Family Justice Center, Mountain States to expand accessibility of sexual assault forensic exams

Sexual assault can be one of the most adverse experiences a person has in their life, causing both immediate and long-term effects.

Walking into a busy emergency room and getting a forensic exam completed could add more stress to an already appalling situation.

In an attempt to mitigate that stress, the Johnson City/Washington County Family Justice Center and Mountain States Health Alliance have formed a partnership to provide those vital forensic exams at a more private and intimate setting.

"One of our goals has been to get those victims, when its appropriate and they're medically stable, out of that emergency department setting and get them in something more conducive, like the Family Justice Center," Tessa Proffitt, a forensic nurse at Mountain States, said.

While the emergency department is certainly beneficial for something things, Proffitt said it can be frustrating for other situations, such as a sexual assault case.

"When we think about victims of sexual assault, the emergency department is a very chaotic environment. It's also a question mark. You don't know if that perpetrator is going to come walking through those doors. You don't know if his or her family's going to come walking through those doors," Proffitt said.

On June 1, the City Commission approved a memorandum of understanding between the two organizations, with Mountain States providing the expertise and the Family Justice Center providing the location at 196 Montgomery St. in downtown.

"We're exceptionally excited about it and it's a wonderful collaboration," Heather Brack, Family Justice Center director, said. "To be fair, we've worked with Mountain States Health Alliance and their forensic services really since day one. It's been that long-standing commitment to work together and understand the needs of the community and each other.

"The FJC is really fortunate to help provide this training so that we can increase the number of nurses that can do this in rotation in our community."

The timeline for the program is still a little vague, but Proffitt said her goal is to expand the service to the Family Justice Center within the next year.

"I've got to train the nurses. With the MOU in place, the Family Justice Center has graciously covered the tuition cost to train four additional nurses. I'm in the process of finalizing those details with the International Association of Forensic Nurses," Proffitt said.

"The Family Justice Center has the real estate basically inside their facility to set up those exam rooms, it's just a matter of getting our policy and procedures in place and how we're going to address the needs of victims when they report instances of sexual assault, abuse or neglect in the middle of the night."

Brack said the Family Justice Center in Buncombe County, North Carolina, offers a similar forensic exam service for sexual assault victims, with specially trained nurses available to document the extent of injuries and complete a "rape kit."

A rape kit is completed by medical professionals to preserve DNA evidence, which can help bolster a case against a perpetrator if a criminal report is filed. A forensic nurse can also take verifiable photographic evidence of bruises or other injuries caused by sexual assault or domestic violence.

The Family Justice Center opened in July and offers a "one-stop shop" for resources related to domestic and sexual abuse. The center conveniently houses police officers, prosecutors, civil legal service providers and community-based advocates.

Once the forensic nurse program becomes available, Proffitt said she hopes it will prompt more victims of sexual assault to come forward and seek help.

"I think they will be more receptive and they will seek those services out. I think victims will be more willing to come forward and speak out that they have been a victim of sexual assault," Proffitt said.

Email Zach Vance at zvance@johnsoncitypress.com. Follow Zach Vance on Twitter at @ZachVanceJCP. Like him on Facebook at Facebook.com/ZachVanceJCP.