Hundreds of millions of people—including many children—are subjected to sexual violence, yet very few survivors ever tell anyone about the experience or access health services or mental health support to help them heal. Many do not understand the importance of these services or the fact that, after a rape, every hour matters in preventing potentially lifelong health problems. This is an unacceptable reality we must all work together to change.
Every Hour Matters
Did you know that every hour matters if you or someone you
know is raped?
SPEED IS OF
THE ESSENCE
It’s time to act to support survivors and end violence!
The Every Hour Matters campaign aims to increase awareness about the critical importance of quickly accessing post-rape care and calls on national and community leaders to ensure comprehensive services are available in all communities.
Why is rapidly accessing care so critical?
- HIV can be prevented if survivors receive life-saving medication within 72 hours.
- Emergency contraception can help prevent a pregnancy if accessed within 120 hours.
- Medical help for physical trauma may be urgently needed depending on the situation.
As an individual, you can help spread the word about the importance of post-rape care. You can:
- Talk to your family and friends about challenging the stigma associated with rape and discuss why every hour matters after sexual assault.
- Learn what services are available in your community and share this information with others.
- Share the campaign on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
- Call or write your local leaders to raise their awareness of the need to ensure the availability of comprehensive post-rape care.
Photo Credit: UNICEF NYHQ2009-2058_Estey
Together for Girls has created a suite of resources you can use to break the cycle of violence and spread the word about post-rape care in your region. If you are planning to replicate any resources for your own purposes, please reach out to info@togetherforgirls.org and let us know. We also ask that in your endeavors, you reference the original materials and share a link to www.everyhourmatters.org. Please note, organizations may not use Together for Girls or other partner logos on independently replicated materials without our consent.
Infographic: Every Hour Matters after rape
Every Hour Matters after rape to prevent many lifelong physical and mental health consequences. This is a visual timeline of what you need to know about the short window of time available to access critical services.
Every Hour Matters Youth Engagement Toolkit
This toolkit, created by youth for youth, guides trained young professionals in hosting educational workshops on post-rape care. In addition to providing information on the critical timelines for accessing post-exposure prophylaxis and emergency contraception after rape, the workshops also foster dialogue around gender dynamics, power structures, and stigma surrounding sexual violence, and they teach young people the importance of reacting empathetically to survivors. Though this toolkit was tailored to Kenya and Uganda, with inputs from Kenyan and Ugandan youth professionals, these tools can be adapted for other countries and regions around the world. For more information about how to use the toolkit, view our Replication Guide.
A call to post-rape care
The Every Hour Matters campaign aims to increase awareness about the critical importance of quickly accessing post-rape care and calls on national and community leaders to ensure comprehensive services are available in all communities.
What National Leaders need to know about post-rape care
What is post-rape care? Comprehensive, survivor-centered post-rape care includes a range of services for survivors of forced or coerced sex. We ask national and community leaders to break the cycle of
violence by:
- Ensuring comprehensive post-rape care services are available in every community, including for children;
- Raising awareness about the benefits of quickly accessing healthcare after rape, and educate the community about where services are located;
- Reducing barriers to care by enacting policies that are supportive of survivors;
- Promoting an environment that makes it safe to talk about rape and ensure that survivors have access to justice and laws against perpetrators are enforced; and
- Investing in prevention to end all forms of sexual violence.
Key considerations for creating a national post-rape care campaign
As you design and launch a national campaign, there are many questions to consider to tailor messages and advocacy. Together for Girls recommends asking your team the questions outlined in this document.
Resources for post-rape care
Many existing resources provide guidance, training materials, and best practices for developing post-rape care services and protocols. These resources can support national, sectoral and community leaders to take action on post-rape care and ensure that increasing service availability and heightening awareness occurs simultaneously.
Campaign Partners:
Bilateral and Multilateral Organizations: Women Deliver, The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, The Global Women’s Institute (GWI) at the George Washington University, CARE, Save the Children, Population Services International Botswana (PSI), Child Helpline International, Rise Up, SafeTrek, Jhpiego, Cummins&Partners
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