe to have gone on for 18 months in the military! Sounds more like prison, to me.

I was in the Air Force from June 1990 - Feb 1992. And, yes it felt like a prison. I went all the way to the base commander and got absolutely no justice. After discharge, I discovered that there are no records concerning this in my files - no medical, psychological, nothing.

By the way, here is a statistic: In fiscal year 2003, for example, 10,693 male veterans told the VA they had experienced such treatment, compared with 9,348 women.

csiguy82 · Jan 10, 2006

Hi... I find what you all are talking about to be interesting. I, too, am a male and deeply inetrested in Forensic Nursing... I too have been running the criticism regarding a male's place in sexual assault... I know men and boys are victims as well... I understand the notion that women may not want a male nurse and that is respectable... but I think there is a place for male nurses... I am currently finishing up my last semester in my BSN program and wish to get a Masters in Forensic Nursing...

Something inetrested happened today... I was talking to a SART program Coordinator about the field and she explained to me that she has seen in a few cases where male victims do not want to be examined by a male nurse... but i am not going to let that discourage me in my education or pursuit in Forensic Nursing... I currently have a degree in Criminal Jsutice and a certificate in Forensic Science, and think that my skills can be utilized on either a practical level and/or prevention and education level...

So even if you cannot build a career in performing test, your certification and advanced education will hopefully allow you educate and teach others... you are still providing a wonderful service toward the cause...

My plan right now is to finish my degree...work for a ED, while pursuing my Masters Degree in Forensic Nursing...and then possibly Law School to be a sex crime prosecutor or PhD in public Health because this issue is a public problem....

So I say good luck and dont stop until you are satisfied with what you are doing

DaFreak71 · Jan 13, 2006

Just a quick update for those interested.
Since I started considering working with male rape victims, I have started working on some issues myself. I was gang raped 15 years ago while in the military. This was ongoing for about 11 months. This said, I have joined a group to help male sexual assault victims.
I know this is a sensitive issue for many, but I simply cannot ignore this part of my past. If I cannot turn my suffering into healing for somone else, then THEY won. I can only follow my heart.
As I have been doing this, I have been doing more research and discovering whatever I can find. One thing I do know is this. In the last year in my service area, 78 people were turned away from rape crisis center due to not having a single volunteer on staff. The 3 area local hospitals have no nursing staff trained in doing rape kits, followup, etc at all. The local police handle all of this. The rape kits are being done by nurses who are given direction by police officers. While I agree that male nurses taking care of female victims would be traumatizing, I was heartbroken to learn this information. I truly feel that a nurse, male or female, trained in forensics and SANE could provide a better healing environment than having the police have to discuss and direct nurses in front of the victim.
I still am not sure, as I am facing opposition on many fronts, nurses, educators, advocates. I just wish that society would redirect this energy into education others about the needs of male victims too.

Hi Frosty!

I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, a nursing student and a volunteer at a crisis center for victims of sexual assault. I wanted to reach out to you to let you know that I fully support your decision to do work that is meaningful to you. May I offer a few observations?

I got the feeling from your post that you are just now really beginning to deal with the fallout of being sexually violated. I would really urge you to keep researching the SANE program, but to not get too involved with it until you feel like you've healed as much as possible from your trauma...and then I'd wait another few years after that.

The other thing I want to tell you about is that you can play a vital role in the healing of others who have sexually assaulted in many ways. One way is to volunteer at a crisis center like I am doing. I handle phone calls from rape/incest victims. Another service of our agency is that some of our staff are what we call First Responders...they are called at all hours of the day and night to accompany the victims at the hospital so that they will have a supportive person to be there during the examination. We have a few men who are first responders so that in the event of a patient requesting a male, they will be there to serve them. If I were in your situation, I would consider doing this type of work first to see how you handle it and to see if this is indeed what you want to do.

I wish you the very best. I am sorry that you suffered being violated. You have a long journey to recovery, but a worthwhile one. :kiss

Adri

DaFreak71 · Jan 13, 2006

May I ask what military branch you served? I find [not calling you a liar, btw] this hard to believe to have gone on for 18 months in the military! Sounds more like prison, to me.

Just a little bit of advice from a fledgling student and a fellow survivor of childhood sexual abuse....it is NEVER constructive to tell a survivor that their accounts of assault are "hard to believe". It's hard enough for us to believe it happened to us, but by the time we accept it and feel strong enough to share it with others, the last thing we want or need is doubt. :crying2:

I know you didn't mean any offense whatsoever. I just wanted to put this information out there.

Adri