Sexualized violence is a form of violence that infringes on a person’s sexual integrity. This is one of the most serious crimes that can lead to long-term psychological consequences. Unfortunately, some victims do not report rape because they feel shame or fear, and some also believe that they will not be believed or treated with due understanding.

Reporting sexual violence is critical and you need to know that you can get help.

What to do after the attack:

If you have suffered sexual abuse, try to contact a medical center as soon as possible. Regardless of whether you decide in the future to initiate a criminal case, it’s better to go through the examination and get a qualified opinion on the state of your health.

Having a medical certificate, you will have evidence of what happened to you  (require a copy of the medical card, certified by a round seal and the signature of the head of the institution). Perhaps, these documents will be useful to you in case of threats, blackmail, psychological pressure on you from the perpetrator.

Make sure that the description is as detailed as possible, all injuries are recorded: their location, color, and size.

If you decide to initiate criminal proceedings immediately, please contact the police department, controlling the district where the crime was committed. Police officers are obliged to deliver you on medical examination.

The police will give you a referral for a preliminary forensic medical examination in the Bureau of forensic medical examinations.  In this case, it will be qualified and free.

You can pass the examination by yourself, paying for the services.

Learn more about your actions:

– Call an ambulance on the phone “03” and report that you have become a victim of rape and was injured seriously (for example you were beaten on the head or the consciousness was briefly disconnected and nausea occurred, the orientation in space was also disturbed, or you got bleed from the vagina, which at the moment could not be stopped).
– In case of minor damage, please contact the nearest emergency room.
– It is desirable to package the clothes you were wearing in a clean plastic bag (preferably each thing separately).
– During the medical examination, after taking all the tests, including venereal disease and AIDS, ask the doctor to record all the marks on your body.
– Require taking smears or samples from under the nails, as there are usually microparticles of the rapist’s skin found (if you scratched him).
– Also, tell your doctor about your psychological problems caused by the crime committed against you.
– Please come to the police on the same day or the next day
– Take a package with clothes in which you were at the time of violence with you.

Here are the addresses of the district medical institutions in Saint-Petersburg.