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Medical Reserve Corps
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NALBOH Preparedness Pages
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The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) program is comprised of community-based units of trained public health professionals who serve as volunteers to respond to natural disasters. The MRC initiative is built on the concept that communities can help themselves by organizing volunteer resources from within to be able to provide accessible resources and personnel during times of an emergency or a disaster.
NALBOH has partnered with the National Medical Reserve Corps to increase awareness of the importance of public health preparedness at local and individual levels through the relationship of an MRC and a local board of health. Boards of health have the capacity to institute or recommend policy changes that can have a widespread impact on the health of a community. Through the governance of the local health agency, board members work to ensure that their communities are properly prepared to respond to health threats.
Together, NALBOH and MRC will increase boards’ knowledge and capacity to adequately promote, support, and sustain local MRC efforts. NALBOH continuously strives to lead activities and initiatives that promote integration between local boards of health and local MRC units, in order to strengthen the local public health infrastructure.
Click for more information about the MRC program.
Did You Know...
Toolkit to evaluate MRC units now available
The Office of Volunteer Civilian Medical Reserve Corps partnered with NACCHO, the Harvard School of Public Health, and Georgetown University to develop a toolkit that MRC units can use to assess the effectiveness of engaging volunteers in public health activities, specifically flu clinics. Download the toolkit.
Report highlights MRC Unit activities related to H1N1
Most MRC units have been involved with or expect to participate in mass vaccination campaigns and community education campaigns, as well as providing updates to volunteers, partners, and the public.
NACCHO Report Examines the Link Between MRC Units and Local Health Departments
The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) recently published a report, The Value of Partnerships: Understanding the Link Between Local Health Departments and Medical Reserve Corps Units, which documents the findings from a study of MRC Units and their associations with local health departments. The goal of the report was to increase the sustainability of MRC units and understand the components of successful MRC unit and local health department partnerships.
Click to read the full report.
Volunteer Today!
There are currently over 168,000 registered MRC volunteers! Click to find out how you can become a part of your community's team.
For more information on this topic, contact Carrie Hribar.
Page updated 6/15/2010.
© Copyright 2010, NALBOH