is rape reportable?

[Holly.G]

if a patient tells you that they've been raped... is that something that should be held confidential?

[BrnEyedGirl, BSN, MSN, RN, APRN]

I was actually just asking in regards to a response I overhead from a law enforcement worker who told a 19 year old girl that if she had told her doctor she got raped, during a checkup it would remain confidential. She herself made it clear that she didn't want to report her rapist. That just got me thinking. That's beyond me... personally i think that If were obligated to report abuse weather its child abuse, adult, elderly or spouse then whats the difference with rape? If a 19 year old girl came in a told you that she was raped, shes obviously a victim of crime. I see rape as physical abuse.

You need to check with your state laws. I am a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner as well as an ER nurse. In my state I am only obligated to report abuse (including rape) if the pt is a minor, an elderly person, is disabled to the point of needing care from others, or has a gun shot wound, or a dog bite. The exception here is that also in my state minors do not need adult consent for pregnancy c/o, or tx for sexually transmitted dx. If a 14yr old says she was raped, doesn't want to call the police but does want to be tx for STD's,..I treat her,..encourage her to report,..if she refuses I contact Social services and they handle it from there.

In your case with a 19yr old,..if she doesn't want to tell,..I can only encourage her and give her resources to follow up. If I report it I'm in trouble. The laws are different from state to state so check it out.

[~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN]

Along the lines of the drunk minor- don't the parents have the right to request a copy of all lab resport pertaining to their minor son?

I am sure they can, but would most parents even think to do this? If they had no reason to suspect he was drinking I highly doubt they would request labs unless they are in the profession. Trying to read and understand the labs would probably be foreign. But other then lack of knowledge I don't see why they can't.

[DirtyBlackSocks]

Check with your state laws - it's as easy as calling your local police department and asking the front desk.

In most instances - as I understand it - you are obligated to report some one who has committed a crime, but if some one is victim to the crime it is on them whether they would like to move forward with it or not.

[Not_A_Hat_Person, RN]

In my old state (Massachusetts), rapes were reported to law enforcement. The report included the date, time, and location of the rape, and the victim's age and sex, but not their name. If the victim was a minor under 16, DSS was informed. If the victim wanted to press charges, that was a different matter.