If you are in need of immediate assistance, call 911 or GW Emergency Services.
Medical Care
Medical Care
Your immediate safety and wellbeing are most important. If you have just been hurt, please take steps to make sure you are in a safe place.
Get Help Right Away
If you are in need of immediate assistance, please call GW Emergency Services at 202-994-6111 or local police at 911.
If you are not in immediate danger, but want to talk to someone right away, call 202-994-7222 24/7 to connect with the Sexual Assault & Intimate Violence (SAIV) Helpline. SAIV responders are clinically-trained professionals who can provide crisis counseling, safety planning, and emotional support. They are also well-informed about resources both on and off-campus.
Get a Forensic Medical Exam
Try to seek medical attention as soon as possible. Evidence collection, treatment options, and some prevention measures (such as pregnancy) are time limited. If a sexual assault happened recently, consider receiving evaluation and treatment by a specially trained Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE). Intimate partner violence exams are also available shortly after an assault. Both exams are provided at no cost and without proof of insurance. No police report or proof of citizenship is required.
The SANE nurse will evaluate you for injuries, help prevent pregnancy and infections (if applicable), and collect forensic evidence in case you decide (now or later) to file a police report.
If you would like to reach an advocate to receive a forensic medical exam for a sexual assault, or to talk through the examination process, call the DC Victim Hotline at 1-844-4HELPDC (844-443-5732).
Going through an exam doesn’t obligate you to file a police report, but it collects and preserves evidence in the event that you decide to do so later. You can also file a police report without obtaining a medical exam, but medical evidence will often be helpful in that process.
Complete the following steps to get an exam:
Avoid the following before going to the hospital for a SANE exam:
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showering
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using the restroom
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brushing your teeth
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eating or drinking
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changing your clothes
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smoking or chewing gum
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cleaning yourself
If you have done any of these things, you should still get a SANE exam. Just take the clothes you were wearing at the time of the assault. Use a paper bag to carry your clothes in if you have one available.
Each county has a dedicated SANE program and you must go to the hospital that has the program in the county where your incident happened.
For example, if your incident happened on GW’s Foggy Bottom or Mount Vernon Campus, you will need to go to Washington Hospital Center. Please note that GW Hospital does not provide SANE exams.
Incidents in D.C.
Washington Hospital Center
110 Irving Street NW
Washington, DC 20010
DC Victim Services Hotline: 1-844-4HELPDC (844-443-5732)
ER: 202-877-7632
Incidents in Northern Virginia
Inova Fairfax Hospital
3300 Gallows Road
Falls Church, VA 22042
Inova Ewing Forensic Assessment and Consultation Teams (FACT): 703-776-6666 (option 3) during business hours. After regular business hours, please call 703-776-4001 and ask to page FACT nurse.
ER: 703-776-3116
Incidents in Maryland
Prince George’s County
Prince George’s Hospital Center
3001 Hospital Drive
Cheverly, MD 20785
The Sexual Assault Center Hotline: 301-618-3154
ER: 301-618-2000
Montgomery County
Shady Grove Medical Center
9901 Medical Center Dr.
Rockville, MD 20850
ER: 240-826-6000
Option 1: Call SAIV at 202-994-7222 and the advocate on call can connect you to the appropriate SANE program and help arrange transportation to the appropriate hospital. SAIV members may also be able to go with you to the hospital if you feel it would be helpful.
Option 2: Call the relevant SANE program directly, and they will help arrange transportation.
A complete forensic examination can take several hours. If you can, bring items to make yourself comfortable: a book or something else to keep yourself occupied a phone charger comfortable clothes to change into after the exam snacks and drinks to have after the exam An advocate will be present with you at the hospital, but you can also bring a friend or other support person with you if you would like.
Get Medical Attention at the Student Health Center
Even if you do not want a forensic exam, medical attention may still be important.
You can go to the Student Health Center (CHC) to be examined by a medical professional and screened for illness, pregnancy, and injury. This exam can be done without billing your insurance or having any related documentation sent to your insurance policy holder.
Call or walk in to the CHC for a medical appointment and let them know that you need medical evaluation following a sexual assault, but that you do not wish to have a forensic examination.
Other Options for Support
