$1.5 million federal grant awarded to new HSC College of Nursing program to increase access to forensic exams

The College of Nursing at The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth is the recent recipient of a federal grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration to develop a new program addressing the shortage of trained Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners.

[Link]The first year of the program is funded at $500,000. The program is expected to continue for three years, totaling $1.5 million. It specifically will work to increase the number of these nurses in rural and medically underserved areas in North Texas.

In collaboration with JPS Health Network, North Texas Area Community Health Centers, Tarrant County College, One Safe Place and other community partners, the HSC College of Nursing will establish the North Texas Area Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner Consortium, or NTXASC, to develop and implement a program for these nurses. The program will offer both instructional and practical training in trauma-informed care with an emphasis on creating culturally and linguistically competent Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners, known as SANEs, to meet the needs of underserved North Texans.

"This funding is critical to providing compassionate and timely care to survivors of sexual and domestic violence in North Texas," said Cindy Weston, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, CHSE, FAANP, FAAN, founding dean of the college. "People who have experienced a highly traumatic event and are in an extremely vulnerable state should have access to trained nurses who can provide the care they need to advance a path to healing."

NTXASC's primary goals are to:

• Expand the number of trained and certified SANEs in North Texas, including bilingual SANEs
• Increase the number of available training sites throughout North Texas
• Expand access to forensic nurse examinations
• Foster an environment supportive of SANE training, practice and retention.

Through the program, Registered Nurses will learn how to provide forensic exams and high-quality trauma-informed care to sexual assault and domestic violence survivors and will receive adult and adolescent SANE training. Tarrant County College will provide Medical Translator certification to NTXASC consortium-sponsored SANE RN trainees. Program participants will gain clinical experience at North Texas Area Community Health Centers, JPS Health Network and One Safe Place.

RNs with their associate degree who want to become SANEs can receive a stipend toward tuition for HSC's RN to Bachelor of Science in Nursing program.

The HSC College of Nursing provides four degree programs for aspiring nurses and current nurses who want to expand their skills and careers: RN to BSN, traditional BSN, Master of Science in Nursing in Nursing Practice Innovation and MSN in Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. Applications are now open for spring 2025 enrollment for both BSN programs, and classes will begin in January. Fall 2025 applications for all BSN and MSN programs open Nov. 1.

All nursing programs at HSC are pursuing initial accreditation by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. Applying for accreditation does not guarantee that accreditation will be granted.

To learn more about HSC's College of Nursing and its SANE program, visit www.unthsc.edu/nursing.

The Health Resources and Services Administration, Department of Health and Human Services provides financial support for the NTXASC program. The positions stated in this announcement are HSC's, and may not reflect the policies of the Department of Health and Human Services or the U.S. government.

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