PennWest University Department of Nursing has been awarded a $1.18 million grant to train nurses as sexual assault nurse examiners.

The funds are provided by Health Resources and Services Administration’s Advanced Nursing Education. PennWest is the only higher education institution in western Pennsylvania to receive the three-year grant.

The SANE training will be offered as a certificate program to registered nurses. Participants will receive tuition, fees and certification costs for 12 graduate credits. Classes mainly will be conducted online, with some travel to the Clarion campus required for hands-on training. The combined didactic is 64 hours.

The program’s purpose is to increase the availability of trained sexual assault nurse examiners in underserved and rural areas across multiple counties in western Pennsylvania. PennWest’s program, which will provide training for certification as both a SANE-A (adult and adolescent treatment) and SANE-P (pediatric treatment), stands out from other programs, which typically train nurses for one or the other.

The trained nurses will provide physical and psychological support, health-promotion education, collection of evidence, sexually transmitted infection testing, and trauma-informed nursing care to sexual and domestic violence survivors, according to Dr. Randilyn Lewis, nursing instructor on PennWest’s Clarion campus.

Lewis, along with Dr. Suellen Lichtenfels, are the SANE program instructors.

“Each survivor of sexual assault requires and deserves the support and specialized training that highly skilled registered nurses trained in sexual assault examination can provide,” Lewis wrote in the grant proposal. “Evidence-based research concludes that trauma is common, and patients who seek medical care have better outcomes when they are cared for by professionals who are trained to provide comprehensive care. When survivors have the courage to seek medical care, they need to be provided with timely and specialized treatment plans of safe care.”

Currently, with the shortage of trained SANEs, survivors are being met with transfers to other healthcare systems, untrained professional forensic collections, and a lack of educational situational support. This program aims to eliminate the practice gap and prepare professionals to clinically support diverse adolescents and adult victims of sexual assault, while also providing qualified health care in many of rural western Pennsylvania’s medically underserved areas.

In a letter to HRSA, Brian Durniok, president and CEO of UPMC Northwest, Seneca, supported the grant request and expressed confidence in PennWest providing the training.

“Partnering with PennWest would guarantee our nurses are prepared and properly trained to provide services to survivors of domestic violence and trauma,” Durniok wrote. “Our local organization has a relationship with PennWest that has a distinct history of successful and dedicated nurses. I fully support their ability to provide training, education and mentorship for future SANEs.”

Lewis said she will seek renewal of the grant when it concludes in 2027. She hopes to expand the in-person portion of the training to PennWest’s California and Edinboro campuses, as well to PennWest’s nursing site in Somerset, an underserved area.

“We plan to train three cohorts of 15 trainees each,” Lewis said.

The first cohort will begin in spring 2025 and conclude in summer 2025. The second and third cohorts will begin in fall of 2025 and 2026, respectively,and conclude in spring 2026 and 2027. The program consists of two 10-week courses.

Lewis said the on-campus clinical skills training enables the registered nurses to practice implementing the advanced education attained in the online classes. Skill sessions include forensic interviewing, anatomy and injury assessment and documentation, speculum exams, and specimen collecting.

“Each nurse will gain confidence in their newly acquired skill set by using simulation technology and models,” she said. “Each skill session includes hands-on, active learning with current resources the SANEs will be utilizing in the field.”

Each student will receive a $1,000 stipend, plus travel costs, parking, and one lunch per week with guest speakers.

“I have collaborated with Venango County's district attorney, Clarion County PASSAGES, Inc., advocacy center, and Pennsylvania State Police to provide expert curriculum, expertise and insight,” Lewis said.

For more information, contact Lewis at rlewis@pennwest.edu or 814-393-1619.