A patient was significantly beaten. You and your team recognized the need for this patient to receive forensic nursing services and called our Forensic Nurse Triage Line. One of our forensic nurse examiners responded and spent almost seven hours speaking with the patient and performing a medical-forensic examination. The nurse examiner was able to perform a thorough and efficient exam because of your assistance.

Throughout the forensic nurse consult, many breaks were required to provide nursing care. During that time, you provided very high-quality, trauma-informed, and compassionate nursing care to this patient. Our forensic nurses provide forensic nurse consults and medical forensic exams in EDs, ORs, ICUs, and inpatient units at PAMC, ANMC, and ARH.

Even though this was a difficult case, the examiner stated that, in the seven years she has been a forensic nurse, it was truly the best experience she has had in collaboration and communication amongst the healthcare team on an inpatient unit. We wanted to express our gratitude for the assistance you provided that day and thank you for the excellent nursing care you provide to your patients.

Patients remember their experiences with their nurses. Never underestimate the impact your nursing care has on a patient’s healing journey after a traumatic experience. Please know that your kindness, compassion, and skilled nursing care made a difference in this patient’s life. This patient had fallen through the cracks after the assault. Law enforcement had not contacted Forensic Nursing Services about this patient, and none of the other healthcare providers who had interacted with the patient, prior to you, had contacted us either.

With our team being able to complete the medical forensic examination when you called us, we were able to obtain the medical forensic history of the incident from the patient, document the numerous patterned injuries on her body that allowed us to then identify the object at the crime scene, which was used to bludgeon the patient during the assault, and collect forensic specimens.

The District Attorney’s Office was able to charge the offender with attempted homicide, along with multiple other charges. This would never have happened if you had not contacted us for a forensic nursing consult that day. Your recognition that this patient should receive a consult and taking the steps to contact us is the only reason we were able to provide a comprehensive examination and continue our follow-up care for her after her discharge. Your advocacy for this patient not only ensured she received the most comprehensive care she could receive during her hospital admission, but it also stopped her from being lost in the system.

A man tried to kill her, and now the criminal justice system can hold him accountable at the highest level of charges, and this patient will be able to receive justice for the horrendous acts of violence she survived that day.