Last week, we debuted our 2024 SARCCitude series with reflections on survivor courage and activism to fulfill our mission. As a reminder,

SARCCitude =
A positive mindset where one feels appreciative and inspired to return kindness to someone who works at, for, or with SARCC.

Today, we share a moment of thanks for our first responders, medical system staff, and prosecutors who take reports, investigate crimes of sexual assault and abuse, provide emergency and follow-up medical care, and pursue accountability through justice systems. Not every survivor will choose to report the crimes they experienced. Seeking medical care after sexual assault or abuse can happen right away, in a doctor’s office months or years later, or not at all. Survivors don’t choose to be assaulted, but they can choose who they tell about it and how they heal from it.

We’ve got a number of officers and departments in our counties who actively seek training on trauma-informed response to sexual assault victims. When a first responder uses trauma-informed approaches, connect the survivor with victim services, and use specialized interview and investigation practices with perpetrators, it both helps survivors feel seen and heard and builds stronger cases. Multiple officers and departments have attended Aequitas trainings through our STOP and RVCRI projects in Schuylkill County. In Lebanon, officers from local departments completed Certified Trauma Sensitive Professionals training through our Connected Together VIP project.

In the medical setting, we are grateful for our partners in emergency rooms, primary care clinics, and child advocacy centers who provide both medical care and resources to both child and adult victims. When a survivor over 14 goes to a hospital immediately (within 24-96 hours) after an assault, they are offered a forensic medical exam. Sexual Assault Forensic Examiners (SAFE) nurses and doctors complete specialized training to provide medical care and collect forensic evidence from the body of a sexual assault victim.

These exams are detailed, can take hours, can feel invasive, and are still designed to be conducted in a survivor-centered and trauma informed way. Survivors in PA never have to pay out of pocket for a SAFE exam. They do not have to report the crime or the perpetrator to receive one. They have a right to have a SARCC advocate to support them through the process. This is a lot to balance, and we are deeply thankful for the SAFE nurses and forensic medical examiners at the Child Advocacy Center, Lehigh Valley Health Network, Geisinger-St. Luke’s, St. Luke’s Miners, and WellSpan who choose to hold this responsibility.

It makes a difference to the survivors we serve when they have access to trauma-informed reporting and medical care. And those are only the beginning stages of the legal process. Detectives, Victim Witness Coordinators, court personnel, and prosecutors play a role in the process. So many systems are needed to respond to one sexual assault. Cases can take years to come to trial or sentencing. Centering survivors needs through the process is what SARCC gets to do, but we cannot do this work alone. Deep SARCCitude goes out to the professionals who support survivors through the process.