News Releases

Memorial Hermann Introduces Nation's First Mobile Forensic Nursing Unit

Program to provide quicker care to victims of sexual assault

Houston, Texas, June 5, 2003 -- Memorial Hermann Healthcare System is rolling out a first-in-the nation program designed to provide quicker care to sexual assault victims while improving the integrity of DNA and other evidence. And it's doing so on four wheels. Covering greater Houston as far as Katy, the Woodlands and locations in the south, the Memorial Hermann Mobile Forensic Unit will broaden the reach of forensic nursing services currently offered at Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center and Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital, which typically treat two to three sexual assault patients a day.

The unit - a sport utility vehicle equipped with advanced medical technology and staffed by specially trained forensic nurses on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week - was funded through the efforts of Memorial Hermann Hospital volunteers, who raised more than $46,000.

"The unit brings state-of-the-art medical equipment directly to the patient, providing immediate and compassionate care, crisis intervention and proper collection of evidence," said Rusty Rooms, Memorial Hermann coordinator of forensic nursing services.

"It is crucial that evidence in sexual assault cases be collected properly and kept separate from other evidence and documented so that we can show the chain of custody and show that it has not been contaminated," said Caroline Dozier, Harris County assistant district attorney. "The Memorial Hermann Mobile Forensic Unit will go a long way to achieving that."

When summoned by law enforcement, a forensic nurse will immediately drive the specialized unit to hospitals throughout the Memorial Hermann system that do not provide forensic services.

"We want to be able to get to the victim as quickly as possible," said Julie Lierman, forensic nurse and mobile unit liaison. "By having this staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, we are always ready to go to the patient."

The mobile forensic unit will begin service on June 9. Memorial Hermann opened its first hospital-based forensic nursing unit in January 2001. That year, an estimated 10,000 sexual assaults were reported throughout greater Houston.

Memorial Hermann, a not-for-profit health care system, provides quality comprehensive programs and services for a person's whole life. Through its 11 hospitals located in the Texas Medical Center and the greater Houston area, Memorial Hermann offers the convenience of health care in neighborhoods where people live and work, as well as easy access to the resources and technology of a of a university-affiliated teaching hospital, which was featured on the ABC-TV series Houston Medical. Memorial Hermann takes a holistic approach to health care, offering programs and services that address the physical, social, psychological and spiritual aspects of well-being. Employees, volunteers and medical staff partners take pride in delivering care with compassion and respect.

For more information, contact Media Relations.