Midwives in South Australia allowed to conduct forensic examinations — ABC News Australia
New rules have come into force in the Australian state of South Australia, allowing midwives, following special training, to conduct forensic examinations of people who have survived sexual violence. The reform is intended to expand the pool of specialists and reduce waiting times for examinations, particularly for residents of the state’s regional and remote areas.
Expanding the pool of specialists
As ABC News reports, the changes were introduced following a recommendation from South Australia’s Royal Commission into Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence. Its findings were released in August last year.
State Attorney-General Kyam Maher said that regional areas often lack doctors or registered nurses to conduct such examinations. According to him, the timely collection of evidence is important for preserving its quality, as well as for the wellbeing of survivors.
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According to SA Health, the state has 12 government-trained specialists to conduct forensic examinations: nine work in Adelaide and another three in regional South Australia. The agency said it aims to see people as quickly as possible, but timing may be affected by appointments with other people, travel delays, urgent medical needs or an individual’s safety situation.
40 hours of training
State Health Minister Blair Boyer said that midwives will be able to complete a 40-hour training course delivered by Yarrow Place, the state sexual assault support service. He said he was confident this would increase the number of specialists, reduce waiting times and lessen the need for long-distance travel across the state.
Since the beginning of the year, 184 people who survived sexual violence have contacted Yarrow Place for a forensic examination. There were 281 such referrals throughout last year. Mary Leaker, a representative of the organisation Embolden, called the reform an important step towards improving survivors’ wellbeing and access to justice regardless of where they live. She also stressed the need to assess the results of the changes using SA Health data.
