Assault Prompts Full Faculty Vote, Student Anger

A student looking for support and appropriate medical attention following sexual assault should search beyond the walls of University Health Services (UHS) and away from most administrative support, say two Harvard undergraduate women who were assaulted last spring.

One woman, raped by Joshua M. Elster, Class of 2000, turned first to UHS. But when the College's counseling fell short of what she needed, she looked off campus for continued support.

The woman assaulted by D. Drew Douglas, also Class of 2000, originally contacted the peer counseling group Response. Upon their advice, she says she steered clear of UHS and headed to Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, whose rape crisis intervention center is among the best in the region.

Now, with the student-run Coalition Against Sexual Violence picking up their cause, the women have publicly criticized the University's support mechanisms. The say they hope to change the resources available to Harvard students in times of crisis.

For the members of the Coalition, who came together following the Elster rape in February 1998, that means building a women's center, improving the Sexual Assault/Sexual Harassment (SASH) advising system, and offering round-the-clock counseling services. Because the way things stand right now, they say, undergraduates who have been sexually assaulted turn away from Harvard just when they need the College's support the most.

Initial Contact

When the woman assaulted by Dou- glas first reported her attack, she says shequickly realized that UHS officials were notsufficiently trained to help her.

"The person I talked to who answered the phoneat UHS at 5 a.m. on a Saturday morning had no ideahow to deal with me-and there was, according tothe voice on the phone, no one else around whocould take my call," she wrote in an e-mailmessage.

According to Nadja B. Gould, a clinical socialworker at UHS, the College's medical services doesnot treat enough rape victims each year tomaintain staff members trained in specialized rapecrisis procedures. UHS used to offer 24-hour rapecounseling, but now Gould says while there arealways mental health staff members on call, theyare not specifically trained to handle sexualassault.

Dr. David S. Rosenthal '59, director of UHS,says his medical staff almost never performs rapekits, which allow medical personnel to collectevidence of the rape that can then be used in atrial.

"If they're not doing them very frequently,they aren't very comfortable doing them,"Rosenthal said.

Instead, sexual assault victims must travelBeth Israel Deaconess in Boston to receivetreatment from a qualified Sexual Assault NurseExaminer (SANE). SANE nurses, Gould says, usuallyoperate out of a hospital that sees at least 100rapes a year.

Dr. Veronica Reed Ryback, the director of BethIsrael's Rape Crisis Intervention Center, says herhospital is the area's most comprehensive providerof these services.

"The reason [students] are brought over here isthat in order to administer an evidencecollection-there are a lot of details. It reallyneeds to be done by an expert," Ryback said.

That is exactly what the undergraduateassaulted by Douglas says she chose to do in theaftermath of her attack.

"Although getting to the hospital wasincredibly difficult, until UHS has some kind ofprofessional rape crisis center, I would recommendthat any survivor do the same. The quality of carewas worth it once I arrived," she wrote.

The System

But both women say the services provided arejust as important as the type of counselingoffered.

"It is of the utmost importance that someonewho has been sexually assaulted have a positiveexperience the first time they are able to pick upthe phone and seek help," wrote the woman who wasassaulted by Douglas.

The woman whom Douglas sexually assaulted choseResponse as her initial contact following theincident.

"I called the hotline because I was on theverge of complete mental and emotional collapse,"she wrote. "I was hyperventilating and I needed totalk to someone who I knew would be experiencedand levelheaded enough to talk me down and give meadvice."

In an e-mail message to The Crimson, a memberof Response says the group takes different rolesin various students' healing processes. Responsedoes not approach police or administrationofficials with information of the incidentsdisclosed to them.

"We will not encourage someone to take legalaction if he or she does not want to," theResponse member wrote. "We will tell the callerthat if he or she might want to take legal actionlater, a rape kit could be very important now. Wecan explain the contents of a rape kit and whatthe process is like."

The woman assaulted by Douglas said the bestadvice Response gave her was directing to her"lifesaver"-Gould.

"She is trained to deal specifically withsurvivors of sexual assault, which was also nice.It was so important for me at that time to feelunderstood, and there were very few places atHarvard where I could relax, vent, cry," shewrote.

While Rosenthal and Gould maintain that UHS canprovide adequate counseling following the attackand in the long term, the woman assaulted byDouglas wrote that the person she talked to earlyin the morning left her on her own.

