198207 Access to acute health care for survivors of sexual assault in a large urban area: EMS Ambulance Destination Designation for SAFE Centers of Excellence in New York City

Monday, November 9, 2009: 8:30 AM

Sultan Torshkhoev, MD, MPA , New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, New York, NY
Glenn Asaeda, MD , Office of Medical Affairs, FDNY, Brooklyn, NY 11201, NY
Meghan O'Connor, MPH, LMSW , New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, New York, NY
Stephan Lynn, MD , Emergency Department, St'Lukes-Roosevelt Hospital, New York, NY
Tamara Pollak, RN, MPH , New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, New York, NY
Marie Diglio, EMTP , Executive Director of Operations, Regional Emergency Medical Services Council of New York City, New York, NY
Deborah A. Fry, MA, MPH , Community Development Program, Edinborough, Scotland
Lewis Marshall Jr., MD, JD , Department of Emergency Medicine, Chairman, Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY
Harriet Lessel, LCSW , New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, New York, NY
  
New York Sate Department of Health designates the State's Emergency Departments as Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (SAFE) Centers of Excellence. Out of 54 Emergency Departments (EDs) in NYC, only 19 received such designation by 2008. In NYC, 42% of sexual assault patients rely on EMS to reach EDs.

After three-year long collaborative advocacy efforts among NYC Alliance Against Sexual Assault, Regional Emergency Medical Services Council (RESMCO) of New York City and FDNY, EMS Protocol went into effect in NYC on June 8th, 2008. This protocol requires NYC EMS personnel to advise a stable patient >12 yrs old to be transported to the nearest SAFE Center of Excellence.

Aims:

This study aimed to compare the accessibility of best acute care for sexual assault patients in NYC before and after the transportation protocol

Methods:

The transportation data was collected from FDNY on the number of sexual assault patients per year transported via ambulance in 2007 and 2008.

Results:

Only 54% of sexual assault patients who called 911 were transported to SAFE Centers in 2007. However 76% of sexual assault patients who called 911 were transported to SAFE Centers in 2008. The number increases even more dramatically with about 85% of sexual assault patients who called 911 were transported to SAFE Centers after June 8th 2008

Conclusion:

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) is a critical source of access to medical care for sexual assault patients.

Designating SAFE Centers as EMS destinations maximizes access to best care for NYC sexual assault patients.

Learning Objectives:
• Describe the transportation policy on designating NYC SAFE Centers as ambulance destinations • Compare accessibility of best acute care for sexual assault patients in NYC before and after the transportation protocol • Discuss the implications of emergency transportation policy on improving access to best acute care for sexual assault patients.

Keywords: Access to Health Care, EMS/Trauma

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Personally been involved in developing the topic and study discussed.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

See more of: Fighting for Our Lives: Health Care Perspectives on Intimate Partner Violence and Rape
See more of: APHA-Committee on Women's Rights