Join Jennifer Breads & Debra S. Holbrook for this two-part exclusive Member's Only Webinar
Nurse-Led Forensic Services for Foreign-Born Torture or Abuse Survivors Seeking Legal Immigration Relief!
For many thousands of recently arrived immigrants and torture and/or abuse survivors, the US holds the promises of freedom, safety, and a better life. But navigating a complex and sometimes inhospitable immigration system is not an easy task, especially for those with limited English skills, little trust in authority, and often minimal evidence to substantiate their cases in court. There are several forms of legal relief available to asylee-seekers and foreign-born survivors of sexual and domestic violence, and human trafficking in the United States - and, as participants will learn during the course of this presentation, forensic nurses are aptly positioned to meet the critical medicolegal needs of this uniquely vulnerable population in both civil and criminal court proceedings.
Over the past three years, forensic nurses in Baltimore, Maryland designed the region’s first comprehensive, nurse-led model to support the medico-forensic needs of asylee-seekers and immigrant survivors in their community. Drawing from lessons learned and partnerships forged by their initiative, this two-part presentation outlines basic factors about types of legal relief available for foreign-born survivors of torture, persecution, sexual/domestic violence, and human trafficking, and describes the forensic nurse’s role in offering medico-legal documentation, including written affidavits/affirmations, for civil court proceedings. Additionally, the presentation describes the components of, and lessons learned from, the design and implementation (pilot) of this initiative to expand the core services of a forensic nursing program to include asylee and immigration-specific medicolegal care.