Question

1. identify legal responsibilities of the nurse when taking care of patients who are suspected victims of human trafficking.

Answer 1

Ans) Most trafficking victims will have contact with health care during their exploitation including at primary care, reproductive health clinics, medical specialities, mental health, substance use disorder treatment, or most often, emergency departments.

- Nurses are ideally positioned to screen, identify, care for, provide referral services for, and support victims of human trafficking. Therefore, the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) supports improved education and awareness for nurses regarding human trafficking.

- If you are in the United States and believe someone may be a victim of human trafficking, call the 24-hour National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or report an emergency to law enforcement by calling 911. Volunteer and support anti-trafficking efforts in your community.

- AWHONN supports research and policy initia-
tives to improve care and support for victims of
human trafficking. Such initiatives may include
the following:
• Development of a validated, brief, screening
tool to better identify victims of human traf-
ficking in clinical settings.
• Mechanisms to support continuity of care,
especially when warning signs of human
trafficking are present.
• Advancement of research focused on the
long-term health implications for victims of
human trafficking.
• Development of educational opportunities in
relation to interdisciplinary and multidisci-
plinary interviews and ongoing care.
• Development of validated lists for legal,
health care, mental health, safe housing,
and culturally appropriate resources. One
such resource is the National Human Traf-
ficking Resource Center, which maintains a
crisis hotline.
• Enhancement of multi-sector collaboration
and coordination in order to support infor-
mation sharing.

Public health campaigns to raise awareness
of human trafficking particularly targeted to
at-risk populations.
• Support for legislative efforts that seek to
penalize traffickers and fund support ser-
vices for victims.
Nurses should take leadership roles in these
initiatives. Improvements in screening, identifica-
tion, and treatment will ultimately lead to safer,
healthier women.