Exploring the sexual assault nurse examiner role within the nurse-patient interaction: making connections to advanced practice nursing competencies
Date
2012-06-14
Authors
Zerr, Laura
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Abstract
This project presents an integrative review of sexual assault nursing practice. The sexual
assault nurse examiner (SANE) role was established to provide a comprehensive
multisystem services for women who experience sexual assault (Stermac, Dunlap, &
Bainbridge, 2005). Yet little is known about how SANEs negotiate their role in the
nurse-patient relationship. This project employs a relational feminist theoretical
perspective that informs the position of the nurse in relation to a woman in a single nursepatient
encounter. The scope of this project is limited to an adult female patient
population. Four major themes emerged in the synthesis: the position of the nurse, the
nurse in the process of validation, the nurse as a forensic technician, and balancing the
tension between judicial interests and women-centered care. This project draws direct
links between the SANE role and advanced practice nursing (APN) competencies.
Practice implications, education implications, and areas for future research are drawn out
from the themes and examined to enhance current SANE practice. Additionally, Peplau’s
(1952) Theory of Interpersonal Relations is used to offer theoretical connections between
standards of SANE practice and a larger body of nursing knowledge. The following
pages describe various aspects of the SANE role in relation to a nurse-female patient
interaction.
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Keywords
sexual assault, nurse-patient interaction, advanced practice nursing