Page 87 - 2023 SMOG Digital

SPECIAL POPULATIONS

SEXUAL ASSAULT
INDICATIONS:
1. Reported and/or suspected assault on any person regardless of age or gender.
2. Trauma and/or bleeding to the vagina, rectum or buttocks that cannot be identified as
being the result of any other cause.
REMARKS:
1. Focus shall be placed on the victim and on doing what is necessary and appropriate to support
victim recovery and also, if a Service Member, to support that Service Member to be fully
mission capable and engaged.
2. Medical personnel should be gender–responsive, culturally competent, and recovery– oriented.
a. Medical providers giving care to sexual assault victims shall recognize the high prevalence of
pre–existing trauma (prior to present sexual assault incident) and the concept of trauma–
informed care.
b. If the attending flight medic is not appropriately trained to utilize a Sexual Assault Forensic
Evidence (SAFE) Kit, information will be forwarded to the Medical Treatment Facility in order
to make the necessary arrangements to complete the SAFE Kit administration as soon as
possible.
3. Flight Paramedics shall abide by the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) Program and
coordinate with the Sexual Assault Response Coordinator (SARC) and Sexual Assault Prevention
and Response Victim Advocate (SAPR VA). The SARCs shall serve as the single point of contact for
coordinating care to ensure that sexual assault victims receive appropriate and responsive care.
4. Sexual assault victims shall be given priority and treated as emergency cases. Emergency care
shall consist of emergency medical care and the offer of a SAFE Kit.

PATIENT MANAGEMENT PROCEDURE:
1. In the management of sexual assault patients, the DoD’s first priority for victims is to protect,
treat with dignity and respect, and to provide the medical treatment, care, and counseling that
patients deserve. Under the DoD Confidentiality Policy, sexual assault victims have two
reporting options: Restricted and Unrestricted. It is mandatory that all DoD health care
providers (including 68Ws) adhere to the parameters of confidentiality and notification
pursuant to each form of reporting.
a. Restricted Reporting: Reporting option that allows assault victims to confidentially disclose the
assault to specified individuals (e.g., SARC, SAPR VA, healthcare personnel) and receives medical
treatment (including emergency care), counseling, and assignment of a SARC and SAPR VA;
without triggering an investigation. The victim’s report provided to healthcare personnel
(including the information acquired from a SAFE Kit), SARCs, or SAPR VAs will NOT be reported to
law enforcement or to the command to initiate the official investigative process unless the victim
consents or an established EXCEPTION applies. Restricted reporting applies to Service Members
and their military dependents 18 years of age and older. Additional persons who may be entitled
to Restricted Reporting are NG and Reserve Component members. Only a SARC, SAPR VA, or
healthcare personnel may receive a Restricted Report.
b. Unrestricted Reporting: A process that an individual covered by this policy uses to disclose,
without requesting confidentiality or Restricted Reporting, that he or she is the victim of a

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