Taking Over Twitter for Sexual Assault Awareness

We see them nearly every day here in our Methodist emergency rooms. The faces of men and women who have a new, undeserved title to add to their names: survivor.

Startling statistics

Methodist SANE/SART nurses provide care and support to more than 300 survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence each year. It’s a number that continues to rise every year. The statistics shared by the national No More organization are alarming:

• 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men experience violence from their partners in their lifetimes
• 1 in 3 teens experience sexual or physical abuse or threats from a boyfriend or girlfriend in one year
• 1 in 5 women are survivors of rape
• 1 in 2 women and 1 in 5 men have experienced some form of sexual violence

Unfortunately, we know that for every incident we see, several more go unreported. Victims stay silent out of embarrassment or fear – fear of their attacker (who many times is someone the victim knows) or fear of a culture that tends to blame victims for what has happened.
An event we have coming up on April 26th hopes to cut those numbers and give a voice to the countless victims of abuse.

Sixth annual Twitter chat

The sixth annual Twitter chat sponsored by Methodist’s Heidi Wilke SANE/SART Survivor Program will take place on April 26th in conjunction with National Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM). Methodist SANE nurses will once again team up with community partners from the agencies like the Women’s Fund of Omaha, Women’s Center for Advancement, UNO, Creighton, law enforcement, Survivors Rising, Men Against Domestic Violence Action Coalition, Douglas County prosecutors, and members of the media. 

Together this powerful group will share important statistics and information about sexual assault and domestic violence.

#NoMore

Through hundreds of tweets using the hashtag #NoMore, information, education and help for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking will be shared by local experts and community organizations. Within minutes of the beginning of last year’s event, #NoMore became the number one trending topic in Omaha. 

This year, we hope to repeat that success, spreading information to millions of men and women worldwide about education and preventative measures regarding sexual assault.

Help is available

Of all the information we will share, there is perhaps one message that is most important:

There is help. You are not at fault for what happened to you. You did nothing to deserve this. You have the right to come forward to get medical care and get help.

I am here, and so are my SANE/SART nurses. Every day, we’re here to get you the help you need to be a survivor.

You can help by joining in the conversation online on April 26th from noon to 1 p.m. Follow @MethodistHealth and the hashtag #NoMore on Twitter to learn more about what you can do to prevent domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking in our community.