Nursevillage.com - Career Options : Forensic Nursing Under Investigation

CSI, CSI: Miami, Cold Case, Law & Order, Forensic Files, Crossing Jordan…the list could go on. That’s because on every night of the week there is at least one program that deals with the topic of forensic science. The entertainment industry has taken an unheralded profession and made it into an exciting, dangerous, adventurous, you might even say a glamorous career of nailing bad guys and murderers.

Time to get slapped back into reality! Do you really think forensic nurses spend their nights sleuthing around crimes scenes and hovering over dead bodies? Or maybe you believe they spend their days in a lab single-handedly re-enacting a crime? It’s understandable if you do think this way, after all these are the images that we see on television. The media, even though it misrepresents and misinterprets the field of forensics, has still had a positive impact. It has put a spotlight on a critical element of crime investigation and turned it into a sought after nursing specialty.

Dead or Alive It’s Still Forensics
Another common misconception thanks to TV-land is that forensics deals only with dead victims. Nope. Not the case, live victims are just as important. Any time you are interacting with the legal system via police department or court system, that by definition is forensics because it has to do with the law. In fact, forensic nurses spend most of their working hours examining victims of sexual assault, child abuse, domestic violence, and elder abuse.

Important things to know about forensic nursing:

The Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner- Adult and Adolescent (SANE-A) designation offered by IAFN is the only one of its kind.

To take the certification exam you must:

	Hold a current unrestricted license as an RN and have a minimum of two years full-time equivalent practice as an RN
	Have completed an adult/adolescent SANE education program that includes either a minimum of 40 contact hours of instruction or 3 semester hours of classroom instruction in an accredited school of nursing
	Have had clinical supervision until able to demonstrate competency in SANE practice

The current cost of the exam is $225 for IAFN members and $350 for non-members.

For more information about the dates and location of the SANE-A exams to be held in 2004, or to learn more about forensic nursing in general, visit the IAFN website at www.forensicnurse.org or contact Kimberly Marrero IAFN executive secretary, at (865) 256-2425, e-mail iafn@ajj.com

The term forensic nurse was officially coined in 1992 when about 70 nurses gathered in Minneapolis for what was billed as the first national convention of sexual assault nurses. This meeting led to the formation of the International Association of Forensic Nurses (IAFN). In 1995 the American Nurses Association officially recognized it as a specialty. And in April 2002 the IAFN held its first international certification exam. Today the practice of forensic nursing offers an unprecedented means of improving the community response to human abuse and interpersonal violence.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T…Just A Little Bit
Nurses have become an important asset in forensic data collection, but many healthcare facilities across the country have yet to recognize their full potential. With the exception of the sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE), the medical and legal professions are hesitant to include the nurse in any forensic activity.

Many law enforcement and medical personnel find it difficult to understand the importance that a nurse, educated in forensic science, can have in assisting in the accurate identification and collections of forensic evidence. Nurses can do more than carry charts and follow orders. They can offer knowledgeable assistance. As part of a comprehensive healthcare evaluation, a qualified forensic nurse can provide a victim the opportunity to have evidence collected in a sensitive and effective manner, minimizing additional trauma and increasing the potential for a successful prosecution.

Quick, Happy Endings
It would be ideal, but not very realistic, that every case could be wrapped up in an hour or even a few days like it happens on TV. But as Joe Hawthorne¹, a teacher of a forensic identification course at City College of San Francisco, explains the scientist on “CSI” seem to complete their investigations in a few days when in truth analysis of DNA evidence and even fingerprints can take months.

Hawthorne¹ also notes that when working for the Police Department, he has noticed the fans of TV forensic dramas are used to quick happy endings and often expect more than real crime-scene investigators can deliver.

“What I’ve found is that when we go out to people’s homes who have been victimized, they tend to expect more from us because of what’s shown on TV,” he said. “They want to help us, but in trying to help they sometimes hinder us.”

Catching Criminals In Real Life
As mentioned earlier in the article, some positive has come from television shows like CSI. The shows have made people more aware of the importance of preserving crime scene evidence. This leads to the idea that every nurse working in an emergency room should have some forensic training. Not all nurses have the desire to become forensic nurses, but all nurses have the desire and willingness to do the best for their patients. Offering regular programs in basic forensic science will promote confidence in the nursing practice when dealing with forensic issues. This would allow for fewer errors in recognition, collection, and preservation of evidence². It is important to know when treating a victim that timely collection of evidence can be the difference between catching the perpetrator and not.

As Patti Hancock³, an RN and Forensic Nurse Specialist, explains, “Nurses and physicians in emergency settings balance their actions with objectivity and justice. This requires them to think “forensically” while providing the patient, whether perpetrator or victim, with medical care. She goes on to say, “It’s not the medical team’s job to determine the exact person who committed the crime and inflicted the trauma. Their job is to collect the evidence in an unbiased manner. The evidence, if collected properly, will tell its own story of the events.”

See You In Court
Although not every healthcare facility or law enforcement agency has fully brought into the idea of forensic nurses being key players on the forensic team, it’s happening. According to Karen Coleman⁴, RN and SANE Coordinator, certification is not mandatory in order to work as a forensic nurse, but she believes it gives added credibility. This is important because one of the key parts of the forensic nurse’s role, in addition to performing the comprehensive hospital exam, is to give testimony in court.

“The legal system is beginning to recognize the expertise of forensic nurse examiners and we are beginning to be considered as qualified experts,” Coleman says. If you have taken a state-approved or nationally approved certification exam and passed it, then at least you are able to say that you can be considered an expert with more knowledge than the average person in the field of sexual assault.”

Take Action
So what kind of experience do you need to have a career in forensic nursing? You must be at least a Registered Nurse and must complete specialized training to meet the standards IAFN outlines for forensics nurses. Those standards include 40 hours of didactics and 40 hours of clinical work. Nurses are then trained in the handling and collection of evidence, such as hairs, fibers and swabs of fluids collected for DNA testing. Additional training is needed to handle forensics on children.

Nurses must also learn to master a number of forensic tools that will help in documenting a case. This equipment can range from easy-to-use items, like a digital camera for photographing visible injuries, to such complex devices as an Omnichrome, which can detect bruising beneath the skins surface. Nurses may also be asked to work with special cameras used specifically for sexual assault cases. Operating high-tech equipment and making sure all the documentation is done correctly is one of the challenges of the job.

Crime Pays, Unfortunately
As long as violent crimes are being committed there will be a need for forensic nursing. It’s a fact that’s sad but true. Forensic nursing is gaining visibility. And now with new certification coming into effect, it’s a specialty that is up and coming and it’s here to stay.

[3] ufcw141nurses.org “Forensic Nursing” Patti Hancock RN, BSN, MSNc. Forensic Specialist

		Colleen Bellini
		"This is a job where you use your head and your heart" More>