Virginia Guide By Your Side Program
Guide by Your Side (GBYS) is a trademarked parent to parent program of Hands & Voices that provides emotional support and unbiased information to families of infants and toddlers who are deaf or hard of hearing through screened and trained Family Guides (experienced parents of children who are deaf or hard of hearing).
A Virginia GBYS Family Guide can:
- Answer questions for you
- Share what they’ve experienced being a parent of a child who is deaf or hard of hearing
- Talk about the many different ways you might communicate with your child
- Connect you with other people and resources (Part C Early Intervention, parent groups, etc.)
When a call comes in to Virginia GBYS from a parent or professional:
- The Parent Coordinator assesses the needs and matches the parent with a screened and trained Family Guide.
- The Family Guide calls the family within 2 days to offer emotional support and to set up a meeting .
- The Family Guide meets with the family to provide further emotional support, written information (Family Notebook ) in an unbiased manner, and discusses the benefits of Part C Early Intervention services. Over the next several weeks, the Family Guide follows up with the family to see if there are additional questions or needs.
- The Family is sent a survey to rate their satisfaction with the match and the information provided by the Virginia GBYS Program.
We’ve been there!
To be matched with a Family Guide or to make a referral, please call or email Regina Craig at RMC4B@hscmail.mcc.virginia.edu or (866) 596-9367.
