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Region IV MRC Update - December 2006

In this issue:

• Welcome New Units
• MRC Program Mourns the Passing of a Local Leader
• Citizen Corps/MRC Regional Conference and Training
• CDC Announces National Influenza Vaccination Week
• Upcoming Events of Interest
• Cough Etiquette Video
• Helpful Online Resources
• Upcoming Health Observances
• MRC Program Hits New Milestones
• Regional Coordinator Contact Information

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Welcome New MRC Units

Please welcome our newest MRC units:

Florida	Okaloosa County MRC, Fort Walton Beach Medical Reserve Corps of Santa Rosa, Milton
Georgia	Central Georgia MRC, Macon
Kentucky	Muhlenberg County MRC, Central City Pennyrile District MRC, Princeton Martin County MRC, Inez Lawrence County MRC, Louisa North Central District MRC, Shelbyville
South Carolina	Lowcountry MRC, North Charleston

This brings us to 95 registered MRC units in our eight-state region (541 across the United States). If you know of a community that would like to start its own MRC unit, please have them contact the Regional Coordinator, Elizabeth Fitch, at (404) 562-4276, or elizabeth.fitch@hhs.gov. Units may apply for registration through the MRC Web site. Your support for these new units as they develop is very much appreciated.

MRC Program Mourns the Passing of a Local Leader

MRC program staff were saddened to learn of the death of Lila Stafford, Volunteer Coordinator of the Memphis/Shelby County MRC.

Lila Stafford, Volunteer Coordinator of the Memphis/Shelby County MRC

Lila helped to build the Memphis/Shelby County Public Health Reserve Corps/MRC into a tremendous program. Her work on volunteer recruiting projects was an inspiration to many local leaders.

“Through her tireless efforts and dedication to building and sustaining an MRC in your local community, the local program has grown to be one of strongest MRC units in the United States. Lila truly made a difference.” – CAPT Robert Tosatto, MRC Program Director

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Citizen Corps/MRC Regional Conference and Training

The Citizen Corps and MRC Regional Conference and Training was held November 1–3 in Orlando, FL at The Doubletree Castle. Representatives of MRC units, state coordinators, and partner programs attended. Buddy Dyer, the Mayor of Orlando, proclaimed November 1st as Citizen Corps and Medical Reserve Corps Day in the City of Orlando.

Some topics covered in the conference and training included:

• MRC/Citizen Corps integration 
• Pandemic influenza activities 
• MRC-TRAIN instructional Webcast 
• Volunteer retention and recognition 
• MRC Core Competencies

Mick Davis, of Florida, presents information from discussion of MRC and public health initiatives

Presentations from the conference and training will be available on the MRC Web site soon.

CDC Announces National Influenza Vaccination Week

From the CDC Press Release:

“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today announced the designation of the week after Thanksgiving as National Influenza Vaccination Week. This event is designed to raise awareness of the importance of continuing influenza (flu) vaccination, as well as foster greater use of flu vaccine through the months of November, December and beyond. CDC is recommending that people take this opportunity to be vaccinated and is hopeful that flu vaccine providers will use this time to enhance flu vaccine availability by scheduling additional clinics; extending clinic hours; and enabling a larger role for mass vaccination at places such as retail locations.”

“'Getting vaccinated is the single best way for people to protect not only themselves against flu, but their loved ones as well,' said Dr. Julie Gerberding, CDC Director. National interest in getting a flu vaccination has traditionally tapered off after Thanksgiving. Since flu activity typically does not peak until February or later, November and December are also good times to be vaccinated. National Influenza Vaccination Week is an excellent opportunity for providers to utilize their resources to help fully realize the potential of influenza vaccination.”

Region IV MRC units are encouraged to help increase demand for flu vaccine in their communities through public education and participation in flu vaccine-related activities. Many free educational materials are available for download on the Patient and Provider Education Materials page of the CDC Web site.

Upcoming Events of Interest

• December 4, 12:00–1:30; CT: Vulnerable Populations and Emergency Management Webcast
• December 5, 12:00–1:30; CT: Evaluating Organizational Effectiveness Webcast
• December 7–8, Nashville TN; MRC Meeting on Interstate/intrastate Mutual Aid. Contact Steve Guillot for more information. 
• December 13–14, Washington, DC: Emergency Preparedness and Response Conference (For People with Disabilities, the Elderly, Pediatrics, and Animals)
• December 14, 10:00–11:15 a.m. ET: Managing Contemporary Mass Fatalities Webcast  
• December 15: Deadline for NACCHO-MRC Capacity Building Grant applications  
• February 19–23, 2007; Washington, DC: Public Health Preparedness Summit
•  April 17–20, 2007; Providence, RI: 2007 MRC National Leadership Conference

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Cough Etiquette Video

As flu season approaches, and as we all work to improve community preparedness for a potential pandemic, view the "Why Don't We Do It in Our Sleeves?" video on cough and sneeze etiquette that manages to be both informative and entertaining.

Helpful Online Resources

Just a reminder: There is a collection of Web sites available that may be useful to MRC Unit Coordinators. The easiest way to look at these links is by topic. If you go to the archive page, click on the drop-down box next to “filter by topic” (at the top of the page), and you will see the topics available. Pick a topic, such as Risk Management/Liability, and click the “search” button, and you will see the Web resources I have collected under that topic, along with a brief clipping from the page and possibly a note from me about the link. Recent additions include: Hurricane Hector: A Human Services Organization Tabletop Exercise, Pediatric Terrorism and Disaster Preparedness, and Providing Mass Medical Care with Scarce Resources: A Community Planning Guide. Happy Surfing!

Upcoming Health Observances

November 27–December 3 is National Influenza Vaccine Week

December 1 is World AIDS Day

December 3–9 is Handwashing Awareness Week

January is Cervical Health Awareness Month

MRC Program Hits New Milestones

During the past month, the MRC program has hit several milestones: 

• There are now more than 500 local MRC units in the United States.
• The 90 MRC units of Region IV now represent more than 20,000 volunteers, the highest number of any region in the country. 
• There are more than 100,000 MRC volunteers nationwide.

Many thanks to the local MRC unit leaders for their hard work in preparing their local communities and for updating their unit profile to give us a more accurate count of volunteers. Summit County, UT, is the home of the 500th MRC unit.

“Local communities are benefiting from stronger public health systems and better emergency preparedness because of the work of the volunteers who serve the Medical Reserve Corps,” said Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt. “The establishment of the 500th MRC unit is a landmark accomplishment, and I am proud that the residents of Utah, my home state, are contributing to this achievement.”

Regional Coordinator Contact Information

Elizabeth H. Fitch, MPA
Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center	Phone: (404) 562-4276
61 Forsyth Street, SW	Fax: (404) 562-7899
Suite 5B95	elizabeth.fitch@hhs.gov
Atlanta, GA 30303

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Last Updated on 12/5/2006