Academy of Forensic Nursing - Bell Work Talks

In this Bell Work Talk, Dr. Dahl-Jacinto explores the critical issue of youth suicide, emphasizing the growing need for individuals to take an active approach in understanding, assessing, and intervening. The discussion focuses on how to ask about suicide, practical tools for assessing risk, recognizing risk and protective factors, and creating safe, supportive environments for youth experiencing suicidality. Throughout the discussion there is an emphasis on the importance of empathy and cultural awareness when responding to youth experiencing suicidality.

Dr. Heather Dahl-Jacinto is an Associate Professor of Counselor Education at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She has multiple peer-reviewed publications and presentations and over $8 million dollars in grant funding. Her research interests are focused on mental health and include crisis intervention (e.g., suicide prevention and assessment), mental health education, and qualitative research methodology. She has held service positions at the local, regional, national, and international level, including president of the Western Association of Counselor Education & Supervision (2018-2019).

Resources:

National Suicide Hotline (English): 9-8-8, can also text, accessible for deaf & hard of hearing

National Suicide Hotline (Spanish): 9-8-8 (no text available yet)

Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741

The Trevor Project for LBGTQ Youth: 1-866-488-7386, or text: 678-678

Risk and Protective Factors Handout: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1f1nyhwlVKlkXUYqTKN7SfYfbA8hBGpaj/view?usp=sharing

Survey:

We’d really like to learn more about what you think of the podcast, and what you’d like to hear in future episodes.

https://forms.gle/dos4a11PEmCgth7Z8

In this Bell Work Talk, Dr. O’Briant will discuss that violence and abuse in rural America is exacerbated by limited access to support services for victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) due to family connections with people in positions of authority, geographic isolation, transportation barriers, stigma of abuse, lack of available shelters and affordable housing, poverty as a barrier to care, and other challenges. Victims of abuse who live in small communities may be well-acquainted with local health care providers and often voter-elected law enforcement officers. Individuals may fear being seen walking into a mental health clinic, with subsequent (and reality-based) fear that deter them from seeking help. Thus, advances in technology are becoming a much-needed option. Although telehealth has been used for some time in rural health settings, only in more recent years has there been an increase toward quality trauma-informed care. With increasing focus on the impact of social determinants of health, agencies continue to shift to telehealth to provide virtual support. Specifically, telehealth visits can potentially extend the reach of the limited number of primary care and mental health providers to those who are significantly in need of services.

Deborah O’Briant is a nursing educator with over 20 years as an RN and 13 years of experience as a family nurse practitioner working in a variety of clinical settings, including the Emergency Room. She currently teaches at Texas A&M University College of Nursing and is the coordinator for the Family Nurse Practitioner Master degree (MSN) program and the interim coordinator for the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program. She has a strong interest in rural healthcare and helps provide care to women in underserved communities in Texas using grant funds awarded to Texas A&M College of Nursing.

Resources:

A signal for help: Visit: https://canadianwomen.org/signal-for-help

“CUES” Strategy for Safe and Effective Telemental Health Assessments for Violence and Abuse. Visit: https://www.futureswithoutviolence.org/

Tips to help you ID intimate partner violence via telehealth: Visit: https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/public-health/tips-help-you-id-intimate-partner-violence-telehealth

Survey:

We’d really like to learn more about what you think of the podcast, and what you’d like to hear in future episodes.

https://forms.gle/dos4a11PEmCgth7Z8

In this Bell Work Talk, bitemark analysis in sexual assault and child abuse cases will be discussed. The standards and protocols involved will be covered.

James Frizzell attended McGill University in 2019 for a degree in dental forensics. The Quebec Provincial police (Surete du Quebec) also trained in forensic photography. Received education also from Detroit Morgue (Wayne Co. Medical Examiner Center) and from University of Tennessee Body Farm (Research Center on Human Decomposition)

Resources:

1. ABFO Standards and Guidelines (American Board of Forensic Odontology (they set the standards and protocols)

https://abfo.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/ABFO-DRM-Section-4-Standards-Guidelines-Sept-2017-New-page-numbers.pdf

2. ASFO (American Society of Forensic Odontology)

https://asfo.org/contact/

Any of these two aforementioned resources (organizations) may be contacted for help with a bite mark case, if you are seeking a local forensic dentist in your geographic location.

