Medical professionals train with sexual assault kits

Photo By 2nd Lt. Rebecca Linder | Lt. Cmdr. Cynthia Ferguson, right, Joint Combat Casualty Research Team, Bagram Airfield (BAF), educates providers, left to right, Col. Jeffrey Anderson, 196th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, South Dakota Army National Guard, Capt. Marjorie Whitehead, 1-178th Field Artillery, South Carolina Army National Guard and Maj. Katrina Lloyd, 186th Brigade Support Battalion, Vermont Army National Guard, about the Sexual Assault Evidence Collection kits Aug. 15, 2010, at Camp Phoenix in Kabul, Afghanistan. The providers are now able to collect evidence of a sexual assault case at Camp Phoenix instead of sending them to BAF.  

CAMP PHOENIX, AFGHANISTAN

08.18.2010

Story by Sgt. Rebecca Linder 

196th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade

CAMP PHOENIX, Afghanistan – It doesn’t occur often, but when a service member is sexually assaulted in a combat zone, physical evidence needs to be collected quickly and carefully. Military medical professionals stationed here took a class Aug. 15 to better understand how to perform a sexual assault forensic exam to help provide accurate information to the court system for the victim and the suspect.

“Any sexual assault is traumatic,” said Capt. Laura Woodson, physicians assistant, 186th Brigade Support Battalion, Vermont Army National Guard. “As a provider I feel that we should make every effort to give reassurance and support for the patient.”

“Someone who is trained will understand all levels of care that need to be provided to the sexually assaulted patient,” said Lt. Cmdr. Cynthia Ferguson, instructor, Joint Combat Casualty Research Team at Bagram Airfield.

The providers were taught to use the Sexual Assault Evidence Collection kit when performing an exam. It includes a guide to complete certain procedures during the process and also contains a variety of envelopes to collect evidence to help validate the case.

“It’s very important to understand the process of how to correctly conduct a sexual assault forensic exam,” said Ferguson. “Also, it is just as important to correctly and ethically testify as an expert witness in a court of law because the examiner should be an objective person that collects the evidence so the courts can help decide whether the suspect is guilty or not.”

“It is important as a provider to be able to promptly and properly care for the patient,” said Woodson. “Any error in evidence collection could compromise the prosecution of the case.”

Before providers were equipped with the kit and trained, sexually assaulted patients had to go to BAF, a 45-minute flight from Camp Phoenix, to collect the evidence. Now that the providers here are trained, they can collect evidence from patients and suspects in a timely manner to get the best results.

“The more people we train, the more our troops are able to understand the sexual assault examination process, so that personnel can be alleviated of fear and anxiety when coming forward to report a sexual assault and that their examiners are not their to judge them,” said Ferguson.

“Persons who have been sexually assaulted should feel more comfortable knowing that someone who is trained is collecting the evidence from them,” said Ferguson. “On the other hand, suspects who feel they are innocent should also feel more comfortable, so providers can collect results to help prove the suspect is not guilty.”

• Date Taken: 08.18.2010
• Date Posted: 08.18.2010 00:46
• Story ID: 54738
• Location: CAMP PHOENIX, AF