Board of Directors

Toyetta Beukes (Founder)

Hands for Hope and Healing was founded by Dr. Toyetta Lynn Beukes, a Nurse Practitioner specializing in forensic nursing with 21 years of experience. Toyetta graduated with her Doctor of Nursing Practice in May 2015. Her research focused on the neurobiology of brain trauma along with the myths and barriers of sexual assault reporting, and wrote her dissertation on Identifying the Myths, Barriers and Facilitators of Sexual Assault Reporting.  Toyetta has an immense passion for forensic nursing and has proven to be a caring, compassionate advocate for victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. Dr. Beukes has received her Associates Degree in Nursing (1993) from Pasadena City College, Bachelors in Nursing (1997) from California State University, Long Beach; Masters of Science Degree in Nursing (1998) from California State University, Long Beach; and, her Doctor of Nursing Practice (May 2015), from the California State University, Southern California Consortium (CSULA, CSULB, CSU Fullerton).

Her patients have been as young as 7 months and as mature as 94 years. They come from as far away as Riverside County and as close as the surrounding neighborhood of San Gabriel and Los Angeles. Women and men, children and infants with a common experience: they are all victims of sexual assault. Toyetta is the Director of the Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) of San Gabriel Valley Medical Center and the founder of Hands for Hope and Healing. By training, she is a Nurse Practitioner who specializes in forensic nursing – a field that combines her passion for nursing with her fascination with forensics.
As the SART Director, Toyetta provides expert nursing care, supportive counseling, and detailed forensic examinations. She treats and comforts patients in their most vulnerable state and becomes their greatest advocate. When asked what her goal is for her patients, Toyetta states that she “wants to provide compassionate care and wants patients to leave the center knowing the assault was not their fault.” Toyetta often interchanges the words “patient” and “victim” when referring to those under her care due to the nature of her work.

Each time Toyetta’s phone rings, the likelihood is great that another person has been violated in one of the most heinous ways. Often in the middle of the night, Toyetta is called upon to perform a role that few are trained for, or aware even exists. It takes an individual of great strength and extraordinary courage to confront what Toyetta does hundreds of times in a year. If a hero is someone who dedicates not only her career, but her life to helping others, then Toyetta Beukes, DNP, NP, is that individual.
For those who have experienced sexual assault, the degree of physical and emotional recovery achieved often depends upon the care and support provided immediately following the crime. Recovery involves not only the treatment and healing of physical wounds, but the reassurance that the perpetrator has been identified and prosecuted. It is Toyetta’s mission to give patients the best chance for a full recovery through the services offered by SART.
The SART Center at San Gabriel Valley Medical Center is one of only 2 SART Centers in the San Gabriel Valley. Patients often arrive accompanied by police officers. The SART Center, which is located in a private area of the hospital designed to maximize patient privacy. The Center, which was designed by Toyetta, includes an exam room for pediatric patients, who sadly comprise half of those treated. In addition to basic medical equipment, Toyetta utilizes a special camera to document patients’ injuries. A drawer contains neatly folded clothing to be given to patients whose own clothing is now evidence in a crime investigation. The clothes are generously donated by the Assistance League of Pasadena, Grateful Garments and Peace Over Violence.

Toyetta performs her role ever mindful of the words of Maya Angelou: “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside of you.” The sensitivity that is required as a SART nurse is immense. Toyetta works tirelessly to maintain patients’ dignity in the midst of chaos. She earns the trust of her patients in order to help them share their stories and begin the long recovery process. And, Toyetta’s support extends not only to her patients’ but to the law enforcement agencies who work to identify suspects and seek justice for victims. She is frequently called to testify in court, sometimes years after first rendering care to the patient/victim.
Through the years, Toyetta has treated thousands of sexual assault victims. She meticulously documents injuries through observation and photography. With great sensitivity, Toyetta collects samples of bodily fluids that will be sent to a crime lab for analysis. She gently questions the patient about the assault. Details conveyed to Toyetta may be used to identify a suspect. Forensic evidence collected may lead to a conviction. And, as the result of the painstaking work Toyetta does, there have been many convictions. One in particular demonstrates what makes Toyetta an exceptional healthcare professional, forensic examiner, and patient advocate.
The convergence of Toyetta's years of experience and keen intuition led to the arrest and conviction of one of Southern California's most notorious rapists. Due to the shortage of SART Centers, it is not uncommon for police agencies across several counties to seek Toyetta's assistance. As a result of her examinations of patients from both Los Angeles and Orange counties, Toyetta recognized a pattern in the types of injuries and in the patients' accounts of the assaults. The patients were all elderly women who had been brutally assaulted. She contacted police agencies in several cities and urged them to have forensic evidence from rape kits analyzed and compared. Toyetta had linked 7 cases to the same suspect. Ultimately, the suspect was convicted and received a prison sentence of 750 years. Toyetta was instrumental in achieving justice for her patients and preventing future sexual assaults by the serial rapist.

