By Rep. Muffy Davis
Sexual assault survivors in Blaine County don’t have a lot of choices when it comes to providing police with a key piece of evidence needed to catch their attackers—namely, a sexual assault forensic kit. Not enough local professionals are trained to process the kits, which means survivors may be forced to drive to larger cities like Boise where trained staff work. It’s a similar story throughout rural Idaho.
That’s about to change.
Idaho is becoming a national leader when it comes to protecting and caring for survivors of sexual violence. Working with law enforcement and stakeholders all over Idaho, lawmakers have passed a series of laws impacting the way sexual assault forensic kits are processed, analyzed, tracked and—importantly—paid for.
As a newly elected legislator representing a rural district, I am encouraged by these positive changes and the impact they’re having all over the state. I am committed to making sure the existing changes remain permanent and protections for survivors are expanded.
The next big step is happening right now – and it’s directed primarily at rural Idaho medical centers. The Idaho State Police Forensic Services is utilizing a federal grant to hire a statewide coordinator to provide resources to hospitals to train more Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (“SANE”). The goal is to extend standardized training and procedures required to conduct sexual assault exams to hospitals across Idaho. They hope to train an additional 250 nurses statewide.
As it stands now, most of the professionals trained to process sexual assault exams work in Idaho’s large population centers. That’s a big problem for survivors in rural areas who must travel great distances to medical centers where the exams can be conducted. How frustrating that must be when there’s a hospital just down the road. Anyone who has been through such a horrific event should be able to stay within their own community where they can get emotional support, professional care and humane treatment. A long trip out of town away from family and community support only makes a traumatic situation that much worse.
That’s why these training courses are so important.
SANE certification courses will be held in late January/early February 2019 in the following locations:
Treasure Valley: Jan. 28–Feb. 1, St. Luke’s in Meridian
Pocatello: Jan. 21–25, Portneuf Medical Center
Medical professionals throughout southern and eastern Idaho can contact the Idaho State Police at (208) 884-7280, or by email at christina.straub@isp.idaho.gov for more information.
This is a vital first step toward training medical professionals all over Idaho so sexual assault survivors can receive competent and humane care in their own communities. It is my hope that we can continue, and even expand, the training to keep their skills sharp.
As with so many issues in Idaho, our residents should not be treated differently depending on their ZIP Code. Survivors of sexual assault, local medical centers and local law enforcement across the state should all have the same tools to catch perpetrators, process important evidence and treat survivors with dignity.
Please encourage your local medical professionals to pick up the phone and sign up for the SANE training. It could end up being the most important call in a local survivor’s life.
Muffy Davis is a member of the Idaho State House of Representatives for District 26.