[aidan1970]

I am not sure where to post this. Perhaps a moderator can move it if there is a more suitable area.

I was sexually assulted by a staff member while committed on an inpatient psych unit. The charges were investigated by the state and the state investigators "substantiated" the charges. The case is currently in review for civil and criminal litigation. Where can I go to find support?

I have a history of PTSD and self-injury and find that each interview etc. I have to give exacerbates my pre existing symptoms and then adds newer/additional symptoms. I have nightmares and all the other typical symptoms related to PTSD. I see my T once a week and speak to him on the phone for 20 min an additional 2x a week. He is very supportive. Despite all the time he gives, I feel like I need more support-which I feel guilty about. I do not want to be a burden to my treatment team.

Immediately after the incident I was transfered to the state hospital where I stayed for 14 months. While commited I did not receive any treatment or therapy in response to the assault. After discharge the case resumed (everything was on hold while I was an inpatient). I have enough trouble dealing with my regular issues let alone the added ones that the assault brought. I am trying to move forward and put my life together but do not want to forget about what was done to me or forego justice either. I just want to find a way to be strong and endure the pain I am experiencing while seeking justice. I can not allow this man to do this to another person.

Any thoughts?

[Perna]

Are there any group meeting possibilities where you are with others who have been victims of sexual assault? Maybe the JaneDoe organization?

http://www.janedoe.org/find_help/search

Hello, aidan1970. You are in my thoughts.

[madisgram]

hi aiden, .you'll find support here and there are a number of good articles here as well to help us.

[eskielover]

I am sure that you will get some understanding support from people who have gone through similar situation.

I know that going through the court system for my workman's comp case caused me to end up back in the hospital any time something came up regarding it. I can understand how much more traumatic your situation is & how much more traumatic having to talk about it over & over again triggers the PTSD symptoms.

I am so glad that you feel that it's necessary to go through with this to stop this person from ever doing it to anyone else. I know you have my support & I am sure that you have support from everyone who knows you are going through this.

I am sorry that you experienced such a horrible situation. It's hard enough being in the psych hospital in the first place without having something traumatic happen to you while there.

I know that for me, I would keep at the top of my thinking the fact that you are doing this to protect others from having a similar experience & putting the person where he belongs, definitely NOT WORKING in a psych hospital.

I admire the strength it takes to force yourself to go through with this & I want you to know that you will definitely have my support along the way, reminding you that sometimes the most important things we have to do in life can be the most painful experiences but they are worth it in the end, keeping the end result as our focus rather than the struggle it takes to get there.

[aidan1970]

Thakyou so much for all of your support. It was a long night.

Perna, thanks for tat sitr. They were really helpful. Ironically, they refered me to am oeganization run by the institution where this all happebed but then they found someone else-thankfully.

[sabby]

Does your state/county/city have a victims rights advocate available? If so, they would be able to help you find support in your community as well as help you through the court proceedings and ins and outs to help you feel more comfortable with the courts and procedures.

You can also look in your local phone book for the number of the nearest rape crisis center. You deserve to have support through this. I'm so very sorry that this happened to you and with what you are now dealing with.

Wishing you well!

[Rose76]

That is dreadful to have gone through. I'm amazed you sound as calm as you do. I very much hope that you have talked to a lawyer of your own. I would question whether or not there is adequate supervision at this inpatient psych unit. Procuring justice may involve more than getting this man removed from access to vulnerable people. Psych facilities have a long, dark history of enabling abusive/negligent treatment of patients by staff. Supposedly, that "era" is over with. There will always be recurrences of this sort of thing. Facilities must be constantly pro-active in monitoring for problems. Some need to do a better job.

It is good to read that this assault is "in review for civil and criminal litigation." Again, I hope you have a lawyer. That would be an important pillar of support to have right now. If the staff person has been charged, or that is being "reviewed," I understand that a public prosecutor would be involved. In no way, is that D.A. an adequate source of support for you regarding the legal resolution of the issues involved. If you have caring family, then I would suspect they have already thought of what I am recommending. Hopefully, this reply is totally unnecessary and you are already well-represented.

