KATHY BELL

MS, RN, SANE-A, SANE-P, DF-AFN

Ms. Bell education includes a diploma in Nursing from Hillcrest Medical Center,1974, BLS from University of Oklahoma, 1996 and MS in Forensic Science 2002, from University of Central Oklahoma.

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Ms. Bell joined the Tulsa Police Department in 1994. She provides the day-to-day operations management of the forensic nurse examiner programs. She is responsible for development of replication strategies and training programs that will facilitate other communities in providing forensic nurse examiner services. Ms. Bell is a forensic nurse, performing sexual assault, drug endangered children, domestic violence, and elder abuse examinations in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is certified as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner of Adults and Adolescents and Pediatrics (SANE-A and SANE-P) by the International Association of Forensic Nurses. She is a member and Past-President of the International Association of Forensic Nurses. She is a member of the American Nurses Association and Oklahoma Nurses Association. She is a member of Academy on Violence and Abuse. She has participated on many task forces, advisory committees and forums regarding sexual assault, violence, and forensic nursing issues.

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"Through scholarship, education, and service, AFN will be a leader in providing care, hope, and compassion to all persons touched by violence."

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ALLYSON BOSS

BSN, RN, CNRN, FNE-A, SCRN

Mrs. Boss attended Anne Arundel Community College Nursing Program, in Arnold, Maryland and completed her undergraduate studies at Stevenson University in Owning Mills, Maryland. She worked for the Johns Hopkins Hospital, in the Neuroscience Department, from 2011-2021. While with Johns Hopkins Hospital, she educated clinical staff on numerous Neurological conditions and Neurosurgical procedures. She became a Certified Neuroscience Registered Nurse (CNRN) in 2014 and started teaching for the CNRN Review course offered by Johns Hopkins Hospital in 2016. 

In 2018, Mrs. Boss was asked to become the Stroke Liaison for her unit to assist with the expansion of Stroke patient care throughout the Neuroscience Department. She became a Stroke Certified Registered Nurse (SCRN) in 2018. During this time, Mrs. Boss provided nursing staff education on Comprehensive Stroke Center measures and implemented a stroke training course for staff. She assisted in the Joint
Commission Stroke Survey in 2019.

In 2016, Mrs. Boss became a Forensic Nurse Examiner (FNE-A). She began working with the Mercy Medical Center, Forensic Nursing Department. She began working as a VOCA staff member in 2018.  Mrs. Boss audits all the Forensic Cases that come through the department. In 2019, she started regular Peer Review sessions with the staff. This allowed staff to learn from others and to identify areas for improvement. She is the Chair of the Elder Abuse committee and has developed assessment documentation for this specific population. She works in conjunction with Adult Protective Services in Baltimore City to help facilitate Elder Abuse examinations and understanding of these complex cases. Mrs. Boss also cares for patients who have experienced sexual assault, interpersonal violence, strangulation, human trafficking and stranger violence. She is currently the VOCA Team coordinator in the Forensic Nursing Department at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore which coordinates care to victims of violence for all hospitals in Baltimore City.​

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NATALIE CALOW

MSN, RN, CEN

Natalie Calow is a forensic nurse at Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana and sees any patient that is a victim of a crime that presents to the emergency department.  She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from Indiana University and her Master’s Degree in Nursing Hospital Leadership from University of Indianapolis.  Natalie has been practicing as a forensic nurse for 5 years and has been an Emergency Department Nurse for the past 18 years. 

Natalie is on the Interprofessional Collaboration Committee with AFN and has co-written the Trauma Informed Care position statement and was a reviewer for the Evidence Based Forensic Nursing Education position statement for AFN.  She is also active in ENA (Emergency Nurses Association) for the past 18 years.  Natalie has served as the ENA local chapter President, Treasurer, Forensic Committee Chair and the ENA State Government Affairs Committee.  Natalie currently serves on the Indiana Coalition for Crime Victims’ Rights (ICCVR) Board of Directors and is the secretary of the organization.  Natalie joined two years ago the SAPIR (Sexual Assault Prevention Intervention & Response) team at Indiana University Purdue University Campus which raises awareness of IPV and Sexual Assault issues on campus. 

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DR. CATHY CARTER-SNELL

PhD, RN, SANE-A, DF-AFN

Dr. Cathy Carter-Snell (CJ) is a Professor in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Mount Royal University in Calgary. She has worked with victims of trauma since 1977, including Emergency, Intensive Care, flight teams, and has worked with sexual assault and domestic violence teams since 1998.

