Safety Warning
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Safety Warning
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The Midwest of Ireland does not have a Sexual Assault & Treatment Unit (SATU). The Midwest Forensic Medical Examination (FME) Service is a service in the Midwest that is available to survivors when an incident of Rape or Sexual Assault is reported to An Garda Síochana (AGS) in the Midwest. The service is only available when a report is made to AGS.
Stakeholders in An Garda Síochana, HSE Primary Care, ShannonDoc (Out of hours medical service) and Rape Crisis Midwest deliver the service in partnership.
The service is out of hours operating from 7pm to 7am on Monday to Friday and operates 24 hours at weekends and Bank Holidays. Rape Crisis Midwest provide psychological support accompaniment volunteers to support the survivor through the process of the forensic medical exam and provide follow up contact information to access crisis counselling support.
If you want to obtain a forensic medical examination in the Midwest, this is available if a complaint is made to the Gardai following a rape/sexual assault. The forensic service is activated by the Gardaí in the Midwest and takes place at University Hospital Limerick.
An FME accompaniment volunteer from Rape Crisis Midwest can be present to guide you through and provide emotional and psychological support. In this event, contact the Garda on 999 and this will activate the process. They will guide you and get in touch with our centre.
If you wish to obtain a forensic medical examination but do not wish to report the crime to the Gardaí, then you can do this by calling the other SATU services across the country. The nearest SATUs in the Midwest are in Galway and Cork. See below for information on each service .
Galway SATU - Phone: 091 76 57 51 or 087 63 38 118 weekdays from 8am to 4pm.
Phone: 091 75 76 31 or 091 524222 after 4pm and weekends, ask for SATU.
Cork SATU - Phone: 021 492 6297 weekdays from 8am to 4.30pm.
Phone: 021 492 6100 weekends and after 4.30pm, ask for SATU.
What is a SATU service?
SATU means Sexual Assault Treatment Unit.
These are 24/7 services where anyone over
14 years old who has been raped or sexually
assaulted can go to get a forensic medical
examination (FME) straight after the incident.
Here, they will also get a health/STI
screening and medications including
contraception or antibiotics.
What is the difference
between a SATU &
FME service?
The FME service available in UHL is only
available at certain times (out-of-hours), so you
may need to wait a few hours to be seen. Also,
anyone in the Midwest who wants to go to
Limerick for their forensic medical exam must
report the incident to the Gardaí before they
can get examined. Additionally, you will have
to go for a separate follow up medical/STI
screening and care here, unlike with SATU
services. However, this can be supported by
Rape Crisis Midwest.
Is there a SATU service in
the Midwest?
No. There are only six 24/7 SATU services
in Ireland. There is currently only an out-ofhours FME (Forensic Medical Examination)
service available in University Hospital
Limerick (UHL). Meaning a FME can only
take place between 7pm and 7am on
weekdays and throughout the weekend.
What if I am in the Midwest
but don’t want to report my
assualt?
If you are in the Midwest but do not want
to report your assault to the Gardaí, you
can still get a forensic medical
examination done, but you will need to
travel to your nearest 24/7 SATU service
(Cork, Galway, Waterford or Mullingar).
You will also have to travel to one of
these locations if you do not wish to wait
until the FME service in UHL is available.
We should have a 24/7SATU service in the
Midwest, what can I do?
If you agree that we should have a full 24/7 SATU service available in the Midwest please
contact your local Councillors, Senators and TDs and let them know the current situation. You can download a template letter to send to your local representative using the icon link on your left.
The letter explains the situation in the Midwest and asks if they will publicly commit to and do everything they
can to set up a full 24/7 Midwest SATU service as soon as possible.
Please support our campaign on our social media channels from September 2026. We need a united effort from every person that believes this is an unjust and unfair situation for survivors of sexual violence in the Midwest. You will find links to our social media in the footer at the end of the page.
Download template letter from icon
