TAMIU College of Nursing and Health Sciences Seeks Applicants for SANE Nurse Training Program
A Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) program is offering a stipend and travel allowance package totaling $5,000 to registered nurses and family nurse practitioners who become Office of the Attorney General (OAG)-certified Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE) for adults and adolescents.
Dr. Marivic Torregosa, TAMIU College of Nursing and Health Sciences dean, said current evidence indicates that the incidence of sexual crimes continues to increase in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and that SANE-certified examiners are needed now more than ever.
She said the program, TAMIU Advance Nursing Education Sexual Assault Nursing Examiner (TAMIU ANE-SANE), seeks to address Laredo’s chronic shortage of available SANE-certified examiners.
“TAMIU is addressing this SANE shortage in the community through a $1.17 million grant obtained from the Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration,” Dr. Torregosa said, “To date, the TAMIU-SANE Program has successfully certified 20 registered nurses as adult SANE through the Texas OAG.”
For the remaining year of the grant, TAMIU- SANE Program is seeking 18 registered nurses and/or family nurse practitioners to join the program, Torregosa said.
Program application is currently underway through Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. See a video about the program here.
Participating in the TAMIU-SANE program is a three-step process. Potential participants must register via link and provide all program requirements at https://tamiu.wufoo.com/forms/m11nnmsi172n81k/
Participants then complete Basic SANE Training. Once that is completed, they then proceed to Advanced SANE Training wherein each participant is placed in acute care facilities to conduct forensic examinations on real cases through the supervision of a preceptor.
The stipend and travel allowance are provided to each participant after the certification process and data collection are completed, Torregosa said.
Torregosa noted that most certification programs take two years to complete, but the TAMIU ANE-SANE program, presented in partnership with community and external partners to help complete the requirements needed by trainees for certification, does so in less than one year.
Together with 23 local and external multidisciplinary partners, the TAMIU-SANE Program has made changes to provide flexibility to participants in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the training is done virtually except for required pelvic examinations and internship, Torregosa said.
Partners and collaborators include BRAVE Alliance, Driscoll Children's Hospital, Harris County Forensic Nurse Examiners, Parkland Health & Hospital System, SAFE Alliance, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Border Region Behavioral Health Center, Children's Advocacy Center of Laredo - Webb County, City of Laredo Health Department, District Attorney 49th Judicial District (Isidro R. Alaniz), Doctors Hospital of Laredo, Gateway Community Health Center, Laredo Medical Center, Lilia Diaz Lozano, SANE, Melissa Jaimez, SANE, Mercy Ministries of Laredo, Obstetrics & Gynecology Associates of Laredo - Dr. Dagoberto González, Serving Children and Adolescents in Need, Webb County Sheriff's Office, Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid and Texas DPS Crime Laboratory.
For more information about the program, contact Rosario Benavides, TAMIU ANE-SANE program manager, at maria.benavides@tamiu.edu or call 956.326.2575. See also information about TAMIU's online Adult/Adolescent Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner SANE (CA-SANE) Didactic Course for the State of Texas.
Registration for Fall 2020 continues through Friday, Aug. 28. TAMIUFlex, Hybrid, Face-to-Face and online courses all have the same tuition rates. An online catalog containing all undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degree programs is at http://catalog.tamiu.edu
The University’s online COVID-19 Response Center is updated regularly and includes an expansive FAQ, quick links, student resources, official information resources and much more.
To learn more about TAMIU’s Back Together Plan for Fall, go to https://www.tamiu.edu/coronavirus/student-faqs.shtml
TAMIU’s campus is open to the public and all offices and most services are available. Office hours are subject to change. It is recommended that phone or email contact be made first to determine a specific schedule of operation. An online directory is here.
