Campus SANE Network

Sexual assault is a reality for university and college communities. Health care providers on campuses are an important part of the team working to prevent and educate about sexual assault while simultaneously connecting victims to the care they need.

If you are a campus-based nurse who wants to become more educated about sexual assault response and methods of prevention at the college or university level, register to join the Duquesne University School of Nursing Campus Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Network, which is made possible via a grant from the Department of Justice.

"The course exposed me to new avenues in my outreach to students."

Maria Rivera, Mount Saint Mary College, Newburgh, NY

"With the Expert SANE's help, I was able to identify and enhance resources both on campus and within the local community for victims of sexual assault.

Maura Smith, Marywood University, Scranton, PA

SANE Adult/Adolescent Didactic Course Attend the online, asynchronous, 59-hour, 10-week training, which includes an additional module on campus sexual assault. You are eligible for 50+ hours of CE credit upon completion. 
Campus Self-Assessment Tool  Assess your current campus’ sexual assault response and identify areas for opportunity in improving the response. 
Campus Consultation  Work with an Expert SANE to address areas for improvement within your response and receive guidance and support as you advance your campus’ sexual assault response. 
Virtual SANE Network  Have access to resources focusing on campus-based sexual assault, including 15+ monthly educational sessions from experts in the field discussing important topics for campus sexual assault. Explore resources available to you including annotated bibliographies, example policies and algorithms for you to utilize on your own campus, and relevant research in the field. 

Register Now

Program Information

As part of the wider SANE Campus Network program, you will have access to a series of monthly sexual assault continuing education sessions that build on content from the initial course and incorporate new information critical to understanding campus-based sexual assault

School

School of Nursing

Duration

10-week online, asynchronous, grand-funded training

Required Credit Hours

59 hours

About the SANE Campus Network

The SANE Campus Network will prepare you to become a clinical resource and advocate for change on your campus. It will also connect you to a larger network that provides opportunities for collaboration and support in mitigating the realities of sexual assault on campuses. You will acquire specialized resources to address barriers of sexual assault reporting and care that are specific to your campus.

As a participant in the program, you will:

  1. Complete a 10-week SANE campus-centered training course, which is approved by the International Association of Forensic Nurses (IAFN). Additionally, you will be eligible for over 50 CE credits upon completion of the course. When applying, you can choose whether you'd like to start this course in January, May and October (You will indicate your choice on the application). The course offers a variety of subjects, such as:
    • What to do when a student reports an assault
    • How to work with campus and community partners
    • Prevention efforts that can be implemented on campus
    • Acute and long-term post-sexual assault care options, such as education of what to expect with a forensic exam, counseling, pregnancy prevention and emotional trauma
  2. Assess your campus' health care response to sexual assault and explore ways to improve service delivery and improve the response on your campus.
  3. Work with an expert SANE to plan and advance sexual assault response on your campus, including utilizing community connections.
  4. Enroll in the virtual SANE Network, which is a community of professionals who have similar goals and is a place where you can share resources. This also includes regular continuing education on campus-based sexual assault response.

All campus-based nurses are eligible to participate in the program, and nurses on smaller or rural campuses are particularly encouraged to register.

SANE Course IAFN seal of approval

All campus-based nurses are eligible to participate in the program, and nurses on smaller or rural campuses are particularly encouraged to register.

Register Now

Frequently Asked Questions

In order to take the course, you must be a nurse working on a university or college campus at any employment level, whether it be on a part-time, full-time or casual basis.
The highly interactive SANE Adult/Adolescent didactic course, taught by experts in forensic nursing, includes hours of interactive video, discussion boards for asking questions and

encouraging dialogue, and additional readings. The course covers topics within the field of forensic nursing, focusing specifically on campus victim advocation and support. Upon completion of the course, you will feel more confident in your knowledge of sexual assault and how it may appear uniquely in a campus setting, the critical steps to take when a student reports a sexual assault, and primary and secondary preventions to implement on your campus.

The course has six modules with approximately four to six hours of lecture per week, which is to be completed asynchronously. During the last two weeks of the course, you will be required to complete a final exam.

There is no clinical component to this course. Because this course is entirely online, there is no requirement to visit the Duquesne University campus. 
Upon completion of this course, you will have the necessary knowledge and tools to educate and support victims of sexual assault on your campus. This course alone, however, does not certify you as a SANE, who is often the first point of care when someone has been sexually assaulted. Following the completion of this didactic course, you will receive a certificate and be considered SANE-trained, not to be confused with SANE certification.

Most nurses who complete the training will not conduct sexual assault exams on campus, but you will be prepared to educate students about the process and connect them with the care they need. You will also be able to explain the SANE exam process in detail and connect students with community-based resources. 
As stated above, SANE-trained or certified providers are often the first point of care after a sexual assault. They complete forensic sexual assault exams in which they document trauma and collect evidence from assaults. SANEs may also provide holistic nursing care for victims, which could include referring victims to other specialists, providing prophylactic antibiotics and testing for pregnancy. SANEs are unique in that they are also able to advocate for a patient by testifying for them in court, using evidence from the forensic exam.

SANEs are a part of what is called the Sexual Assault Response Team (SART), which can be composed of counselors, law enforcement and other specialists within health care. They occupy a critical, supportive role for victims of sexual assault. 
The SANE campus-focused course fulfills the requirement of a 40-hour didactic course by an accredited provider, as specified in the SANE certification eligibility. Following completion of this SANE course, you will need to:

  1. Take a SANE clinical preceptor course, which will provide hands-on preceptorship opportunities to complete simulated clinical experiences.
  2. Complete 300 hours of SANE-related, hands-on practice over three years. It is important to understand that you must work in a facility where you will have the opportunity to complete these 300 practice hours within the three-year time limit.
  3. Successfully take the certification examination in order to be officially certified as a SANE.

For Questions or Clarification

Please contact the Program Coordinator.

Sophie Pillsbury

SANE Campus-Focused Course Program Coordinator

School of Nursing

Sophie Pillsbury

Disclaimer


This program was produced by Duquesne University under 2020-V3-GX-0068, awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program are those of the contributors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Accreditation

Duquesne University School of Nursing is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.