[shezbut]

(((Aidan1970)))

What a horrible experience to have suffered I am sorry to hear that your psych hospital stay involved cruelty beyond words. I wish that I could give you magic answers to help you through the experience.

When I was in the psych hospital as a teenager (about 25 yrs ago), I knew about a few inappropriate relationships and sexual assaults that were occurring right in front of me. At that time of my life, however, I still had a very thick emotional wall built around me. Those things just didn't surprise me back then.

Hearing that events like these are still occurring shakes me up inside. Maybe because I thought that background checks, training, and zero-tolerance policies would weed out all of the bad seeds.

Very gentle hugs sent your way ~ best wishes!

[jwabf]

Aidan, you show so much courage. I am not sure I would be as strong. The advice you have been given here is very sound. I hope you find good support in your local community.

[aidan1970]

It is another terrible night. Nights are always the worst. I feel really overwhelmed and out of control. My T said he would normally refer me for crisis screening if I felt I couldn't stop cutting but we both recognize that that would require a return to the same hospital. I don't feel that I have any safe alternatives for help if things get more out of control. I have been able to stop cutting for now but my feelings are still on the edge and I am plagued by flashbacks and nightmares. I am really frightened that I don't have a safety net and I fear that I am going to need more than my therapist can or should have to give.

After calling the referal center that was recommended in an earlier post I was offered services through the "offending" hospital. The referal center recognized the problem with that and thought they found an alternative center but because of my geographic location I had to be refered back to the center that is a part of the hospital that I need to avoid.

I am so trapped

Aidan
I'm sorry to hear what happened to you. That's devistating.
Why did they punish you by sending you to a state hosp.? That's traumatizing also.
I was raped by another patient at a psych hospital. I was treated like dirt by staff. I should never have told anyone what happened.
You are brave...stay brave. Keep your head up high.

[Rose76]

It sure doesn't sound like you have any legal representation, and I can't believe there isn't an attorney who wouldn't just love to meet you. The offending hospital could be encouraged to provide a voucher for you to take to another facility. It's been done before.

[aidan1970]

Originally Posted by Rose76

It sure doesn't sound like you have any legal representation, and I can't believe there isn't an attorney who wouldn't just love to meet you. The offending hospital could be encouraged to provide a voucher for you to take to another facility. It's been done before.

The attorney that I thought I was going to have called this evening and left a message. He said he took my case to the managing partners who said "no". Apparently MA has something called Charity Immunity. Basically. if you are a non-profit and are found negligent etc. you are only responsible for $20,000.00. That is not enough for a law firm to deal with.

I just don't understand how this is fair. These people can do anything they want to me and are not be held responsible be cause they are considered a "charity". Believe me-they are a business.

This news has really thrown me over the edge .

[Rose76]

Wow, aidan970, that is shocking and I am stunned. I would be over the edge, too. I thought MA was such an enlightened place. That limitation is so wrong.

"Charity" though it may be, plenty of people running it make lucrative salaries. They should be just as accountable as their counterparts at private facilities.

You're darn right "they are a business." And the people who work there are there to make money from the staff member who assaulted you up to the administrator who runs the place. Lots of hospitals are designated as "non-profit." I never heard that they were immune from being sued. People in MA are successfully suing the Catholic Church (of which I am a member) and that is a non-profit entity. It certainly does charitable work. What you describe is the most screwed up thing I've heard of in a long while.

Something is very wrong with that picture. As you say, they are not being "held responsible," and they are very responsible. That rogue employee did not operate in a vacuum. His behavior towards you was, most likely, not the first sign that he had a problem interacting with patients. The place probably hires from the bottom of the barrel. Charge nurses and supervisors know when they have a problem employee, if they make it their business to know.

I was in a psych facility in 1982. The patient care givers were pretty much unsupervised by the licensed nurses. I reported that a male attendant had roughly treated the elderly female patient in the room next to mine. This same attendant was "romantically" interested in my 16 year old roommate.

This is the place where I get my psych care now. What a crummy system the most powerful nation on earth has.

I'm truly sorry for your situation.