Hospital Accompaniment
Accompaniment services offered by The Center can be accessed by the victim, law enforcement, hospital personnel or other community resources at the time of the assault or any time thereafter by contacting our 24 hour crisis line or the business office during working hours. Once contacted, trained staff and volunteers are prepared to meet the victim at the hospital, business office, or other safe place within the community. At the request of the victim, law enforcement or medical personnel, a victim will be accompanied to, or met at, the hospital for medical examination, law enforcement inquiries or to provide support to the victim and/or family members. The Center's counselor provides counseling, emotional support, and advocacy with medical and law enforcement personnel while at the hospital. The Center also makes follow-up contact with the victim to ascertain the victim's status and need or desire for further assistance.
Legal Accompaniment
Legal accompaniment services are available to anyone in need. These services include accompaniment to other community resources such as law enforcement, Victim-Witness, the District Attorney, criminal court proceedings, Probation, medical appointments or other social service agencies. If a client is involved with the criminal justice system due to the assault, the client will meet with our Criminal Justice Advocate. The advocate will explain the court and judicial process, secure a law enforcement report, support any decision the client has made about testifying, assist the client with preparation of a victim impact statement, accompany the client to any questioning by the District Attorney, and provide accompaniment services to any other agency within the criminal justice process. Accompaniment may be accomplished by the Criminal Justice Advocate or a specially trained volunteer within the Legal Services Program of The Center. All contacts with these agencies are at the request of the victim by signed release and are offered to all victims requesting crisis intervention services from the agency.
A trained, bilingual, staff member is available for those clients from the Latino community that need assistance.
