Making the SANE and Advocacy Components Operational
For information on training sexual assault forensic examiners and helping them maintain their skills over time, see the SANE Development & Operation Guide, and National Training Standards for Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examiners.
Advocacy agencies seeking guidance regarding training advocates to provide hospital accompaniment are encouraged to contact their state sexual assault coalition as well as the National Sexual Assault Coalition Resource Sharing Project.
Training
Before project implementation, FRIS coordinated adult and pediatric SANE trainings for newly recruited nurses. Near the end of the project year, both trainings were repeated, allowing those who had already completed the training to attend as a refresher course while also training a new group of SANEs.
The project administrator and FRIS assisted the nurses in arranging opportunities for them to complete the clinical component of the trainings. They also helped the nurses work out the logistics of completing the orientation required by the host hospital and related paperwork. Scheduling and attending the orientation was challenging for the nurses because they all had other jobs.18
FRIS also coordinated training for the newly recruited volunteer advocates, followed by a train-the-trainer program for advocate coordinators and other rape crisis center staff. The advocate coordinators conducted additional trainings with new volunteers during the grant project period and held regular volunteer supervision and continuing education meetings.