8 Winnipeg Free Press - saturDAY, May 10, 2014
N URSING WEEK NATIONAL
Care on Call 24/7 Sexual assault victims find comfort in SANE setting
By Jennifer McFee – For the Free Press
Specially trained nurses offer a sense of compassion and comfort to patients during the difficult time after a sexual as- sault. Since the late 1990s, the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) program has provided medical and forensic care to people who have been sexually assaulted. As coordinators of the program, Candace Wylie and Ashley Smith lead a 14-person team that’s on call and ready to help 24-hours a day, seven days a week. In a specialized suite at Health Sciences Centre, the team sees men, women and transgender patients from across the Winnipeg Health Region, as well as children from across the province. Services are available to adults and adolescents with- in five days of the assault. For pre-pubescent children, visits should occur within 72 hours. Coming from an emergency background, Wylie is pleased to provide quick and comfortable care at a time when patients need it most. “One of the things I love about this is that we can give them one-on-one care at the time that they need it,” she says. “We have our own suite that we bring them back to. It’s com- pletely different. It doesn’t look like a hospital at all.” Apart from the exam room, the suite contains two separate
interview room so the patient feels as comfortable as possible without having to leave the suite. “When they come in, the whole exam process can take three to four hours from the time that we initially see them to when they go home. That time is basically spent in the suite,” Wylie says. “We try to help them with the whole discharge planning and try to make sure that they have a safe place to go and that everything is set up when they leave here.” Team members work closely with Klinic Community Health Centre, which sends a volunteer advocate for the patients. “They are there simply as a support to help walk them through the process, whether it’s to be there for the police interview or whatever the patient may need,” Wylie says. “They also provide them with a package regarding counsel- ling and followup resources for once they leave.” After patients leave the hospital, the SANE team also main- tains contact. “We do some followup with all of our patients who come through here,” Wylie says. “We try to give them a phone call to make sure that things are going OK and see if there’s any questions and concerns that they have.”
Candace Wylie (left) and Ashley Smith lead the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) team at Health Sciences Centre. Photo by Darcy Finley
sitting areas where the furniture and decor create a comforting, homey ambience. Police can take a videotaped statement in an
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There’s Nothing More Important Than Your Family’s Health.
Greg Selinger
Dave Chomiak MLA for Kildonan 204-334-5060 DaveChomiak.ca
Deanne Crothers MLA for St. James 204-415-0883 DeanneCrothers.ca
Greg Dewar
Dave Gaudreau MLA for St. Norbert 204-261-1794 DaveGaudreau.ca
Jennifer Howard MLA for Fort Rouge 204-946-0272 JenniferHoward.ca
Kerri Irvin-Ross MLA for Fort Richmond 204-475-9433 KerriIrvinRoss.ca
Bidhu Jha MLA for Radisson 204-222-0074 BidhuJha.ca
Ron Kostyshyn MLA for Swan River 204-734-4900 RonKostyshyn.ca
MLA for St. Boniface Premier of Manitoba
MLA for Selkirk 204-482-7066 1-855-695-1361 GregDewar.ca
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Flor Marcelino MLA for Logan 204-788-0800 FlorMarcelino.ca
Theresa Oswald MLA for Seine River 204-255-7840 TheresaOswald.ca
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Drew Caldwell MLA for Brandon East
Kevin Chief MLA for Point Douglas 204-421-9126 KevinChief.ca
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Sharon Blady MLA for Kirkfield Park
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Thank you, nurses!
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