Frontier Nursing University (FNU) student Beth Sheeran, RN is a sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) who is making waves both domestically and globally. Beth, who is in Family Nurse Practitioner (Class 166), is improving sexual assault care in her community while helping develop content for an open access online curriculum for international nursing students.
Beth practices in Spokane, Wash., in an emergency room setting where she cares for an urban population. She is cross-trained in domestic violence and pediatric sexual assault, skills that will complement her NP credential well in her domestic and global work.
“I chose the NP path because so many nurse clinicians in low resource countries work in the absence of a medical doctor and are responsible for diagnostics and prescribing,” she said.
Locally, Beth is working to raise awareness for the need of more SANE nurses to improve patient outcomes. Spokane has approximately one active and up-to-date SANE-trained nurse for every 20-30,000 citizens. Unfortunately, lack of access to SANE-trained nurses can create disparities in care.
Over the last year, Beth helped to launch an inter-agency central council of sexual assault nurses who are working on a systems level to improve care. The council recruits and networks with nursing students, increases public awareness, assists with policy development, and works to provide training to area nurses.
Beth volunteers in Guatemala in 2011
Globally, Beth and a team of nurse educators are developing online and open access curriculum content for low-resource countries through Nurses International (NI). NI hopes to launch the first BSN programs in countries such as Burundi, Guatemala, and Egypt.
“I realize the value of empowering nurses in the context of community through improved access to education,” she said. “I have been working on developing a career focused on empowering other clinicians.”
In her earlier years, Beth was on the receiving end of extensive medical care. Her experience inspired her to pursue nursing as soon as she regained health. She chose Frontier because of its reputation and mission of serving the underserved.
“I had full confidence that at Frontier, I would find a like-minded tribe and mentors capable of fostering the dream I have for the future,” she said.
While she continues at Frontier, Beth has worked with Washington State University and Representative Gina Mosbrucker to initiate a program focused on addressing the disparities faced by SANE nurses in rural Washington State. Find out more about Beth’s work on the Spokane SANE Facebook page.
We are proud to have you as part of our Frontier community, Beth! Keep up the inspiring work!
Dr. Tia Brown McNair is the Vice President in the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Student Success and Executive Director for the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) Campus Centers at the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) in Washington, DC. She oversees both funded projects and AAC&U’s continuing programs on equity, inclusive excellence, high-impact practices, and student success. McNair directs AAC&U’s Summer Institutes on High-Impact Practices and Student Success, and TRHT Campus Centers and serves as the project director for several AAC&U initiatives, including the development of a TRHT-focused campus climate toolkit. She is the lead author of From Equity Talk to Equity Walk: Expanding Practitioner Knowledge for Racial Justice in Higher Education (January 2020) and Becoming a Student-Ready College: A New Culture of Leadership for Student Success (July 2016 and August 2022 Second edition).