Abstract
Acute care medical professionals play a critical role in supporting survivors’ health both immediately following their assault and in the long term. Providing acute care to survivors involves several steps in addition to medical treatment, including taking a forensic history, physical examination of the patient, evidence collection, and discharge planning. This chapter reviews a variety of key concerns for medical professionals involved in providing acute care to survivors, including the process of forensic examination and evidence collection, the role of victim advocates and Sexual Assault Forensic Examiners (SAFE), and relevant treatment and follow-up care. By better understanding these and other unique aspects of supporting survivors in acute care settings, clinicians can play a key role in promoting survivors’ healing even after the acute care encounter.
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Schnoor, B. (2020). Acute Medical and Forensic Care for Victims of Sexual Assault. In: Ades, V. (eds) Sexual and Gender-Based Violence. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-38345-9_9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-38345-9_9
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