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Ensuring all Ontario hospitals have sexual assault evidence kits on site will not change the criminal justice system or cause more women who face systemic barriers to report assault, says the executive director of York Region's only sexual assault and rape crisis centre.
Having the kits available locally would, however, eliminate the travel barriers faced by survivors, particularly those in remote areas, said Jacqueline Benn-John, executive director of the Women's Support Network of York Region in Newmarket.
"Definitely in an area like York Region, individuals face barriers related to travel, so having kits in other hospitals would definitely be helpful. To put it into perspective, it's also important to recognize that survivors don't always choose to report their sexual assault to police."
A Canadian survey found only six per cent of sexual assaults are reported to police and Benn-John said that a large majority of those supported by the Women's Support Network do not go through the criminal justice system and don't require a sexual assault evidence kit.
The "rape kit" is used to collect forensic evidence that is submitted to police for use in a criminal trial.
A private members bill introduced by Ottawa-Vanier MPP Lucille Collard is calling for every hospital in Ontario to have at least 10 sexual assault evidence kits on site at all times.
Bill 108, which passed first reading March 29, is the result of a report by Sudbury-based She Matters.
According to the report, the online community of more than 5,000 survivors and supporters called 700 hospitals across Canada and found almost 40 per cent of Ontario hospitals don't have sexual assault evidence kits onsite.
The bill would also require mandatory training for staff after the report found many hospitals don't have nurses or physicians trained in conducting a sexual assault evidence kit examination.
In Ontario, 37 sexual assault/domestic violence treatment centres have kits on site. Mackenzie Health Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital is the only Domestic Abuse and Sexual Assault (DASA) Care Centre in York Region.
"Anyone who presents to Southlake because of a sexual assault would be transferred to either Mackenzie Health or Orillia Soldiers Memorial Hospital, depending on where they live, for a full assessment," said Danae Theakston, corporate communications spokesperson at Southlake Regional Health Centre.
According to Mackenzie Health, the DASA Care Centre of York Region supported more than 150 survivors of sexual assault, more than 130 survivors of intimate partner violence and almost 40 pediatric survivors of sexual assault in the last year.
Benn-John said she is not aware of any survivors not having access to the kits, but she does know that there are many valid reasons why a survivor would choose not to report the assault to police.
For one thing, there is a low conviction rate for perpetrators of sexual assault, she said, and there's a lack of professional training among crisis support providers or first responders and a lack of a "culturally appropriate response."
There is also a fear of police, the criminal justice system and of retaliation by the accused.
"What's important to remember is in a large number of sexual violence cases, the survivor actually knows the perpetrator. The realities of sexual assault reporting and our criminal justice system's effectiveness in holding offenders accountable deters survivors from accessing far more reporting processes. "
Seeking medical attention in a hospital after being injured from an assault "is a whole process unto itself" that may deter women, said Benn-John.
"It's quite invasive," she said of the examination a survivor would go through at a hospital.
The kit only works to collect forensic evidence of a recent assault, so survivors have a small window of opportunity to show proof of a crime.
"So the burden of proof is on the survivor to come up with some form of forensic evidence to substantiate that they've been assaulted."
There is still stigmatization toward women who have been sexually assaulted, Benn-John said, and victim blaming doesn't just occur during court proceedings but from early on after disclosure.
Also, whether they've been assaulted by a family member, co-worker, supervisor, teacher or partner, survivors may not want to tell anyone what happened, not even their intimate partner who may be the perpetrator, she added.
According to Benn-John, money spent on placing kits in every hospital might be better spent on helping victims with alternative supports not tied to the criminal justice system.
"You can't look at the kits in isolation; the kits are part of a bigger legal system. . .Healing and justice does not only come from the outcome of a court case."
To add your name to the Rape Kits in Canada Now petition, visit the She Matters website.
A sexual abuse survivor started the petition, which has more than 331,000 signatures, stating, "Rape and sexual assaults cause many physical and psychological injuries. It shouldn't have to be a maze and a struggle to seek ... emergency medical care whether one wishes to report or not."
