Healing to You: Providing mobile medical support to domestic violence victims

Photo Courtesy of Emma Sharman

According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, intimate partner violence affects more than 12 million people per year. Healing to You, is a mobile medical and mental health clinic working to support those impacted by this widespread issue through vital services and care.

Healing to Youprovides services to those affected by domestic violence in the Southern California area. Established in 2022, the nonprofit serves Orange, Riverside, Los Angeles and San Diego Counties. 

The organization's program and development coordinator, Emma Sharman, is a senior communications major at Chapman and has worked for the organization for three years. 

“I was recruited because of my history with writing, with persuasive writing in particular, and also journalistic writing,” Sharman said. “So I was recruited to write grant proposals and grant applications originally.” 

The organization is currently funded by the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), which is the agency responsible for responding to emergencies throughout the state.

Healing to You’s mobile clinics run out of RV units to ensure the safety and privacy of their patients; they take precautionary measures, like providing free shuttling services to and from their clients’ domestic violence shelters.

Healing to You’s administrative assistant, junior communications major Alexis Song, works alongside Sharman. She joined the organization because she felt a strong connection to its mission.

“We serve a population that really does not get much help,” Song told The Panther. “I really think the mobile clinics are revolutionary because a lot of the domestic violence victims, whether it be women, children, they usually can't very easily get help. They don't have access to it, and Healing to You just bridges that gap.” 

In providing care that might have otherwise been inaccessible, the organization is able to connect with its patients closely and give them a very personalized and welcoming experience. 

“They gain very personalized care,” Song said. “And on all of our visits, we provide an exit survey for all of our patients, and oftentimes, they leave a comment at the end saying they received the most personalized and cared for and nice treatment at our clinics.” 

There are many mistaken beliefs about domestic violence and the victims of it, from who it affects to who should be concerned about it. Sharman feels it is an issue that everyone should worry about.

“It's a common misconception about domestic violence overall that it is most prevalent or is the biggest issue in communities of lower income, in marginalized communities, etc., but that's not the case at all,” Sharman said. “Actually, domestic violence is a community issue. It's an everyone issue.” 

While those affected by domestic violence come from all backgrounds, women and children remain the majority of the affected. Many of the patients that come into Healing for You’s clinics tend to be women.

“Domestic violence is everyone's problem. Men are affected. Women are affected. Queer folks are affected,” said Sharman. “Everyone is but of course, DV is especially prevalent for women. Women and children are the majority of people affected by DV, and a lot of the patients that we see in shelters, it's vast majority women.” 

Despite the widespread impact domestic violence has, it remains a stigmatized issue. Healing to You is raising awareness on the issue and providing a safe space for those affected.

“Especially during Women's History Month, I think that it's really important to talk about DV because it's so stigmatized,” Sharman said.