Forensic Nursing Network

06/01/2026

🎉 Celebrating 10 Years of Forensic Nursing Network! 🎉

This year marks a significant milestone as Forensic Nursing Network celebrates 10 years of education, collaboration, advocacy, and support for victims of violence across Ohio.

Over the past decade, we have had the privilege of training countless healthcare professionals, law enforcement officers, advocates, prosecutors, and multidisciplinary team members. Together, we have worked to improve responses to sexual assault, domestic violence, strangulation, human trafficking, child maltreatment, elder abuse, and other forms of violence.

What began as a vision to strengthen forensic nursing education has grown into a statewide network dedicated to improving outcomes for patients, supporting professionals, and advancing best practices through collaboration.

We are grateful to ALL who have been part of this journey. Your commitment has made these 10 years possible.

As we celebrate this milestone, we remain focused on the future, continuing to educate, innovate, collaborate, and advocate for those impacted by violence.

Thank you for being part of our story. Here’s to the next decade of making a difference.

05/25/2026

Next up for the ✨ AFN Wednesday Webinar✨: "From Nursing to Politics". Come explore political opportunities and why 🩺 nurses should not only have a seat at the table but also lead the conversation. We’ll discuss the unique perspectives they bring to policymaking, the challenges they face in entering the political arena, and the strategies that can help them succeed. 🎉 The live webinar is free for all AFN members. Save your seat here: https://goafn.thinkific.com/courses/26-010

05/19/2026

Excited to share that FNN will be at the 2 Days in May conference again today in Columbus.

Stop by and say hello, connect with our team, and learn more about the exciting education, collaboration, and multidisciplinary opportunities ahead. We are looking forward to continued partnerships that strengthen patient care, investigation, advocacy, and community response across Ohio and beyond.

Looking forward to great conversations throughout the day.

05/16/2026

Heather Wilde, Director of Education for the Forensic Nursing Network, had the honor of speaking at the IU Health and IU School of Nursing training, Drug-Facilitated Sexual Assault Clinical Response and Investigation alongside the incredible Marc LeBeau.

Thank you Barbra Bachmeier, Natalie Calow and everyone who helped make the day a success.

FNN is grateful for the opportunity to be part of these important conversations and multidisciplinary efforts to improve responses to DFSA cases.

05/12/2026

Thank you for coming, your support and all you do for victims of violence.

ODVN Staff joined the Forensic Nursing Network, Inc. (FNN) May 11th at the Ohio Peace Officers Training Academy in London, OH for the unveiling of the Cinematic Virtual Reality Experiences. The simulation follows patients who have experienced sexual assault and strangulation, highlighting responses through multidisciplinary team collaboration with law enforcement, advocates and forensic nurses.

From left to right: Angela McMahan, FNN, Denise Kontras, ODVN, Laura Kaiser, Executive Director, FNN, Ruth Downing, founder of FNN, Rachel Ramirez, ODVN Director of Health and Disability Programs and Founder of The Center on Partner-Inflicted Brain Injury, Kelly Van Driest, ODVN, Leah Stone, ODVN, Heather Wilde, FNN

05/12/2026

Today, the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy, Ohio University GRID Lab, and Forensic Nursing Network premiered the new Cinematic Virtual Reality (Cine-VR) training experiences.

This project represents an incredible collaboration between forensic nurses, law enforcement, and our partners at Ohio University to create immersive training experiences focused on improving responses to victims of violence through experiential learning.

These scenarios move beyond traditional lectures and place participants inside realistic, emotionally complex situations that challenge communication, trauma-informed response and multidisciplinary collaboration.

One of the most meaningful parts of today was seeing professionals from different disciplines come together with a shared commitment to improving outcomes for survivors.

We are incredibly proud to have been part of this work and deeply grateful to everyone who helped make it happen. This is just the beginning.

05/01/2026

Membership sale! 😁💜

It starts today! The AFN Spring Membership Sale: Get 20% off memberships to the Academy of Forensic Nursing. New members or renewing members... healthcare professionals or students... anyone can save. Use code: AFN2026

Dual memberships excluded. Discount ends May 31, 2026. GoAFN.org

04/18/2026

Great day learning alongside some incredible forensic nurses and hearing from Mr. Jim Schmidt.

He has a way of connecting that’s real, honest, and impactful, and a speaker that had the room fully locked in the entire time.

We spend a lot of time talking about patient impact in this work, but hearing it from a father’s perspective hits differently. It’s a reminder of why what we do matters, every interaction, every detail.

Grateful for the opportunity to learn from him and for the work he continues to do in honor of his daughter, Gabby Petito.

04/16/2026

FNN is excited to be part of the NW SART Symposium. Not only as a vendor, but as a learner alongside so many dedicated professionals over the next two days.

Grateful to Sharla Young for her leadership in making this event such a meaningful and impactful experience year after year.

Looking forward to continued collaboration, connection, and advancing the work we all do to support victims and strengthen multidisciplinary response.

04/15/2026

FNN is proud to be at the Ohio Alliance to End Sexual Violence 2026 Sexual Assault Advocacy Day. Thank you all for the work you do. We are ready to continue this work together. Hope. Build. Thrive.