3. Bite mark documentation and analysis: the forensic 3D/CAD supported photogrammetry approach

(Forensic Science International

Volume 135, Issue 2, 12 August 2003, Pages 115-121)

https://www.google.com/imgres?q=human%20bitemark%20patterned%20flow%20chart&imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fars.els-cdn.com%2Fcontent%2Fimage%2F1-s2.0-S0379073803002056-gr4.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sciencedirect.com%2Fscience%2Farticle%2Fpii%2FS0379073803002056&docid=456ysnzZNmganM&tbnid=YSnugvqwwzW3LM&vet=12ahUKEwjJ5ZGfyo2IAxUFhIkEHVMeA7EQM3oECD8QAA..i&w=447&h=356&hcb=2&ved=2ahUKEwjJ5ZGfyo2IAxUFhIkEHVMeA7EQM3oECD8QAA

Survey:

We’d really like to learn more about what you think of the podcast, and what you’d like to hear in future episodes.

https://forms.gle/dos4a11PEmCgth7Z8

In this Bell Work Talk, Kory will talk about addiction and how it is a very stigmatized disease. Before we can start to treat patients with addictions, we must first learn how it works and why our patients act the way they do. In this podcast, I will define addiction, the neurobiology of addiction, discuss a new concept of brain failure and also discuss cravings that addiction causes.

Kory Scheideman is an Emergency Department nurse that has been in the emergency world for over 18 years as a nurse, and prior to that an EMT/Fire Fighter for 5 years. For the last 6 years, Kory has helped develop an ALTO program, Medication Assisted Treatment program in 6 different Emergency Departments. He also is an active community member and sits on the Northern Colorado Harm Reduction Alliance, Northern Colorado Collaborative for Addiction and Recovery Supports, and the Colorado Emergency Nurses Association (ENA) Quality, Safety and Injury Prevention Committee Chair. He was recently awarded a “Rethinking Addiction and Recovery Event” Award and the Colorado ENA Inspire award in 2023 for his work in the community and the Colorado ENA. Kory was also inducted in the Academy of Emergency Nurses earlier this month for the work with addiction medicine among Emergency Nurses Association and community. Kory is also engaged with the Naloxone Project as a Nurse Leader.

Resources:

How Addiction Changes the Brain - Changing Minds

https://changingmindslarimer.org/how-addiction-changes-the-brain/

Opioid Safety - Colorado Hospital Association (cha.com)

https://cha.com/opioid-safety/

The Naloxone Project

https://www.naloxoneproject.com/

In this Bell Work Talk, Dr. Debby Herbenick will discuss recent research focused on strangulation during sex among a group of college-age students. She will discuss the role of pornography, social media influence, prevalence, and health consequences.

Dr. Debby Herbenick is an internationally recognized sexual and reproductive health professor, researcher, and educator. For more than 20 years, she has dedicated her efforts to understanding how people experience their bodies and sexual lives. Dr. Herbenick is the Principal Investigator of the National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior (NSSHB), an ongoing U.S. nationally representative probability survey of Americans’ sexual life that began in 2008 and recently completed its 8th wave of data collection.

Resources:

https://www.debbyherbenick.com/

https://publichealth.indiana.edu/research/faculty-directory/profile.html?user=debby

(Explicit Content Warning)

In this Bell Work Talk, Dr. Annette Cannon discusses her role as an elected coroner in her community. Dr. Cannon shares how her vast experiences as a nurse prepared her for the role of coroner and what a day in the life of a coroner looks like.

Natalie Evenson has a background in Trauma, Emergency, and Critical Care. She has been a SANE nurse since 2005 and is currently the SANE Program Coordinator at St. Michael Medical Center in Silverdale, Washington. Natalie recorded this podcast to increase awareness of the various roles available to nurses within forensic nursing.

Resources:

American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators

https://abmdi.org/

Academy of Forensic Nursing Death Investigation SIG Group

https://www.goafn.org/sig

In this Bell Work Talk, Dr. Stern will discuss that animal abuse is commonly encountered and there is a well-known link between violence against animals and other types of interpersonal violence including domestic violence, elder abuse, and child abuse. This podcast gives a brief overview of how the veterinary forensic sciences are used to investigate these crimes against animals.

Dr. Adam Stern is a Professor of Forensic Pathology at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine and runs the UF Veterinary Forensic Sciences Laboratory. He is a board-certificated Veterinary Pathologist and is an American College of Veterinary Pathologists Founding Fellow in Veterinary Forensic Pathology. He specializes in the forensic death investigation of animals and the performance of forensic autopsies on animals. He is heavily involved in the professional develop of animal forensic sciences and is currently the Director of the International Society of Animal Forensic Sciences and co-leads a large animal cruelty task force in Florida.