She coordinated and developed most of the courses for Mount Royal’s distance graduate certificate programs for both the Emergency nursing and Forensic studies. She also teaches an interdisciplinary undergraduate course on violence across the lifespan at the university and an online SANE course. Her program of research is focused on prevention of violence or early effective intervention for trauma or abuse. She created the injury identification guide called BALD STEP which is in the new RCMP sexual assault kit and international forensic training. Cathy also developed an Enhanced Emergency Sexual Assault Services (EESAS) program for multidisciplinary professionals in rural communities for which she received a national award. The multidisciplinary program is now used in at least two provinces and is used by the Canadian Military nurses and military police. She is also involved in research on prevention of posttraumatic stress disorder in nursing students and graduates, male survivors of childhood sexual abuse and domestic violence, a dating violence prevention program for university students, injury identification and prevention of mental illness after sexual assault and domestic violence.

Dr. Carter-Snell also is frequently called as an expert witness in provincial and federal courts on sexual assault injuries and examinations. She has won many awards for her forensic research and teaching including national nursing recognition as one of 100 nurses shaping nursing in Canada, a Sigma Theta Tau international dissertation award and recognition as one in 150 Canadians making a difference in mental health. 

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“The AFN values and supports evidence informed research, education and practice so that all members may provide high quality holistic forensic care.”

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DR. PAUL THOMAS CLEMENTS

PhD, RN, MSN, CGS, DF-IAFN, DF-AFN

Dr. Clements is a forensic psychiatric clinical specialist, a Certified Gang Specialist, and Certified in Danger Assessment. Practicing in the forensic nursing arena for over 25 years, Dr. Clements has provided consultation for hospital systems, EMT’s, Child Protective Agency personnel, trauma/emergency nurses, psychiatric providers, and corporate executives - each regarding vulnerability risk assessment, target hardening and decreasing the number of violent incidents in the workplace, as well as bullying and the subsequent sequelae. Dr. Clements has provided consultation to school systems and other child-related agencies related to child abuse assessment, and also related to the aftermath of violence and/or violent death (including homicide of a child) for schools, teachers and other classmates. Dr. Clements has three edited textbooks: Violence against women: Contemporary examination of intimate partner violence, Mental health issues in child maltreatment, and Nursing approach to the evaluation of child maltreatment. Additionally, he has numerous peer review publications, and a significant number of conference presentations, nationally and internationally, that address assessment and intervention related to the neurobiology of trauma, interpersonal violence and aggression, coping after a violent death, safety assessment, and exposure to interpersonal violence and crime.

Clements has also spent time in Bolivia, working with provincial judges, prosecutors and forensic psychologists regarding enhanced assessment and intervention with children victimized by sexual aggression and other forms of interpersonal violence. Dr. Clements holds a Master’s degree in Child and Family Psychiatric /Mental Health Nursing and a Doctor of Philosophy in Forensic Psychiatric Nursing, both from The University of Pennsylvania, with research that has examined the traumatic presentations and behaviors of children exposed to the homicide of a family member. Clements was inducted as a Distinguished Fellow in the International Association of Forensic Nurses in 2002, and was an inaugural Associate Editor of the Journal of Forensic Nursing from 2005-2012. Most recently, in 2021, he was inducted as the first Distinguished Fellow of the Academy of Forensic Nursing.

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“The contemporary era of forensic nursing requires translation of scientific evidence towards providing safe and effective clinical forensic practice - for both victims and offenders - all in the pursuit of justice. This can only be achieved through a tri-partite mission of research, theory, and practice. The Academy’s commitment toward excellence in all of these facets is clear, which continually maintains their standing as the premier agency for forensic nursing professionals”

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TERESA DEVITT-LYNCH

MSN, RN, ANF-BC, SANE-A

Teresa Devitt-Lynch, a native North Dakotan (GO BISON!), is the founder and CEO of INTREPID Forensic Healthcare Consulting, a dynamic consulting firm dedicated to forensic analysis of criminal cases involving abuse, sexual assault and other medical issues, providing expert testimony and educational offerings, located in Converse, TX. With over 20 years of nursing experience, she holds a master’s degree in nursing and is board certified in Advanced Forensic Nursing and Adult/Adolescent Sexual Assault Nurse Examinations. She is also a 20-year veteran of the US Navy with a military nursing background in medical/surgical nursing, couplet care, ambulatory surgery, education and training, and forensic healthcare. While on active duty, Teresa was a Tri-Service Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examiner Trainer and expert forensic nursing consultant for military courts martial proceedings in all military branches.

