Clemson University Partners With Local Heath Network to Train Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners

The School of Nursing at Clemson University in South Carolina has collaborated with Prisma Health-Upstate to increase and retain sexual assault nurse examiners in seven Prisma Health emergency departments in Greenville, Pickens, Oconee, and Laurens counties. The training program is funded by a $949,396 three-year grant from the Health Resources Services Administration, an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The two partners are also collaborating with Upstate Area Health Education Center, a health care-provider training site, to provide hybrid training that includes online and in-person education, as well as hands-on work in the simulation space located in the Clemson University nursing building. The program will be taught by a multidisciplinary team of Prisma Health nurses, emergency services leaders, and researchers from Clemson.

The goal is to increase the number of trained sexual assault nurse examiners and the number of certified sexual assault nurse examiners at health care facilities in Greenville and surrounding counties. This will enable the organization to have 24-hour, seven-day-a-week coverage for patients. A certified nurse has the same training as a trained nurse examiner, but is required to complete 300 hours of clinical care and take a certification exam.

“This training will be important to Upstate nurses who will ultimately impact patients and their families,” said Margaret Ann Wetsel, associate director of Clemson’s School of Nursing and leader of the project. “We at the School of Nursing are excited to be a part of this training.”

Dr. Wetsel holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Indiana University, a master’s degree in nursing from Ohio State University, and a Ph.D. in nursing from the University of Texas.