Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Expert Witness

SUMMARY

RN since 1990, with instructional, case management/utilization review, and clinical experience in Inpatient Pediatrics, Medical-Surgical, Coronary/Critical Care, Pediatric ICU, Triage/Telephonic Advice, Case Management/UR, High-Tech/Infusion, and Ambulatory care in hospital, home, and office settings

IV/Phlebotomy, Chemotherapy, EKG/Dysrhythmia, SANE, NALS/PALS (inactive), and BCLS certifications; Maryland and Washington, DC licensure

EXPERIENCE

3/00 to present
Clinical Coordinator, Sexual/Physical Abuse Clinic
Washington, DC

Manage clinical operations of an outpatient clinic caring for infant through 18-year-old clients who have suffered suspected/actual cases of physical and/or sexual assault and abuse; serve as liaison between DHS, U. S. Attorneys' office, police departments, and pediatricians/specialists

Perform phone triage/screening, perform initial and follow-up assessments of referred clients, assist with medical examinations/treatments, and provide recommendations for further services

Completed training and serve as Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Coordinator as well as trainer and pediatric certifier; create monthly on-call schedule for up to five other SANEs

Contribute to grant-writing projects, including resumes/credentialing, and contributing SANE sections to quarterly/annual report deliverables

Serve as Member, Process Improvement Committee, determining indicators, auditing records to gather data, and recommending policy changes

Co-wrote the clinical pathway for Alleged Sexual Assault in Children; serve as member of JCAHO Task-Assessment of Patients survey chapter preparation committee, reviewing policies and documentation on alleged child abuse

Present "Scars, Scratches, and Bruises: Is It Child Abuse?," for general orientation to child abuse for new nurses as well as serve as an educational resource for PICU and all RNs

Teach Body Safety classes for K to Second Grade students on sexual abuse

Received Creativity and Innovation Award during Nurses Week, May 2003.

6/98 to 3/00
Staff RN, Pediatric Ambulatory
Children's Medical Care Center, Washington, DC

Served as Staff RN in a 4-physician and 2-physician-assistant pediatric practice; performed phone/walk-in triage, screened and scheduled patients, assessed and admitted patients, obtained histories, performed phlebotomy/ obtained labwork, used computers to retrieve patient/insurance data, created initial charting, assisted with examinations and medical procedures, and provided extensive patient-family education and referrals to specialty care (including hospital admissions, homecare placement, pharmacists, and DME vendors)

Interacted with insurers to verify coverage’s and obtain precertifications, applied ICD-9/CPT coding to ensure reimbursement

Coordinated operations of the Immunization Injection Room

5/96 to 4/98
Utilization Management/Case Manager
MAMSI Health Plan, Rockville, MD

Performed on-site inpatient concurrent and retrospective review at four acute care hospital sites, reviewing medical records to apply Milliman & Robertson guidelines to verify appropriateness of admission and level of care/length of stay; performed on-going monitoring of up to 60 cases to optimize outcomes, contain costs, and expedite discharge planning, including determining aftercare needs and coordinating placement

Served as Member, Pre-Term Delivery Infant Care Committee, identifying cases for review and coordinating centralized care for premature infants

1/95 to 5/96
Advice Nurse
Kaiser Permanente, Camp Springs, MD

Screened telephone calls from members on specific symptoms and provide advice according to health system protocols, including providing referrals to emergency care; referred complicated cases to medical directors

1/94 to 4/98
High-Tech/IV Therapy RN
INOVA Home Infusion, Springfield, VA

Served as Primary Nurse, visiting homebound pediatric and adult patients with cardiac, oncology, COPD, diabetes, AIDS, and Lyme's/infectious disease, and conditions requiring IV initiation, central line/feeding tube maintenance, pump programming, and venous access troubleshooting (including serving as an on-call resource for staff and families)

Gained proficiency with chemotherapeutic agents, IVIgG, antibiotics, TPN, hydration, PCA/pain and symptom management, pump programming, and other intravenous and related high-tech care

Assessed patients and opened cases, created care plans/charts for JCAHO compliance, and worked with multidisciplinary teams to develop/update goals

7/90 to 1/95
Staff RN/Medical Officer
U. S. Army, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC

Staff RN/Captain, Critical Care (6/93 to 1/95)

Served as Primary RN in Medical ICU, Coronary Care Unit, and Pediatric ICU (rotating to Surgical ICU and Neonatal ICU)

Cared for adult and pediatric patients with cardiac/MI/PTCA, AIDS, TB, oncology/hematology, COPD/asthma, CVA/neuro/seizure disorder, diabetes, ESRD, GI bleed, sepsis, and multiorgan dysfunctional syndrome

Provided or assisted with vents, trachs, CVVH, PCA, chemotherapy, isolation, hemodynamic, arrest codes, titrations

Staff RN/Lieutenant, Pediatrics/Medical-Surgical (7/90 to 6/93)

Cared for infant through adolescent patients with all acute and chronic medical and post-op conditions requiring ostomy wound care, pressure ulcer prevention/ care, isolation, chemotherapy/pain management

Served as Team Leader/Charge Nurse, scheduling and supervising staff members, and resolving staffing and clinical problems

Served as Preceptor, orienting Nursing Students and newly hired RNs

Reviewed/updated policies and procedures as regulations changed or new technologies/treatments arose

AFFILIATIONS AND COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES

Member, Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing
Member, International Association of Forensic Nursing
Member, American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children
Member, American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants
Member, Coalition on Strengthening the Child Protection Safety Net (11/04 to 10/05)
Member, Coalition on Child-Victim Model Strategic Planning Project (1/06 to 6/06)
Planner, Conference on Pediatric and Adolescent Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners, held at Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC

EDUCATION

5/07
Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA
Received MSN degree in Forensic Nursing

4/00
Calvert Hospital, Washington, DC
Completed 9-day training and certification as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE); serve as an
on-going SANE trainer/pediatric certifier

8/93 to 12/93
U. S. Army Nurse Corps, Washington, DC
Completed 16-week course in Critical Care

5/91 to 9/91
U. S. Army Nurse Corps, Honolulu, HI
Completed 16-week course in Pediatric Care

5/90
University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH
Received BSN degree

REFERENCES

Available upon request.

PRESENTATIONS

Available upon request.

KEYWORDS

Nurse Expert Witness, Registered Expert Witness, SANE Expert Witness, Forensic Nurse Expert Witness, Infant Child and Adolescent Sexual Assault Expert Witness, Infant Child and Adolescent Sexual Abuse Expert Witness, Infant Child and Adolescent Rape Expert Witness, Legal Nurse Consultant Expert Witness, Medmal Expert Witness, Medical Malpractice Expert Witness, Medical Expert Witness, Malpractice Expert Witness, Medico Expert Witness, Medical Legal Expert Witness

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