She also served as the lead forensic examiner at the Naval Medical Center, Portsmouth, VA and Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examination Program Director at US Naval Hospital, Sigonella, IT. Teresa currently chairs the Adult Trauma and Domestic Violence Special Interest Group of the Academy of Forensic Nursing organization. She has steadily been engaged in multiple military and civilian organization, national and community-based initiatives aimed at fostering multidisciplinary collaboration and improving forensic healthcare in response to violent trauma. Working out of a home office for the past three years, Teresa has been able to form impenetrable bonds with her and her husband’s three dogs; who, now, don’t even know her husband still lives with them.

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DIANA FAUGNO

MSN, RN, ANF-BC, SANE-A, DF-AFN

Diana Faugno graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing-University of North Dakota and a Master of Science in Nursing-University of Phoenix. Ms. Faugno is a Founding Board Director for End Violence Against Women International (EVAWI).  She is a member of the Board of Directors for the California American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children.  She is a founding board member for the Academy of Forensic Nursing and the current past president of the Academy of Forensic Nursing as well as a retired-fellow in the American Academy of Forensic Science.  She is a Distinguished Fellow in the International Association of Forensic Nurses and the Academy of Forensic Nursing.  She currently is the nurse examiner at Live Safe resources in Dallas, Georgia. She was the nurse examiner at the Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center and Eisenhower Medical Center’s SART team for many years. She provides trainings throughout the country ​and is the co-author on numerous textbooks and papers on dealing with the forensic medical aspects of violence such as sexual assault, strangulation and domestic violence.

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“The AFN is committed to the application of scholarship, education, and service and is home to leaders and mentors in forensic nursing practices globally.”

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DR. THERESA FAY-HILLIER

DrPH, MSN, PMHCNS-CS

Dr. Theresa Fay-Hillier is psychiatric forensic nurse with expertise in the post-trauma related impact of significant interpersonal violence, crime, and disaster. Following the 9/11 tragedy, Dr. Fay-Hillier was involved with debriefing employees who worked in and around the New York City area. She has presented at both national and international conferences on issues related to Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), harm-reduction strategies in addressing individuals addicted to opioids, and implementation of collaborate simulation experiences into nursing programs. Dr. Fay-Hillier has also co-authored several peer reviewed articles and is co-editor of a textbook on Child Maltreatment. Dr. Fay-Hillier's focus of research is related to health care providers' experiences in adequately assessing and addressing IPV. Dr. Fay-Hillier has an interest in working with the chronically mentally ill as well as people who are victims of abuse. She was a co-leader of a homicide bereavement group for families at the City of Philadelphia Office of the Medical Examiner. Dr. Fay-Hillier was also a co-owner of a nurse owned business providing Critical Incident Stress Debriefing services to employees who worked in both health care agencies and general business facilities.

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Dr. Fay-Hillier is an Associate Clinical Professor at the Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She earned her Doctorate in Public Health from Drexel University's School of Public Health, her Master's Degree in Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Holy Family University. Dr. Fay-Hillier is a board-certified Clinical Nurse Specialist in Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing and is also certified in completing Danger Assessments with victims of intimate partner violence (IPV). 

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"AFN has clearly situated itself to expand the contemporary vision and scope of forensic nursing research, scholarship, and practice in the contemporary era of healthcare and medicolegal care of victims and offenders globally.  As a member of AFN, I have found myself completely aligned with these exciting and important endeavors and my goal is to continue to actively contribute to this mission of the agency."

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CHRISTINE FOOTE-LUCERO

MSN, RN, CEN, SANE-A, SANE-P

Christine Foote-Lucero has been a licensed Registered Nurse in Colorado for 20 years, with a focus on critical care.  She received a Bachelors of Science in Nursing at Creighton University in 2002 and a Masters of Science in Forensic Nursing in 2019. For the past decade, she has worked as a Forensic Nurse Examiner (FNE). She currently manages the FNE team at the University of Colorado Hospital (UCH) in Aurora, CO where she developed a robust FNE orientation program as well as education and training for on-going FNE performance based competencies, clinical skills exemplars, and high fidelity simulations. She has also created a Strangulation Pathway at UCH that serves as a clinical practice guideline for Emergency Providers. 

