Hope Has a Home, First Medical Respite Program For Women, Opens In D.C.

Hope Has a Home, the first medical respite dedicated to women experiencing homelessness, substance use disorders, and mental and chronic illnesses in D.C., has officially opened its doors.

Created by Volunteers of America Chesapeake and Carolinas (VOACC), Hope Has a Home  fills an essential health care gap for homeless women, giving patients a safe refuge to recover while too ill to manage on the streets, but not ill enough to be in a hospital.  

LaToya Ramsey, director of the Peer Operating Center and Medical Respite at VOACC, underscored the critical importance of prioritizing medical respite services for women who may not have the resources or support to transition from acute and post-acute care emergencies. 

“Most of the programs that you see are designed for domestic violence, and substance use disorders for women and children, and so [this fills] that gap for individuals who don’t qualify for those types of assistance, but are lacking the care they need and are suffering on the streets,” Ramsey told the Informer.

According to VOACC, roughly 32% of those experiencing homelessness in Washington, D.C. are women, accounting for approximately 1,600 women on any given night. Currently, VOACC’s women’s program located off of Stanton Road in Southeast, is the first and only medical respite program for women in the entire city. The three existing medical respite programs in the District are for men only, including VOACC’s own counterpart for men.  

The first Hope Has a Home pilot program serviced more than 100 District men facing homelessness while in need of medical care. Through the program, 70% of those men have secured permanent housing or stable living environments, and 40% progressed to not relying on emergency services or hospitalization after entering the program. 

Based on the success of their men’s programs, the organization found dire need to reach a demographic of women in need.

Hope Has a Home offers women a two-phase program. 

The first phase of patient triage consists of a medical team that provides around-the-clock assistance to stabilize the patient’s health over a 30 to 90 day period.  

Once medically stable, patients transition into another 30 to 90 day period of phase two. During the second phase, patients are taught to manage their own diagnosis independently, adhere to proper doses of their medication, and begin to seek employment or other resources needed to sustain a quality livelihood outside of the program. Case management services are provided to help target permanent supportive housing or permanent housing placement. 

“We really want to make sure that we tackle [the problem] from every aspect [where patients face] barriers, [and] to be able to provide them guidance. It wouldn’t just be that you get a bandaid fix here and [are] expected to move on, because everybody’s concerns or situations are not just primarily medical needs or conditions.  That is [just] the root of it, and we want to address all of the barriers,” Ramsey explains.

Addressing Homelessness in D.C.

Hope Has a Home is executed as a VOACC partnership with AmeriHealth Caritas D.C., one of the District’s largest Medicaid and Medicare insurance providers, and Pathways to Housing DC, an organization that provides case management and housing for people experiencing homelessness.  The organization will work with Unity Health Care to offer medical services to women living on-site.  

“AmeriHealth Caritas DC celebrates the culmination of the intention, commitment, and hard work of our partners that has resulted in the opening of Hope Has a Home for women.  This is an equity moment for women living in the District in need of medical respite services,” said Karen Dale, market president and CEO at AmeriHealth Caritas DC, in a VOACC press release.

Hope Has a Home for Women held its ribbon cutting to welcome its new facility to the residential neighborhood on Saturday, March 9. 

Operating out of a fully furnished house, the esthetic strategically fits into the neighborhood to provide a comforting, homely environment to the patients to avoid a clinical ambiance during recovery.  Patients have shared their appreciation of a hospitable staff and services with Ramsey.

“I had an opportunity to sit outside with the [patients] to just chit chat, and they [told me] they felt the love when they came into the facility, and it wasn’t the decor of the space [or] the services we offer, but it was the compassion they felt from the staff.”

As director of the Peer Operating Center and Medical Respite, Ramsey emphasized that the entire Hope Has a Home community is dedicated to helping others and transforming lives.

“I can definitely say that all of our staff from the medical team down to the monitors, really have genuine compassion for what we do,” said Ramsey.  “Across the board, it’s about [giving] a hand up and being able to model how people have transitioned through different obstacles in their life and were able to succeed.  We have staff with real lived-experience, so they are individuals who can really relate to the [patients].”