"They said they didn't provide transportation,and that I would have to go on my own," the womanwrote. "Not only are there no doctors to performrape kit exams, but there is no concern withgetting victims to a place where they can get arape kit done."

But the Coalition Against Sexual Violence sayssuch an approach is simply not enough. They hopetheir activities over Junior Parents' Weekend andthe scheduled rally outside Tuesday's Facultymeeting can encourage students to demand changeand parents to do the same.

"When [parents] get a letter asking for money,they can send a letter back saying, 'No, and thisis why,'" said one Coalition member at a meetingto plan tabling in front of the Science Center."The next time they get a phone call, they cantell the person on the line, 'No, and this iswhy.'

"The person I talked to who answered the phoneat UHS at 5 a.m. on a Saturday morning had no ideahow to deal with me-and there was, according tothe voice on the phone, no one else around whocould take my call," she wrote in an e-mailmessage.

According to Nadja B. Gould, a clinical socialworker at UHS, the College's medical services doesnot treat enough rape victims each year tomaintain staff members trained in specialized rapecrisis procedures. UHS used to offer 24-hour rapecounseling, but now Gould says while there arealways mental health staff members on call, theyare not specifically trained to handle sexualassault.

Dr. David S. Rosenthal '59, director of UHS,says his medical staff almost never performs rapekits, which allow medical personnel to collectevidence of the rape that can then be used in atrial.

"If they're not doing them very frequently,they aren't very comfortable doing them,"Rosenthal said.

Instead, sexual assault victims must travelBeth Israel Deaconess in Boston to receivetreatment from a qualified Sexual Assault NurseExaminer (SANE). SANE nurses, Gould says, usuallyoperate out of a hospital that sees at least 100rapes a year.

Dr. Veronica Reed Ryback, the director of BethIsrael's Rape Crisis Intervention Center, says herhospital is the area's most comprehensive providerof these services.

"The reason [students] are brought over here isthat in order to administer an evidencecollection-there are a lot of details. It reallyneeds to be done by an expert," Ryback said.

That is exactly what the undergraduateassaulted by Douglas says she chose to do in theaftermath of her attack.

"Although getting to the hospital wasincredibly difficult, until UHS has some kind ofprofessional rape crisis center, I would recommendthat any survivor do the same. The quality of carewas worth it once I arrived," she wrote.

The System

But both women say the services provided arejust as important as the type of counselingoffered.

"It is of the utmost importance that someonewho has been sexually assaulted have a positiveexperience the first time they are able to pick upthe phone and seek help," wrote the woman who wasassaulted by Douglas.

The woman whom Douglas sexually assaulted choseResponse as her initial contact following theincident.

"I called the hotline because I was on theverge of complete mental and emotional collapse,"she wrote. "I was hyperventilating and I needed totalk to someone who I knew would be experiencedand levelheaded enough to talk me down and give meadvice."

In an e-mail message to The Crimson, a memberof Response says the group takes different rolesin various students' healing processes. Responsedoes not approach police or administrationofficials with information of the incidentsdisclosed to them.

"We will not encourage someone to take legalaction if he or she does not want to," theResponse member wrote. "We will tell the callerthat if he or she might want to take legal actionlater, a rape kit could be very important now. Wecan explain the contents of a rape kit and whatthe process is like."

The woman assaulted by Douglas said the bestadvice Response gave her was directing to her"lifesaver"-Gould.

"She is trained to deal specifically withsurvivors of sexual assault, which was also nice.It was so important for me at that time to feelunderstood, and there were very few places atHarvard where I could relax, vent, cry," shewrote.

While Rosenthal and Gould maintain that UHS canprovide adequate counseling following the attackand in the long term, the woman assaulted byDouglas wrote that the person she talked to earlyin the morning left her on her own.

"They said they didn't provide transportation,and that I would have to go on my own," the womanwrote. "Not only are there no doctors to performrape kit exams, but there is no concern withgetting victims to a place where they can get arape kit done."

But the Coalition Against Sexual Violence sayssuch an approach is simply not enough. They hopetheir activities over Junior Parents' Weekend andthe scheduled rally outside Tuesday's Facultymeeting can encourage students to demand changeand parents to do the same.

"When [parents] get a letter asking for money,they can send a letter back saying, 'No, and thisis why,'" said one Coalition member at a meetingto plan tabling in front of the Science Center."The next time they get a phone call, they cantell the person on the line, 'No, and this iswhy.'