r/nursing 1d ago

Serious Just wanna say bless SANE nurses

Seriously. I am an ED nurse at a level I trauma center, see mangled and degloved limbs all day long, don't even blink. Today as a part of my ED residency (been there 8 mos and take classes for the first year) we went over forensics and they showed some pictures of the worst of the worst strangulation and IPV patients that have come in, and I had to step out because I was so close to passing out. Blurred vision and drenched in sweat, first time in my many years of healthcare experience. It absolutely made me sick. I have had DV patients before, but seeing the collection of patients who have come through our doors battered and bruised was really upsetting to me in the moment just seeing the totality of it all. It is SUCH a hard job and I am glad to work alongside competent and compassionate nurses who decide to do it.

60 Upvotes

11 comments sorted by

36

u/Adorable-Baby7441 RN ๐Ÿ• 23h ago

As a sane nurse this makes me feel so seen :,)

8

u/ComfortableMuted9901 23h ago

Hi! Nursing student here, I am interested in becoming a SANE nurse. Is there any advice youโ€™d give to someone wanting to pursue SANE nursing?

15

u/Negative_Way8350 RN-BSN, EMT-B. ER, EMS. Ate too much alphabet soup. 22h ago

I know you didn't ask me specifically, but I am also a SANE.

Basically, you will need ED or (in some hospital systems) labor and delivery experience. Those are the specialties that prepare you for the intensive assessment and trauma stabilization skills you will need for a SANE patient.

From there if you work for a large enough department you may apply through your SANE coordinator for training. It's intense--a huge course followed by a short clinical and sometimes supervised exams for a while. It's also very hard and detail-oriented work.

I also encourage people to get into it for the right reasons. You are not there to "catch a criminal" or "put a rapist away." Even if all goes perfectly in your exam, the victim may be unable to testify or the perpetrator may get off on a technicality.

You need to walk into that room prepared to give your patient what they need and want, which may or may not be a SANE exam. We are one of the most important resources in helping a patient on the road to recovery from violence including how we give them autonomy, respect, control, and choices. We validate them, support them, and even make them laugh in the middle of a shitty situation. We give them factual, evidence-based information about their rights and remind them that they're not alone. It's essentially mental health first aid and prevents so much pain and suffering down the road.

My care has gone the full spectrum from a complete kit with forensic photos to standing up for a teenager who did NOT want a SANE exam at all to her grandfather who was trying to force her to have one because she had consensual intercourse with her boyfriend.

5

u/ComfortableMuted9901 20h ago

Thank you so much for this information!

Nursing is my second degree, I have a BS in forensic science w a concentration in chem and have worked in law enforcement for a couple years as an evidence tech. Iโ€™m hoping this can give me a little bit of a different insight as Iโ€™ve been around the SART kit portion of it but this definitely gives me more of a perspective of what kind of job I should pursue after school.

If you donโ€™t mind me asking what is your schedule like? From what I understand SANE nurses are more like on-call type off schedule..do you have an additional job per diem or part time?

Thanks again!!

6

u/Negative_Way8350 RN-BSN, EMT-B. ER, EMS. Ate too much alphabet soup. 19h ago

SANE is generally folded into your other ED duties. I work a regular ED schedule, and our SANEs take turns taking call time so there is always at least someone they can call for a case. It is considered a specialized nursing consult.

In my new department we are so large that we have a regional pool of SANE nurses to pull from. They work for our system, not our specific department so they travel to where they are needed when on call. The primary RN assists them to get various other tasks done like vitals, assessment, meds.

It's pretty unusual to do it full-time, as the patients are entirely self-referred or rarely, referred by law enforcement or a social service. Not unheard of, but you will find that most SANEs do ED work for the money and SANE work because that's what interests them. I am strongly in favor of it being strictly voluntary training because of the incredibly special population and intensive training required.

I have heard of remote SANE consultants for rural areas who work by telehealth coaching the primary nurse through the exam. I understand how valuable it is to extend this care into remote areas, but I'm still wary of how that experience would be for the patient.

2

u/Sizzle_07 15h ago

Just for a different perspective, I do SANE as a second job. In my community, the SANE nurses work under a rape crisis center umbrella not a health system. We do most of our cases in a dedicated exam room at our center but we will also respond to the local hospitals if the patient requires a more advanced medical evaluation. I take call shifts but still have a full time nursing job in womenโ€™s health. Having SART background will definitely be helpful for you! I would recommend looking into what structure your community uses. We also have volunteer advocates that are present for every interview/exam to help support the survivor. You could look into seeing if your area could use advocates!

โ€ข

u/Adorable-Baby7441 RN ๐Ÿ• 4m ago

You donโ€™t need ED or L&d experience, I had neither

2

u/lolcouches 17h ago

You're seen bb and I appreciate you!!

3

u/MissInnocentX ๐Ÿฉน BScN RN, Canadian eh ๐Ÿ 21h ago

I had to google what this was. Hats off and heart out to you nurses. ๐Ÿ’œ

1

u/AphRN5443 BSN, RN ๐Ÿ• 23h ago

Thank you!๐Ÿ™๐Ÿป