Senior Resident

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As a senior resident, you should continue to work with your mentor to establish a plan in achieving an academic or community position where the senior resident can practice forensic emergency medicine (EM). You should also continue working with your mentor to identify or complete forensic medicine-related projects and research.

Electives

You should perform an elective in forensic medicine, if available, or work with your mentor to participate in or develop activities that will increase your exposure to various aspects of forensic medicine. For example, you could take call with a sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) program or develop and give lectures of forensic topics or coordinate training programs with police and evidence recovery teams. If your department does not offer electives with the forensic patient populations, you might seek out electives or programs that have departments dedicated to forensic EM. Some programs that offer forensic medicine electives include:

Drexel University College of Medicine
The University of Louisville School of Medicine
Wellspan York Hospital Emergency Department
Other emergency departments (EDs) with designated forensic centers

Certifications and Training

Consider achieving certification or training with different aspects of law enforcement. Residents interested in forensic medicine should consider the SANE certification or taking online courses offered from the International Association of Forensic Nurses. Additionally, the California Clinical Forensic Training Center offers courses including a course on forensic photography, which may prove useful for a forensic EM physician.

Networking

There are several opportunities to network, including:

American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) Forensic Medicine Section - you can attend the annual section meeting at ACEP's annual meeting.
Attend the SAEM Annual Meeting or one of SAEM's regional meetings to meet physicians and programs that have established forensic departments or programs.

Insider Advice

"Physicians and nurses may be unaware, or at times misinformed, about evidence collection and preservation. Practitioners often assume that excessive time and effort are involved in evidence collection, preservation, and proper documentation. Others may worry that collection of evidence is at the expense of patient care. Simple steps can be taken to preserve evidence without interfering with patient care. These steps involve small modifications of our current practice and can greatly assist the investigators, and ultimately the victims, involved in these cases."