The Corydon Democrat
Wednesday, March 21, 2001

County Closer to Getting Colposcope

Before a demonstration of what a colposcope can do and a discussion of how
much one would cost, Harrison County Deputy Prosecutor Cheryl Hillenburg
said, "If it's your daughter or your mother or sister (who's been raped), or if your son has been molested, you're going to want this piece of equipment."

Despite the intimidating-sounding name, a colposcope is essentially "a pair of binoculars on a stick" plus a 35mm camera, Don Rosolowski of Circon Cryomedics of Frankfort, Ill., told members of the Harrison County Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Coordinating Council. Rosolowski gave the council demonstration March 1 at its monthly meeting at the Lincoln Hills Christian Church. The council has been discussing the local need for such forensic equipment for a couple of years.

The colposcope is used for examination, evaluation and documentation of sexual assault and child abuse cases. The camera can be hooked up to a powerful, multiple-magnification microscopic lens, digital video camera system, television monitor and/or video printer to provide close-up images in real time or high-resolution color prints or slides.

Bright, shadow-less images ("tele-medicine") can be viewed on a computer screen or sent on-line anywhere in the world for specialists to look at. For police, prosecutors, defense attorneys and social workers involved in sexual assault and child abuse cases, for example, this kind of evidence, when gathered by specially trained, unbiased doctors and nurses, is practically fool-proof. "Thirty-five-millimeter photography is considered the gold standard in evidence," Rosolowski said.

Proper training on the use of the equipment is crucial, the salesman said. Depending on the accessories, however, the cost of a sophisticated colposcope system can run up to $20,000.

The Harrison County Community Foundation has already given the council $10,000 for the colposcope. Lincoln Hills Christian Church has donated $1,000, Corydon Presbyterian has given $500, and the Elm Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution $70. The Corydon Rotary Club has pledged up to $1,000 for the purchase.

Hillenburg, who chairs the Domestic Violence coordinating council, said contributions are still being accepted through Hoosier Hills PACT. (She can be reached at 738-4241 for more information.)

Harrison County Hospital now holds the key. Steve Taylor, executive director of HCH, said he supports the effort to buy the colposcope, and between the hospital and the Harrison County Hospital Foundation, he thinks the balance of the cost can be raised. State grants might be another possibility. Taylor said Lisa Steele, the director of nursing at HCH, is working on where it would be located (most likely the Emergency Room) and how it would be used.

The nettlesome questions at this point, Taylor said, are the on-going annual costs of supporting such a program: It requires trained doctors and nurses who must stay current on procedures, a schedule of perhaps as many as five nurses on call around the clock, and potential liability issues. For example, Taylor said, he, doctors and nurses worry about a patient who was examined for a possible rape later coming back with a lawsuit because they failed to notice a malignant growth during the exam.

Although Hillenburg said case law is protective of colposcope exams, Taylor
said the question of legislative protection must be addressed. Taylor said he also wants to explore a regional approach perhaps involving several hospitals.

Special "Second Opinion" computer software can boost the price of the
colposcope another $3,600, but the images are secure and unalterable, which is crucial in privacy issues, said Rosolowski.

In communities where a colposcope is used by trained personnel, sexual assault cases tend to be settled quickly out of court.
Rosolowski said a hospital in Fort Wayne has been using its camera for six years.

Rosolowski's demonstration showed the colposcope's close-up capabilities.
He put a well-lit dollar bill in front of the camera, and the resulting image on a TV screen showed individual color paper fibers on the dollar bill's serial numbers. "That's evidence," commented counselor Pam Davis.

The colposcope can be used in other kinds of forensic and diagnostic situations. Dr. Sharon Laufer mentioned a case where the device was used to show evidence that an attacker had placed his hand over a victim's mouth to keep her quiet. The microscopic ability of the colposcope revealed injuries
around the mouth that weren't visible to the naked eye.

Rosolowski mentioned a doctor in Illinois who used the colposcope to remove sawdust from a person's eye.

It's a low maintenance item. Rosolowski's company doesn't sell service contracts. "I'll never sell you another one," he said. "They'll get out-moded by technology, not use."

The salesman said the one overriding issue involved with the use of colposcopes is this: "You're collecting evidence for prosecutors and the defense, for your daughters and your sons." The fact that's often lost in discussions on the need for colposcopes is that they can be used to prove innocence as well as guilt.

The National Victim Center says that in the United States, 1.3 women are raped every minute. That results in 78 rapes per hour, 1,872 rapes each day, 56,160 rapes each month, and 683,280 rapes each year. One out of every three American women will be sexually assaulted sometime in her lifetime.

One in 12 male students surveyed have committed acts which meet the legal definition of rape, yet 84 percent of those men believed what they had done was not rape.

The Center said rape victims have been found to be 8.7 times more likely to attempt suicide.