Background: The International Association of Forensic Nurses (IAFN) has declared violence an international public health issue. Violence included “intentional and unintentional injury found in individuals who seek health care following acts of…intimate partner violence (IPV),… (and) rapes or sexual assaults…”. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defined sexual assault as “penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim”. The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey for the United States by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated, “More than one-quarter of women and approximately 1 in 9 men have experienced some form of unwanted sexual contact in their lifetime”. EBP Framework: This quality improvement project used the Rosswurm-Larrabee Model for Evidence-Based Practice Change and Kurt Lewin’s change theory. Methods: This project’s main objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of an educational intervention focused on the social workers in a local emergency department (ED). Providers and nurses int he ED were not educated. The project manager included the administration of the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance (IRMA) scale, the introduction of the “Emergency Deparment SANE Worksheet for Acute Sexual Assault” developed by the hospital system, and a flowsheet on when to call a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE). Once Internal Review Board (IRB) approval was obtained, an in-service was provided to social workers in a local ED. Participants were comprised of a convenience sample of (n=9) ED social workers. A pre-survey and post-survey data collection design was used to measure the project outcomes. Findings/Results: This project measured the use of the “Emergency Department SANE Worksheet for Acute Sexual Assault” with social workers who provide care in an ED setting for the victims of sexual assault. It also evaluated the social worker’s internal bias toward a victim of sexual assault. The project results suggested that using the reporting tool could result in consistent care for the victim throughout the ED in this healthcare system. Conclusion/Recommendations: The ED is often where a victim of sexual assault will first seek care. The project manager developed and intervention providing education regarding a standardized worksheet developed and used through the hospital system for sexual assault victims in the ED that would improve care. The project also served to identify internal bias in social workers will be better able to help the sexual assault victim successfully navigate the ED system.
