Victor Petreca

At the intersection of forensic nursing, mental health, and criminal justice lies a space where trauma-informed care meets public safety—and it's here that my career has flourished as both researcher and practitioner. As a Distinguished Fellow of the Academy of Forensic Nursing and Assistant Professor at Boston College's Connell School of Nursing, I've dedicated over a decade to transforming how we respond to behavioral health crises through innovative collaboration between healthcare and law enforcement.

My journey began in correctional settings, where I provided psychiatric care to more than 20,000 incarcerated individuals across county, state, and federal systems. These experiences revealed critical gaps in our crisis response systems and inspired my transition into research and policy development. Today, I hold the distinction of being the first nurse to direct the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health's Center for Police Training in Crisis Intervention, where I oversee funded research and practice implementation revolutionizing police-led behavioral health responses.

This leadership role has enabled me to create something unprecedented: a statewide database capturing real-time crisis incident data from 165 police departments across Massachusetts. This infrastructure transforms how we understand and improve diversion outcomes, making evidencebased decisions about behavioral health interventions at the system level. The data has become foundational to one of my projects: the Nurse-Police Assistance Crisis Team (N-PACT), the first known model to propose embedding forensic nurses as first-line co-responders within police-led crisis teams. N-PACT represents more than an innovative program; it's a paradigm shift positioning forensic nurses at the forefront of community crisis response, delivering traumainformed care while diverting individuals from unnecessary criminal justice involvement. The model has garnered support from statewide community partners, state representatives and law enforcement, and we're preparing for implementation that could reshape crisis intervention nationwide.

My research extends beyond crisis response to examine complex dynamics of violence and trauma, including strangulation as a method of violence, adverse childhood experiences in juvenile justice contexts and violence against Native and Indigenous women. Education remains central to my mission. At Boston College, I've developed forensic mental health coursework and co-created a forensic nursing minor, preparing the next generation of specialists. These initiatives guide students from research conception through publication, ensuring they graduate with both theoretical knowledge and practical skills for forensic practice.

My editorial work includes serving as Interim Section Editor for Research at the Journal of the Academy of Forensic Nursing. Recognition for my work includes the inaugural DAISY Nurse Leader Award in Forensic Nursing, the Ann W. Burgess Forensic Nursing Award, and the Connell Award for Excellence in Teaching and Clinical Research—honors that reflect a career devoted to expanding forensic nursing's impact on justice, healing, and public safety.

Goal Statement

As an AFN Board member, I would pursue three strategic goals: First, strengthening forensic psychiatric nursing's role in crisis intervention and trauma-informed care, leveraging my experience directing Massachusetts' statewide police crisis training program. Second, expanding interprofessional collaboration between forensic nurses, law enforcement, mental health professionals, and legal teams to create comprehensive care models like my N-PACT initiative. Third, advancing AFN's leadership in forensic nursing scholarship by ensuring research and practice remain interconnected. These goals align with AFN's mission to link evidence with practice, promoting trauma-informed, equitable care while positioning forensic nursing as essential to public safety and behavioral health policy.