Throughout 2018, Cleveland Clinic is offering a highly specialized two-day clinical skills training course for sexual assault nurse examiners. Approved by the International Association of Forensic Nurses (IAFN), Cleveland Clinic’s Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) course is designed to provide advanced skills training to those who provide care to individuals who have experienced acts of violence such as sexual assault, child abuse, elder abuse and more.

The in-depth, two-day course follows and teaches strict criteria set forth by IAFN. It covers a number of imperative forensic/SANE nursing skills training topics – from sexual assault techniques and pelvic assessments to forensic photography. Course participants also practice sexual assault exam scenarios and have the opportunity to participate in question and answer sessions as well as evaluations.

Key course takeaways

Cleveland Clinic’s SANE two-day Clinical Skills Training is taught by specially trained forensic/SANE nursing staff – each of whom is experienced in injury/medical assessment, treatment of sexual abuse patients, patient safety planning after discharge, and more. Faculty members include:

• Elizabeth A. Booth, BSN, RN, SANE-A, Forensic/SANE, Cleveland Clinic Fairview Hospital
• Laura Gaertner, BSN, RN, Forensic/SANE, Cleveland Clinic Fairview Hospital
• Lily Holderbaum, BSN, RN, SANE-A, Forensic/SANE, Cleveland Clinic Akron General
• Michele Reali-Sorrell, MSN, RN, Forensic/SANE, Cleveland Clinic
• Heather Tripp, BSN, RN, Forensic/SANE, Cleveland Clinic Fairview Hospital

Upon completion of the course, nurses will be able to:

• Differentiate specific structures of the female genital anatomy.
• Describe the mechanism of action of toluidine blue dye; identify appropriate location for dye application; demonstrate proper application and removal of dye.
• Demonstrate the proper use of a catheter for hymen visualization.
• Describe speculum insertion and removal techniques; manipulate speculum to visualize cervix; demonstrate performance of speculum examination.
• Identify critical components of clinical photography; demonstrate effective use of camera to document findings.
• Identify key components of effective history taking; demonstrate effective history-taking skills.
• Identify key components of physical exam; demonstrate complete head-to-toe assessment.
• Prepare adolescents and adults for ano-genital exam.
• Identify rationale behind collection of specific evidentiary specimens.
• Demonstrate proper body orifice and surface collection of evidence.
• Demonstrate proper material evidence collection and sealing of evidentiary materials.
• Demonstrate proper maintenance of chain of custody for evidentiary materials.
• Formulate a sexual assault-specific plan of care based; verbalize and defend care plan; explain care options to the simulated patient.

Course participants may earn 16.0 continuing nursing education credits by the IAFN (accredited by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation) for completion of the course.

“In this highly specialized nursing field, continuing education is emphasized and certification is encouraged,” says Booth, SANE Course Coordinator. “It is highly important for forensic/SANE nurses to stay up-to-date on the latest training through continuing education, and this two-day skills training course is designed to further educate and prepare nurses for the very real scenarios they could encounter in their daily practice.”

Register today

Remaining dates for Cleveland Clinic’s 2018 SANE two-day Clinical Skills Training course are as follows:

• Aug. 25-26
• Sept. 29-30
• Oct. 20-21
• Nov. 17-18

Each course day begins with registration from 7:30 to 8 a.m. and concludes at 5 p.m. Lunch is provided and the course is held at Cleveland Clinic Fairview Hospital’s Family Medicine location. View more information on course location, directions, cost and more.

Attendees must register one month prior to the first day of the course (registration is not available on site) and must have already completed a 40-hour Adult/Adolescent Didactic prerequisite course.

Don’t miss this highly beneficial learning opportunity – register today!

For more information about Cleveland Clinic’s Simulation Lab or becoming a SANE trained nurse, contact forensicsim@ccf.org.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Before registering for the SANE course, interested participants must first complete a 40-hour Adult/Adolescent Didactic course. Following completion of the Adult/Adolescent Didactic course, the SANE trained nurse will further train in Cleveland Clinic’s Simulation Lab on live teaching assistants. All assistants have an interest in preparing and educating SANE trained nurses for the real-life scenarios they will encounter.