Chapter 1: A Forecasting Model to Predict the Availability of Staffing, Equipment and Facility Needs For Telesane Services

TeleSANEs are expert Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE) who use video-conferencing technology to ensure access to immediate and quality forensic nursing care in communities with little to no access to such expertise, and in communities in which low patient volume presents a challenge for SANEs to remain confident and competent. Patients who present for care post-assault generally represent a small proportion of emergency department case volume, yet they require specialized care and procedures that take several hours. Efficient and effective implementation of a TeleSANE program relies, in part, on being able to forecast the availability of trained nurses, telehealth equipment and facilities to respond to this episodic occurrence. In this chapter, we develop, apply, and evaluate a Monte Carlo simulation model that can be used to forecast TeleSANE nurse staffing, facility, and remote equipment needs, over a variety of potential scenarios, to help inform system performance and planning.