In addition to her work in the SART Center, Toyetta volunteers her time to educate women on personal safety. She distributes whistles to be used to summon help when a woman feels endangered.

Toyetta’s advocacy recently expanded to overseas with a recent trip to Liberia. At the request of the U.S. State Department, Toyetta provided Liberian police officers, detectives, nurses, Medical Doctors and legal system with forensic examination training and guidance on establishing a SART Center.

Jenn Kotch-Collings

Ms. Jennifer Collings RN transitioned to Aesthetic medicine in 2006 after 10 years in Neonatal Intensive care and Pediatrics. Aesthetic medicine was a creative environment with so many facets which Jennifer found very compelling. Working as the only RN with a surgeon provided the experience of working in all aspects in cosmetic surgery from scrubbing in to surgery as well as recovery and post care of the patients. This experience led to a new position as the nurse manager for a plastic surgeon. In recent years Jennifer was offered a position as a practice manager with Merz, this allowed her to utilize her marketing, event coordinator, sales skills, as well as continue to train providers. In her free time, Jennifer enjoys hiking and hot yoga with her 2 daughters. Jennifer also serves on the Board of Directors for “Hands for Hope and Healing.” This passion for helping victims was a direct result of her 25 years of nursing experience working as a Neonatal Intensive Care Nurse, along with working alongside Plastic surgeons; and also seeing the ramifications of violence while working as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE). Being on the Board of Directors, it is with great hope and passion that Jennifer helps our most vulnerable population of women and children by creating awareness through education and providing resources for healing.

Gema Morales

Dr. Gema Morales-Meyer RN, DNP is currently the Deputy Director of Planning and Programs for Community Health Services at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. She is responsible for Community/District Planning, including coordinating strategic planning and the continued development of the community liaison and district Public Health Nursing programs with the Department of Public Health’s program offices as well as the Service Planning Areas. The goals of this department include treatment and prevention of communicable diseases along with ensuring safety and health in all policies. Prior to this position, she was a nurse manager at Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center. During her tenure at Rancho Los Amigos, Morales-Meyer planned and implemented creative approaches to case management, patient assessment, as well as interventions in patient centered care across the continuum of care. Dr. Morales-Meyer has a strong passion for vulnerable populations and believes in health equity for all county residents.

Kathleen McDermott

Dr. Kathleen McDermott is a board certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner actively practicing for the past 13 years. She earned her Bachelor’s in Psychology from Villanova University, her Bachelor’s in Nursing from Stony Brook University – SUNY and her Master’s in Psychiatric Nursing from Columbia University. She completed her doctor of nursing practice (DNP) degree at the Southern California CSU DNP
Consortium program. Prior to her nursing career, Dr. McDermott worked as an intensive case manager for persons with severe and persistent mental illness in Philadelphia, PA. Additionally, she has worked in community outpatient dual diagnosed clinics with the Latino population in Bronx, NY and subsequently served as the Executive Director of Medical Affairs at Hythiam, Inc. where she oversaw the domestic and international implementations of proprietary addiction treatment protocols. She currently works with Mental Health America Los Angeles (MHALA), The Village in Long Beach, CA where she collaborates with an interdisciplinary team to provide care to those in the Long Beach community in need of psychiatric treatment. Her areas of specialization are the integration of physical and mental health care, comorbid medical challenges, mental health parity, reduction of stigma associated with mental health diagnosis and motivational interviewing. In March 2014, Dr. McDermott co-presented Treating Substance Abuse in the Primary Care Setting at the California Association for Nurse Practitioners Annual Education Conference. She has subsequently presented at the American Psychiatric Nurse Association – California statewide conference in April 2015 and most recently at the Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association national conference in June 2015. She has been selected to present at the American Psychiatric Nurses Association national conference in Oct 2015 and was honored with the Athalie award from the Association for the Advancement of Nursing Science and Research (AANSR) in June 2015.