Record numbers attend Rotunda Hospital sexual assault treatment unit in 2022

Thu, 31 Aug, 2023 - 15:58

Cormac O’Keeffe, Security Correspondent

A record number of people attended the sexual assault unit at the country’s busiest maternity hospital last year — and cases are expected to rise further this year.

The Rotunda Hospital Annual Report 2022 said the numbers exceeded pre-pandemic levels. The report also documented an increase in the number of women attending with drug problems and cited difficulty accessing community inpatient treatment for patients with alcohol addiction.

The trends are against the backdrop of 8,292 babies being born in the Rotunda in 2022 — accounting for one in six babies born in the State.

Of the 9,757 mothers seen in 2022, 427 attended the Rotunda Sexual Assault Treatment Unit (SATU), which provides forensic and medical care to people who have experienced sexual violence.

The number attending last year marks a 38% increase on 2021 (309) and compares to 277 cases in 2020, 393 in 2019 and 319 in 2018.

“In keeping with the increase in reported sexual crimes to An Garda Síochána nationally, an increase in attendees to the SATU at the Rotunda was also noted, with a record 427 patients seen in 2022,” the report said.

“SATU attendance numbers exceeded pre-pandemic levels over the course of the year, with the months of August and September 2022 being the busiest months of the year.”

The SATU service said it was difficult to ascertain if this was a reflection of an increase in the incidence of sexual assault or an increased awareness of the service and greater confidence in reporting. “It is certainly hoped to be the latter,” it said.

But the report added: “The increase in numbers seen in 2022 is likely to continue and it is expected that 2023 will be busier again.”

Some 63% of patients attended for a Garda forensic case, while 11% opted for SATU evaluation, where the unit securely stores forensic evidence in case of a future decision to contact gardaí. The report said some 35% of patients reported as being school-going or university students, with 7% of patients identifying as male.

“Assailants were reported most commonly as being acquaintances, but 30% were reported as strangers,” it said. “Intimate partner or ex-intimate partner sexual assault accounted for 10%.”

Drug midwife service

Elsewhere, the report documents a 13% increase in women accessing the hospital drug midwife service, with 36 of the 117 women with an opiate addiction.

Some 48 women were referred to Tusla. In six cases, the babies were placed in foster care, one in pre-adoptive foster care and a further child in voluntary foster placement.

In 21 cases the mother was required to return home under the supervision of a non-drug-using relative or agency for a period. This marked a “significant increase”, with seven such cases in 2021. Some 15 babies suffered drug withdrawal and were admitted for treatment.

The Teenage Pregnancy Service reported a 22% increase in cases, from 119 in 2021 to 145 in 2022. The report said the largest proportion were Roma, accounting for 43% of cases, a “significant increase” on 2021 (7).