Sexual Assualt Photography

renerian, BSN, RN · May 10, 2004

As a former sexual assault victim I would have decked anyone with a camera coming at me. Sorry. Thanks for doing what you do. That would not be my cup of tea at all.

Good luck with your presentation though,

renerian

Owney · May 10, 2004

hi everyone, i'm not a nurse, i just play one on tv, no, just kidding, i'm a police officer in the us and a crime scene tech. i need some help from you sanes out there in putting together a program for an upcoming conference in my area where i have been asked to teach a course on sexual assault photography. since i am a male i do not get much experience in this (none really). i know a great deal about photography but i need to have a presentation that addresses this sensitive subject. any help will be greatly appreciated

cs1295,

so nice to see an outsider asking nurses (instead of doctors or hospital administators) about nursing. i could ask about crime at the mayor's office, but you folks give me the real deal.

i been an er nurse for over 20 years. i've attended many forensic workshops, and passed more than one written exam on sexual assualt forensics. i could write a book about dwi forensics, but my experience in sexual assualt is almost non-existant. i have the same problem you do, being male, i have always been able to find a female nurse or doctor when it comes time to deal with the sensitive area of history and physical exams.

you are dealing with the constellation of my profession and two of my favorite hobbies. i have always been a lawyer wanna-be, and i started fooling with cameras when i discovered my father's cameras and darkroom.

what makes your eneavor so much more challenging are all of the privacy acts that have been enacted. violate chain of evidence or privacy in your case and the critter's gonna walk. don't think so? what happened when yamaguchi's folks blew it with the specimins in the oj trial? of course a lot of that was "law, according to johnny cochrane," (johnny is a good reminder of why i could never be a lawyer).

i know that there are forensic nurses on this board, and you might see if there is a discussion in the forensic area.

i look forward to some good information from nurses who know a lot more about this than you and i.

good luck,

:rolleyes:

z's playa · May 10, 2004

What exactly do you do? Do you take pictures to help out the Crown's case?

Wow..pretty sensitive job I agree renarian. I'm not a nurse yet so I feel I can't be much help but I can tell you I was a third party with my friend at the hospital in an assault incident but that's as far as it goes for me. Good luck with the presentation

FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I · May 11, 2004

As a former sexual assault victim I would have decked anyone with a camera coming at me. Sorry. Thanks for doing what you do. That would not be my cup of tea at all.
Good luck with your presentation though,
renerian

The reason we victims feel this way concerning photos being taken of us victims, is because we have been violated and traumatized already, and taking photos would only add to that feeling. It is tantamount to putting our sexual assault on the big screen for entertainment, and we are the star. We already feel like a piece of meat that has been poisoned. GET IT????

renerian, BSN, RN · May 11, 2004

You hit the nail on the head. Horrific experience. Someone has to help though. I just would not be able to handle it I guess.

renerian

FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I · May 12, 2004

You hit the nail on the head. Horrific experience. Someone has to help though. I just would not be able to handle it I guess.
renerian

Me either. It would take some kind of person who would be able to disassociate her/himself from the experience to even allow the photography.

Like you, I was there too.

obliviousRN · May 13, 2004

Having just attended a workshop for forensic photography during sexual assault exams, I would say focus on technique! You don't have to talk about the specifics of what you'll be taking pictures of, but present how to do close ups, include measuring devices, focus, overall views, lighting, differences in camera's (35mm, digital, polaroid), etc.

The gentleman that did our presentation was excellent! He was very informative on instructing us how to take close ups of wounds, proper focus techniques, proper lighting, etc. It was very helpful.

HarfdMedlegal · May 13, 2004

The reason we victims feel this way concerning photos being taken of us victims, is because we have been violated and traumatized already, and taking photos would only add to that feeling. It is tantamount to putting our sexual assault on the big screen for entertainment, and we are the star. We already feel like a piece of meat that has been poisoned. GET IT????

Frances:

HI everyone, I'm new on this board. As a Forensic Nurse Examiner, I appreciate & respect your feelings. Unfortunately, good photos can be critical if a patient decides to prosecute. We try to make the process the least traumatic as possible. In actuality, I've never had a patient object yet. It's just the two of us in the room, unless it's an inmate who needs guards, and we set the tone of compassion, respect & dignity from the beginning of the exam- way before any photos are taken. By the time we get to taking pics, the patients are usually pretty calmed down and agreeable.

FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I · May 13, 2004

Frances:
HI everyone, I'm new on this board. As a Forensic Nurse Examiner, I appreciate & respect your feelings. Unfortunately, good photos can be critical if a patient decides to prosecute. We try to make the process the least traumatic as possible. In actuality, I've never had a patient object yet. It's just the two of us in the room, unless it's an inmate who needs guards, and we set the tone of compassion, respect & dignity from the beginning of the exam- way before any photos are taken. By the time we get to taking pics, the patients are usually pretty calmed down and agreeable.

Oh, well that's different. Thank you for telling me that. I'll bet that a female Forensic Nurse Examiner would get even more co-operation though. I'm sorry, but the picture threw me back to my own traumatic experiences, and they altered my self-image tremendously. I am over that now, though. Thanks be to God.

veetach · Dec 12, 2004

Frances:
HI everyone, I'm new on this board. As a Forensic Nurse Examiner, I appreciate & respect your feelings. Unfortunately, good photos can be critical if a patient decides to prosecute. We try to make the process the least traumatic as possible. In actuality, I've never had a patient object yet. It's just the two of us in the room, unless it's an inmate who needs guards, and we set the tone of compassion, respect & dignity from the beginning of the exam- way before any photos are taken. By the time we get to taking pics, the patients are usually pretty calmed down and agreeable.

I agree. I am a SANE and I have never had a problem obtaining consent for photographs. Light seems to be an issue when we take photos, usually our exam rooms have fluorescent lighting and it can really be a problem. of course you will want to have sufficient measuring landmarks and when it comes to technique, quick and concise are very important. Hope this helps.