Penn Highlands Dubois (Pa.) deployed telehealth technology that aims to improve care for sexual assault victims, according to a WJAC TV report.
The hospital launched the Sexual Assault Forensic Examination Telehealth Center, an initiative of the Pennsylvania State University's College of Nursing in University Park in collaboration with the Department of Justice's Office for Victims of Crime. Penn State launched the SAFE-T project in December 2016 under a $1.1 million, 15-month planning grant
The SAFE-T Center at Penn Highlands Dubois enables nurses to connect with experts via video when offering care to a victim of sexual assault. The audio and video technology can also help enhance forensic evidence and documentation collected by lawyers and police working on these cases.
"Having the SAFE-T Center with us will afford the nurses some comfort in knowing that they gave high quality care, the best evidence collection and if we move forward to a court case, they'll feel comfortable and confident that they did what they needed to do for the patient," Kim Cicon, the hospital's emergency department director, told WJAC TV.