Photo By Jean Graves | The Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division hosted its first “Coffee...... read more read more
FORT JOHNSON, La. — The Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division hosted its first “Coffee with a Cop” from 10 a.m. to noon, on Aug. 23, in the Maple Terrace Community Center at the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Johnson, Louisiana.
According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline 24 people per minute are victims of rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner. Nearly three and 10 women and one and 10 men have experienced physical violence by an intimate partner.
While Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital recognizes Domestic Violence Month in October, Special Agent Audra Soles proactively coordinated the event in hopes of reaching military spouses now to educate them on resources available in support of domestic violence.
Soles said “Coffee with a Cop” will be a monthly initiative, and the next one is scheduled for 10 a.m. to noon on Sep. 13 in the Dogwood Terrace Community Center. BJACH will participate in each monthly event to share the many health resources available.
“During my eight years on active duty in the Army, I often found myself unsure of where to go for a variety of different issues,” she said. “Once I became a CID agent, I wanted to help by hosting monthly events to bring support agencies together to give the community a better understanding of what we do, offer resources and educate everyone about domestic violence.”
Soles said her goal is to create a safe place for the community to discuss a sensitive topic.
“When I say community, I mean everyone, Soldiers, spouses, and Families,” she said. “I want everyone to feel welcome. Often victims of domestic violence don’t realize they are victims. I hope my presentation, along with those from other agencies who are here, can educate attendees about what domestic violence looks like and provide resources available to them if they or someone they know is trapped in a violent situation.”
Samara Romine, spouse of Pfc. Damian Romine, 710 Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, said she came to learn more about how she can help others.
“I’ve noticed on social media that there are a lot of people around here who are struggling with a variety of situations, and they don’t know what resources are available,” she said. “I came to gather information to help others.”
Romine said she will share what she learned at “Coffee with a Cop” and encourage more to attend next month.
“I never realized the vast number of resources available,” she said. “Now I have a list of telephone numbers, websites, and apps for all the different support agencies. I am glad I came today, I learned so much.”
April Draper Davis, chief of Occupational Health Medicine and Army Public Health Nursing, is the sexual assault medical director and provider as well as one of four medical forensic examiners at Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital.
Davis said, as a medical forensic examiner, she and her colleagues are on call 24 hours each day, every day, to support the victims of sexual assault.
“I’m here today to ensure our beneficiaries have the resources they need in the event they ever need them,” she said. “A lot of people don’t know that we provide medical care along with domestic and sexual assault exams for anyone who is a victim of intimate partner violence.”
Davis said at BJACH she can conduct a forensic exam to collect DNA evidence, photography of injuries, medical testing, and assess any injuries.
“For example, when we encounter nonfatal strangulation, we assess for potential cardiovascular trauma that could lead to death,” she said.
Davis said victims can request a sexual assault or domestic violence exam at the emergency room.
“The ER will contact the on-call medical forensic examiner and we will come in and take care of that patient,” she said. “We recommend victims come in as soon as possible. There are certain medications we need to start between three and five days after the incident. For DNA evidence collection, the recommendation is to be seen within seven days of the event. The longer a victim waits to be seen, the ability to collect, and the quality of the samples are diminished.”
Davis said she works closely with CID when incidents occur for both adult and pediatric cases.
“We have a memorandum of understanding with Lake Charles Memorial Hospital for our pediatric cases,” she said.
Shantell Williams, from the installation SHARP office, was on hand to assist with the event.
Williams said she wanted to bridge the gap by educating Families about SHARP.
“When I found out they were doing this initiative, I thought it was a good opportunity for the SHARP program to reach out to a missed demographic,” she said. “We spend a lot of time focusing on Soldiers, but we don’t spend a lot of time focusing on adult family members. Families are an important part of this community and provide support to our Soldiers, so it’s important for us to spend time educating them too.”
Williams said she wants Families to know what SHARP is, what services they offer, and provide a better understanding of how installation agencies work together to support them.
“Working together, with law enforcement, prevention programs, and clinical providers, we can find a way to eradicate or reduce violent behaviors at Fort Johnson,” she said. “A motto we have is “No Wrong Door” and what that means is, if you come to a SHARP office, and we aren’t the service you need, we will ensure that before you leave that office you will be referred to the agency who can assist you.”
Williams said they will provide a warm handoff and a person-to-person connection to anyone who walks through their door.
Along with the monthly “Coffee with a Cop,” CID will coordinate additional events for Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October.
Editor’s Note: In Louisiana, medical forensic examinations and related services are free to patients. To learn more visit SAFEta.org.
| Date Taken: | 08.26.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 08.26.2024 11:04 |
| Story ID: | 479400 |
| Location: | FORT JOHNSON, LOUISIANA, US |
| Web Views: | 263 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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