The Exciting New Career of Forensic Nursing

A brand new breed of nursing is known as forensic nursing. These nurses have studied specialized training in forensic science and criminal investigation. Forensic nurses work in close relationship with criminal investigators and law enforcement. They combine their experience in health care with forensic education to assist the crime teams at a higher capacity.

There are numerous kinds of forensic nurses. The forensic nurse assists victims of all types - spousal abuse, rape, child abuse, molestation, domestic violence and any other type of sexual violence. They provide the victims with immediate medical care. They are taught to deal with victims of shock and trauma. With their health care know-how, they are a huge support to the victims. They examine the victim completely and collect evidence from the victims' bodies immediately and protect it. If necessary, they also testify in court. A forensic nurse is often called in when there has been a mass casualty situation, no matter the type. They gather evidence and information. They also identify the dead. When Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf States, forensic nurses were brought in to identify the dead. They are knowledgeable in how to match DNA and other methods to establish the identity of the dead. This specialization career is called "medico-legal death investigator." In addition, they conduct autopsies on the dead victims to determine the cause of their death and collect all evidence that is at the scene.

The forensic nurse is often present in the emergency room of any hospital. In many cases valuable evidence can be lost in the disorder of the emergency room. Doctors may clean a wound that could be strong evidence against the suspect. In a serious case when doctors must wait for the investigators to arrive, the victim may die. To prevent this from happening, a forensic trained nurse should at all times be in attendance in the emergency room. Often, a seemingly simple case of accidental injury will turn out to be a criminal case of physical assault. If the victim is not in the position to reveal the truth of the situation, the perpetrator may never be caught. They can discover implications of foul play and assist in catching the perpetrator.

Becoming a medical legal consultant is another career that a forensic nurse might pursue. They are completely capable of giving medical as well as legal assistance to victims. These nurses are trained and entirely equipped to do so. They are comfortable working alongside law enforcement teams and visiting crime scenes. Forensic nurses are experts at identifying and collecting evidence. Because of this, they are very valuable as part of the crime investigation team. As well, they offer psychiatric treatment to violent criminals in criminal rehabilitation treatment centers. With the knowledge that they have of healthcare and human psychology, they can be essential for this job. Forensic nursing is a wonderful career prospect. In addition, a forensic nurse also earns a fantastic salary. A well-trained forensic nurse can make a lot of money! Presently, there are only 7500 forensic nurses in the entire United States. The crime department is hoping to recruit a lot more. If you are presently a nurse or are hoping to become one, you definitely should look into the career of forensic nursing.