Celebrating Five Years of HOPE

Chesapeake, Va. – During Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the HOPE (Healing Opportunities Providing Empowerment) program is commemorating five years of preventing and responding to interpersonal violence. During a celebration today in the main lobby of Chesapeake Regional Medical Center, guest speakers from Chesapeake Regional Healthcare and the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association shared the benefits of having the City of Chesapeake’s only victim-centered program.

A grant from the Virginia Hospital-based Violence Intervention Program (HVIP) Collaborative enabled  Chesapeake Regional to implement the initial program in 2020. Since then, the HOPE program has assisted over 500 people by providing support, resources, and advocacy free of charge to patients and others in the Hampton Roads community who are confronted by interpersonal violence.

Ashley Xavier, Director of Violence Intervention Initiatives at the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association, will talk about the HOPE program’s importance from a public health perspective, and Amber Egyud, Chief Operating & Nursing Officer at Chesapeake Regional Healthcare, will say a few words about how the program has benefited the hospital. Meredith Noha, HOPE Coordinator, will discuss the hospital’s violence intervention program and how it supports individuals who have experienced or are at risk of violence.

The HOPE program is dedicated to preventing interpersonal violence and providing intervention services to those who experience domestic assault, intimate partner violence, sexual assault and human trafficking. Credentialed advocates assist with a variety of services, including crisis intervention, court and forensic examination accompaniment, legal advocacy, mental health resources, and safety planning.

HOPE is part of the Virginia Sexual & Domestic Violence Action Alliance. Anyone seeking intervention services in Chesapeake should call 757-407-3939 or email HOPEprogram@ChesapeakeRegional.com, 7 a.m.-7 p.m., Monday through Friday. Advocates are available to consult at all other times. 

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