Queens hospitals will increase number of nurses specializing in sex assault care, with funding from Lee

Acting Borough President Sharon Lee has helped secure funds to expand a program connecting hospitals, including Mt. Sinai Queens, with nurses trained to handle sexual assault cases. Eagle file photo by Walter Karling

By Rachel Vick

The number of nurses trained to care for survivors of sexual assault at Queens hospitals will more than double over the next year, with funding from Acting Borough President Sharon Lee and the federal government.

There are now 26 Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners, or SANE nurses, working at four Queens hospitals, but few speak a language other than English. The new initiative will fund 28 more SANE nurses, including individuals who speak a total of 13 different languages, including Arabic, Bengali and Haitian Creole, at seven Queens hospitals.

“Specialized, sensitive forensic care can make all the difference in the immediate aftermath of rape and/or sexual assault, not just in the ultimate pursuit of justice but in the survivor’s own agency and power,” Lee said.

Lee’s discretionary funding will pay for training for 15 of the 28 new SANE nurses. Training for the 13 other nurses is funded by a federal grant awarded to the Northwell Health System, according to the borough president’s office.

The nurses currently work at Queens hospitals and will receive the specialized training at either the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault or Hofstra University.

The SANE nurses will work at Mount Sinai Queens, NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens and St. John’s Episcopal Hospital. New SANE nurses will also work at Elmhurst Hospital, Long Island Jewish in Forest Hills and New York-Presbyterian Queens. Two other Queens hospitals, Jamaica and Flushing, will not have SANE nurses.

The trauma-informed care that SANE nurses provide survivors of sexual assault is “critical to beginning their healing journey,” said to Sara Zaidi, director of intervention programs for New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault. 

“[The initiative] will enhance the quality of care provided to the Queens’ residents when they come to the Emergency Department in the most unfortunate of circumstances,” Zaidi added

Correction: A previous headline for this story indicated that Queens hospitals will hire new nurses. They will instead send current nurses to receive the specialized training.