Development of a sexual assault evidence collection kit - the need for standardization in Turkey.

Sexual offences are recognized to be one of the most critical of crimes throughout the world. In Turkey, forcible rapes show, in the sexual crime rates, an increase of approximately 3% every year. It becomes even more critical, when realizing that less than half of all rapes, which are believed to occur, are reported to law enforcement, and of those few assailants who are arrested even fewer are convicted of rape. Often, little or no knowledge of the correct methods of locating, recovering, packaging, and preserving evidence specimens are the causes for compromising the forensic examination in court. This problem occurs when medical personnel are not adequately trained or properly advised in the evidentiary aspects and medical features of treating a victim. The current survey is aimed to increase the awareness of the need of an initial and continuing education by health care policies to cope with increasing professional demands for forensic practice sexual assault cases, to take judicial and social precautions, and medico-legal evidence. To determine the likelihood of obtaining corroborating evidence this paper presents the results of a study referring to this problem. An updated questionnaire has been applied at random to medical personnel, a total of 543 participants, throughout Turkey. Taking certain criteria into consideration the findings revealed a significant deficiency of knowledge regarding medical-legal examination. In comparison, a one-semester course of basic forensic sciences proved to be sufficient to recognize the amount of knowledge required to work as a forensic professional. Based on the results, recommendations are presented in the form of a sexual assault evidence collection kit (SAECK). A kit, which takes into consideration the needs of crime laboratories, law enforcement agencies, medical personnel, and above all the victim. This is the first step in building a responsible and successful evidence collection program that will survive the rigors of courtroom challenge.

Forensic nursing in Bolu, Turkey: a survey.

Forensic nursing is generally considered to be the application of the forensic aspect of health care combined with the bio-psychosocial education of the registered nurse in the scientific investigation and treatment of trauma and violence. In 1990 the term forensic nursing was established in the USA and has been developing in many countries as a subdivision of forensic sciences a nursing since. The first masters thesis with the subject of forensic nursing was written in 1997 at Istanbul University, Institute of Forensic Sciences. The aim of this survey is to outline the approach to forensic nursing by nurses in the province of Bolu, Turkey, and to determine the influence of education at undergraduate level and continuing education programs lectured in Istanbul. In this study, a questionnaire has been applied at random to clinical nurses and nursing educators, a total of 101 participants. 11 out of 18 questions, has also been compared with results acquired from Istanbul in 2002. The results were defined using SPSS and Primer statistics software. The results of this research revealed, that no formal training/education in clinical forensics has been received. It is suggested that formal education programs have to be developed at both, undergraduate and postgraduate levels, providing initial and continuing education.