Melissa Underwood
November 2021
Melissa
Underwood
,
RN
Sexual Assault Forensic Examination Unit
Riverside University Health System Medical Center
Moreno Valley
,
CA
United States

 

 

 

Melissa was the only one who really listened to me. I felt like she really understood my thinking and how I was feeling.
Melissa has been a forensic nurse at RUHS-MC SAFE Clinic since November 2019 and she is a God-send. She is a calming force in what can sometimes be a chaotic environment for victims of interpersonal violence. A mother brought her child to the Emergency Department for evaluation of suspected sexual abuse. The mother was visibly and understandably upset and at one point a Code BERT was called. Melissa explained the hospital’s process for doing a forensic examination on children and was able to communicate in a way that was clear and calming. Later, in interactions with the Riverside County Child Assessment Team (RCCAT), the mother expressed that Melissa was "the only one who really listened to me. I felt like she really understood my thinking and how I was feeling. She was so nice". Sometimes in this type of work, just being a sounding board for someone in crisis is all the person needs. Melissa’s background in mental health (she is currently in school to become a Nurse Practitioner with a focus on mental health) has been invaluable to our team.