The Tribune

By FARRAH JOHNSON

THE Pan American Development Fund hosted a seminar to train local law enforcement and medical professionals on the proper techniques to help manage gender-based violence.

The two-day session, held May 7 and 8, is part of an ongoing project called the Women’s Initiative for Non-Violence and Development (WIND), and so far, more than 80 officers have been trained.

Latara Evans, country coordinator for the PADF, said the conference focused on forensic science training, the neurology of trauma and the science of the collection of evidence as it relates to rape and sex kits.

Ms Evans said the decision to include forensic and science training for law enforcement and medical staff was made after the foundation saw it “fit” to add another component.

“We hope that this is the first of many to come. We realise for victims the journey is very long from the initial stage of being assaulted…and so we would like for both personnel – medical as well as law enforcement – to be on the same page in their treatment and their execution of dealing with victims.”

Ms Evans added that the organisation has seen some improvement with law enforcement since the training started.

“It’s very important that we have (training) – it won’t be seamless, but it’ll be in a way that is less traumatic if you will, for victims. With anything it takes time, and like I said before we’ve reached more than 80, and obviously the police force is larger than that so these things take time, and over the course of time we will begin to gauge exactly what we have been successful in.”

Representing PADF, Jana French, nursing director and DC forensics nurse, led the training for the conference. She said the exercises will cover how to properly care for victims of sexual assault, and how to review proper evidence collection technique, along with the science behind it.

She added that the sessions will teach law enforcement and medical staff effective interview techniques, to ensure that everyone understands their purpose and the role they play.

“I think it is always, when you are caring for patients (who have experienced sexual violence), really understanding how it may manifest in how they’re speaking to you, how they’re acting, how they might be answering questions, and really understanding and appreciating that everyone comes to it from a very different place,” Ms French said.

Ms French said both law enforcement and medical staff should be able to understand why a patient might not be able to sequence an event very well.

“(They should know) why the brain is responding that way, and understand that it’s not necessarily the patient lying, it’s just the way the person’s brain is responding to the traumatic event they’ve experienced,” she explained.

Shanta Knowles, superintendent of police, said the police force is pleased to partner with PADF.

“Randomly we choose officers or front line officers, who are on patrols and who are most likely to get a call of a domestic dispute or even a sexual assault…we’ve been dealing with sexual assault for a very, very long time…but as we change offices, or we transfer officers, not very many of them get official formal training, and this morning we hope to formalise some training with as many of the officers as possible,” she said earlier this week.

Ms Evans explained that PADF in conjunction with the US State Department has been running the WINDS – Women’s Initiative for Non-Violence and Development project – since August of 2016.