DHSS launches statewide telehealth network for sexual assault forensic exams
For Immediate Release:
Aug. 19, 2025
Media Contact:
Lisa Cox
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
Media Inquiry Form
Survivors of sexual assault and rape will have more options for forensic exam care starting in 2025
JEFFERSON CITY, MO -- The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) Office on Women’s Health launched the Sexual Assault Forensic Exams via Telehealth Network (SAFEvT) on July 1, 2025. The SAFEvT Network provides telehealth support to hospitals that do not have forensic nurses available 24/7. It is organized in a hub-and-spoke model with multiple contracted hub sites providing around-the-clock support to their assigned satellite hospitals.
Hospitals across the state have choices in how they will provide forensic care to survivors of sexual assault. Some will continue to provide forensic exams with trained forensic nurses on site, and others will use the SAFEvT Network to guide their existing staff through the exams. Hospitals will continue training and starting their forensic programs for the remainder of 2025. The law allows hospitals to have six months from the launch of the SAFEvT Network, or until January 1, 2026, to start offering forensic exams to survivors of sexual violence. Hospitals with additional questions can contact DHSS staff at SAFEvT@health.mo.gov.
An online map shows survivors, community members and law enforcement officers where survivors can get a forensic exam near them. The interactive map is updated regularly as hospitals update their services and start their forensic programs. The map can be filtered to show whether a hospital offers exams yet and whether the exam is conducted with telehealth.
The map and more information about the SAFEvT Network, including resources for survivors, can be found at www.health.mo.gov/SAFEvT.
The department released training for the SAFEvT Network to support hospital staff in August 2024. In addition to free in-person trainings for hospitals using the SAFEvT Network, training is also available online at no cost. Learners wishing to take the on-line training will enroll in the course catalog. Learners may enroll in any or all of the courses. Courses are labeled based on discipline for ease of assigning them. To receive continuing education credit for the courses (provided through the University of Missouri-Columbia), learners must complete the survey following the modules.
- The Satellite Nurse course is intended to provide a basic overview of the care of a sexual assault survivor presenting to the hospital with the assistance of the teleSANE network.
- The prescriber course is intended for physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants who will be prescribing medication, performing the anogenital examinations and overseeing the care of survivors in the hospital setting.
- The cSANE course is designed to help trained and/or certified SANEs learn how to provide consultative services during a SANE exam.
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