The Working Relationship Between Emergency Room Nurses and Medical Rape Victim Advocates: A Qualitative Examination of Nurses' Perceptions of the Influence of Nurse Training and Experience on Nurse-Advocate Interactions.

Nurses and medical advocates respond to sexual assault survivors seeking hospital services. Ideally, both providers work collaboratively. However, this does not always happen. Extant research on the nurse-advocate relationship focuses on Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANEs). This study examines how ER nurses perceive their training and experience influence the working relationships between emergency room (ER) nurses (not exclusively SANEs) and medical advocates. Key findings indicate nurses perceive increased training improves (a) role understanding, (b) trust, (c) respect, (d) rapport, and (e) appreciation. Less training was associated with poorer role understanding and trust.

Rape Crisis Victim Advocacy: A Systematic Review.

While rape crisis center (RCC) advocacy is generally regarded as valuable, there are no prior systematic reviews of the advocacy literature. This review examined RCC advocacy service provision, perceptions and impact of advocacy, and challenges and facilitators to effective service provision. Databases related to health and social sciences were searched including Academic Search Complete, PsychINFO, PubMed, CINAHL, ProQuest, Science Direct, OAlster, WorldCat, and MEDLINE. Empirical articles written in English that examined RCC advocacy service provision and/or impact in the US were included. The researchers reviewed abstracts and titles, and then full texts. Forty-five articles met criteria, were summarized, and double checked. Findings demonstrate advocacy is multi-faceted, beneficial, and challenging. Advocates work directly with survivors and interact with other responders on behalf of survivors. Specifically, advocates provide emotional support, safety plan, support survivors in making decisions, and assist them in navigating other systems. While advocates are generally regarded positively by survivors and responders, some responders have concerns about advocates. In addition, advocates sometimes report victim-blaming and being ill-equipped to meet survivors' needs. Finally, advocates face specific challenges in their work with survivors and responders. Future research using diverse methodological approaches is needed to understand advocacy utilization and reach; survivors' perceptions of advocacy; marginalized survivors' experiences; connections between specific services, implementation, and outcomes; and effective strategies for advocates' interactions with other responders. Additional resources to help advocates serve all survivors effectively and equitably; to support evaluator-practitioner partnerships; and to share unpublished data on advocacy may help contribute to improvements in advocacy practice.

Help-Seeking Among Women of Haitian Descent in the Dominican Bateyes.

People of Haitian descent in the Dominican Republic are at high risk of violence, including interpersonal violence, and experience multiple levels of structural oppression. However, limited research exists specifically about women of Haitian descent in this context, who are at unique risk for violence and marginalization given intersectional oppression related to antiblackness, xenophobia, and misogyny. It is unclear what resources and supports exist for women of Haitian descent living in the Dominican Republic, and whether women can effectively meet their needs through available supports. This study analyzed 25 life history interviews to understand help-seeking patterns to address self-defined needs among women of Haitian descent. Analysis focused on narratives of interpersonal violence, as most research on this issue focuses on experiences of women in the global north. Thematic analysis demonstrated that women navigate a variety of informal supports, primarily with other women in their kinship networks, to address different needs, including material, emotional, and interpersonal-but primarily to address needs related to pregnancy and childcare, interpersonal violence, and housing. Women also sought help from male family members and formal institutions, though less frequently compared to help-seeking from other women. Outcomes of help-seeking, including who provided effective help, conditions of support, and negative reactions varied. Implications of women's patterns of help-seeking in this context, and how they compare to patterns within the larger help-seeking literature are discussed.

Embodied, Situated, and Co-Constructed: Young Sexual Minority Men's Experiences of Intersectional Identity and Minority Stress.

Intersectionality, minority stress, and social ecological theories have all been important frameworks for understanding mechanisms that create and maintain sexual and gender minority health disparities. In this study, we integrated these frameworks to guide a grounded theory examination of identity-related experiences in specific settings among 33 Black, White, and Latino young sexual minority cisgender men who lived in Chicago. Analyses identified four key categories: Racism Manifests in Context- and Sexual Minority-Specific Ways, Sexual Orientation Can Mean Feeling Safe and Seen or Threatened and Alone, Gender is a Matter of Self-Expression, and Bodies Are Not Always Made to Fit In. Participants reported both identity-based privilege and marginalization as well as unique forms of minority stress at the intersection of specific identities. Across these categories, participants' experiences of their intersecting identities and associated forms of minority stress were embodied in their physical appearance, situated in specific neighborhoods and contexts, and co-constructed through their interpersonal interactions with others. Further, participants' narratives provide powerful insights about the nuanced ways in which young sexual minority men understand and negotiate their lived experiences. Findings highlight how experiences of identity and minority stress are both intersectional and located within specific social ecological contexts, which has important implications for research, clinical practice, and advocacy.