In this Bell Work Talk, Dr. Clements discusses what happens to the families of people who go missing and are never found. How can anyone manage to “carry on”, when they have no idea what has happened to their child? When your child has disappeared and you are not even sure if they are just missing, somewhere alone and suffering, or already dead, how do you cope? As heartless as it may seem, life and the lives of others must go on -- for the good of both individuals and families. Everyone involved will find that there is no such thing as “normal”. life as they once knew it has changed forever. However, it is possible to place this nightmare of loss into ones life trajectory, and reinvest in a productive life, whether you choose to never stop looking, keep up hope, or ultimately accept that your child will never return.

Paul Thomas Clements is a Board Certified Advanced Forensic Nurse, a Certified Gang Specialist, and Certified in Danger Assessment. Practicing in the forensic nursing arena for over 30 years, Clements has provided consultation for hospital systems, EMTs, Child Protective Agency personnel, trauma/emergency nurses, psychiatric providers, academic and corporate settings – 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. Clements has provided consultation to public 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 and gang-related deaths) for teachers and other classmates. Clements has three upcoming textbooks: Gender Violence Across the Spectrum: A Trauma-Informed Approach, Mental Health Issues in Child Maltreatment: A New Perspective, and Violence Against Women: Contemporary Examination of Domestic Violence. Additionally, he has numerous peer-reviewed 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. His work in the field of grief and bereavement spans over thirty years, including being co-director of the homicide bereavement center at the Medical Examiner’s Officer at the City of Philadelphia’s Department of Public Health, which then expanded to provide free grief services to all families of sudden traumatic death in the City. Dr. Clements was a grief therapist in private practice as well as a Critical Incident Stress Debriefer during the 9/11 tragedy. Dr. Clements has worked closely with a wide variety of cultures, both in the United States and internationally. Clements works as a Professor at the Center of Excellence in Forensic Nursing at Texas A&M University.

Resources:

National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (2024). Is your child missing? https://www.missingkids.org/gethelpnow/isyourchildmissing

Download this checklist of actions to be taken by families in the initial stages of a missing child.

https://www.missingkids.org/content/dam/missingkids/pdfs/publications/nc198.pdf

For questions call the NCMEC at 1-800-THE-LOST® (1-800-843-5678).

National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention:

A Child Is Missing: Providing Support for Families of Missing Children

Available from: https://www.missingkids.org/content/dam/missingkids/pdfs/publications/nc172.pdf

Office of Juvenile Justice and Juvenile Delinquency Prevention:

OJJDP Report: When Your Child Is Missing: A Family Survival Guide

Personal and Family Considerations. https://ojjdp.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh176/files/pubs/childismissing/ch7.html#:~:text=Keep%20the%20lines%20of%20communication,wedge%20into%20your%20family%20life.

In this Bell Work Talk, Hillary Benanzer, data analyst at TAT, will discuss the realities of human trafficking; the role of key industries and agencies in the anti-human trafficking movement; and how individuals can fight this crime as professionals and as community members.

Benanzer completed her master’s degree in criminal justice at the University of Cincinnati, with a concentration in law enforcement and crime prevention. At the University of Cincinnati, she contributed research efforts to the field of human trafficking and published research on county-level correlates of human trafficking arrest levels in the state. In her role as data analyst for TAT, Benanzer collects, analyzes and disseminates relevant data to enhance TAT’s training materials and facilitate systems change. Along with educating on the realities of human trafficking, she works to navigate development and collaboration with colleagues to implement TAT's vision across the nation.

Resources:

TAT Training Library

https://tatnonprofit.org/training-library/

Community Resources:

https://tatnonprofit.org/community-resources/

TAT App:

http://bit.ly/TATApp

In this Bell Work Talk, Dr. Bhattarai discusses the impacts of mindfulness practices on forensic nurses. This podcast offers a range of practical tools that forensic nurses can incorporate into their daily clinical practices and personal lives.

Dr. Bhattarai is a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Nursing at Texas A&M University. She has an academic background in nursing, psychology, and rehabilitation counseling. With expertise in mental health, mindfulness, and well-being research in people with chronic illnesses and disabilities, Dr. Bhattarai has expanded her research focus to the crucial intersection of mindful self-care and the unique needs of forensic nurses. As she delved deeper into her research and engaged with various populations, it became increasingly evident that forensic nurses could greatly benefit from mindfulness-based self-care. She recently led a comprehensive narrative review exploring the potential benefits of mindfulness among forensic nurses. Her paper provided a diverse array of practical mindfulness tools for forensic nurses. She is dedicated to designing mindfulness-based self-care strategies and integrating mindfulness practices within forensic nursing education.

Resources:

Bhattarai, M., Clements, P. T., & Downing, N. R. (2023). Mindfulness-based self-care for forensic nurses: A professional lifestyle approach. Journal of Forensic Nursing. Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.1097/JFN.0000000000000456