Her clinical experiences as a forensic nurse have included death investigation and correctional nursing, as well as sexual assault, intimate partner violence, physical assault, strangulation, elder abuse, child abuse, and human trafficking. She has worked in Professional Nursing Development and is a certified instructor for the Emergency Nurse’s Association, teaching ENPC and TNCC, as well as a guest lecturer for the University of Colorado School of Nursing.  She has presented at both state and national conferences on a variety of forensic and trauma topics.

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PAULA NEWMAN-SKOMSKI

ARNP

Paula Newman-Skomski, ARNP has been a RN for over 30 years in various capacities. She has spent the past 17 years as a Forensic Nurse Examiner with Providence Intervention Center for Assault & Abuse providing services to victims of all forms of interpersonal violence. She has been involved with the Snohomish County Sexual Exploitation Intervention Network since its inception in 2006 and was the chair from 2010 -2017. Paula is also the Founder and Board President for a project called Peoria Home which is a residential recovery program for women who have experienced exploitation through trafficking and prostitution.  

Paula is passionate about providing services for victims, fighting to end interpersonal violence and human slavery. She has won several awards for her work including: March of Dimes Nurse of the Year 2010, Innovation/Creativity Category; The’ Spirit of Nursing’ from Providence Hospital 2014; ‘Inspiration in Women’s Health’ 2014 from the Nurse Practitioner’s in Women’s Health Association; ‘Community Champion’ 2014 from Molina Healthcare; March of Dimes Nurse of the year 2014 in Innovation and Technology; Providence Mission Award in 2015 & 2017; Providence “Values in Action” Award 2020; Seattle NOW SHERO Award 2021; and was nominated for the 2015 National Crime Victims' Service Awards from the US Office of Crime Victims and US Department of Justice.  She has been involved with Girl Scouts for over 30 years; is a veteran of the United States Air Force; and volunteered with the U. S. Department of Health following hurricane Katrina.

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VALERIE SIEVERS

MSN, RN, CNS, SANE-A, SANE-P, DF-AFN

Val Sievers is a Forensic Clinical Nurse Specialist with more than 35 years of health care experience as a registered nurse, advanced practice nurse, educator and consultant with extensive practice experience in the arenas of emergency and critical care nursing, academic education and forensic clinical practice. As a Clinical Nurse Specialist, Val provides advanced education to healthcare and interdisciplinary professionals regarding the care and treatment of patients affected by violence and abuse to include; evidentiary examinations for adult, adolescent and child survivors of sexual and physical abuse.

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She is currently dual board certified as an adult-adolescent and pediatric sexual assault nurse examiner. In addition, Val has provided consultation to hospitals, health care agencies, non-profit organizations, communities and military installations regarding collaborative strategies for developing or improving a response to those affected by violence. Val worked in the position of Colorado SANE Project Coordinator/Director for 15 years, a project funded by the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice before moving the position and funding to the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs to support an academic and clinical foundation for forensic nursing education.

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In 1995, Val and emergency nurse colleagues developed the first Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) program in Colorado at Memorial Hospital in Colorado Springs and for 24 years provided forensic healthcare services to children, adolescents and families at Safe Passage, a Children's Advocacy Center. Currently, Val is owner of MedLaw Consultants, LLC, a forensic healthcare consulting practice.

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“The Academy of Forensic Nursing, with a focus on evidence-based education, practice and rigorous scholarship is well positioned to have a positive impact on forensic healthcare.”

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DR. ANGELIA TRUJILLO

DNP, MSN, WHNP-BC, DF-AFN

Angelia Trujillo is an Associate Professor with the University of Alaska Anchorage, School of Nursing. Dr. Trujillo has worked in the field of interpersonal violence, sexual assault, and public health for approximately 15 years. Dr. Trujillo obtained her Women's Health Nurse Practitioner certification from Frontier Nursing University in 2017, obtained her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) with a focus on Forensic Nursing in 2008 from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and also holds a Master’s of Science – Advanced Community Health Nursing from the University of Alaska Anchorage. Dr. Trujillo currently practices as a Women's Health Nurse Practitioner and has worked as a forensic nurse examiner with experience working with adult, adolescent and child sexual assault victims.

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“The Academy seeks to provide forensic nurses and our interdisciplinary partners with a forum to promote leadership, education and service to communities and individuals who have been affected by violence; focusing on collaboration and eliminating silos.”

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