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Region IV MRC Update - January 2006

In this issue:

• 2005: Year in Review
• Region IV MRC 2005: A Year in Pictures
• Welcome New MRC Unit
• Upcoming Events of Interest
• Did You Know?
• Helpful Online Resources
• Upcoming Health Observances
• Regional Coordinator Contact Information

2005: Year in Review

What a year! Who could have predicted the tremendous changes that 2005 would bring for all of us? All of you have worked hard this year, with some amazing results—you have doubled the number of MRC volunteers in the region in the past 10 months. You have spent countless hours working on issues such as liability, credentialing, training, recruiting, and retention of volunteers. You have staffed shelters, run clinics, worked in field hospitals, managed warehouses, manned phone banks, and have done a myriad of other activities in response to the devastation of this year’s hurricane season. You have also provided flu shots, health information, preparedness training, and first aid. You have participated in exercises, drills, working groups, panels, press briefings, community meetings, TV shows, radio interviews, and a host of other activities. So here’s to you, and here’s to a wonderful 2006!

A Few MRC Events of 2005

• Regional Coordinators were hired to provide technical assistance to MRC units 
• Third annual National Leadership Conference was held in San Francisco, CA
• Working groups were formed to explore issues such as mass casualty incidents, core competencies, ESAR-VHP, disaster mental health and others
• It was a record-breaking hurricane season, with local activation and/or deployment of hundreds of MRC volunteers for Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma
• First-ever deployment of MRC volunteers to support the HHS mission
• First Regional MRC Conference held in Atlanta, GA

MRC Growth in 2005—A Snapshot

Region IV MRC 2005: A Year in Pictures

Two participants at the Region four breakout session at the National Leadership Conference.	Judy Nuland presents at the National Leadership Conference.
Devastation of Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi; picture taken by the Mississippi Medical Reserve Corps.	Dr. Anita Batman at the medical needs shelter at Biloxi High School after Hurricane Katrina
Bilkisu Danjaji of the DeKalb MRC, deployed for a Red Cross mission in Texas.	Coordinator Leigh Wilsey with new volunteers for the Duval Medical Reserve Corps.

Welcome New MRC Unit

Please welcome our newest unit, Chatham County MRC in Chatham County, GA (Savannah). Chatham County MRC is a partner of the Chatham County Citizen Corps and is working with Public Health, Emergency Management, and the Georgia Search and Rescue team to provide medical assistance to the community in an emergency. Dave Hall is the Coordinator of the CCMRC.

This brings us to a total of 52 registered units within our eight-state region (350 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.

 Upcoming Events of Interest

• Public Health Emergency Preparedness for Children—Web Conference. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality will host a Web conference on January 11, 1:00–2:30 p.m. EST. “The conference will explore some of the key issues surrounding the preparedness planning for the care of children, and highlight innovative research, tools, and models that can be used in developing effective preparedness strategies for addressing the unique needs of children.”
• Avian Flu Symposium. The University of Maryland School of Law and the Center for Health and Homeland Security will host “Avian Flu: What Can we Do?” on Friday, January 13, 2006.
• Planning for the Needs of Special Populations with speaker Ana-Marie Jones, Executive Director, Collaborating Agencies Responding to Disasters. Thursday, January 12th: 10:00–11:00 a.m. EST (rebroadcast 4:00–5:00 p.m. EST)

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Did You Know?

Of the registered MRC Units in Region IV, more than half have NOT updated their online profiles since September 1st!!

This means that all of their hard work for the past 4 months (including hurricane-related activity) is not reflected on the National Web site. The online profile is one of the ways that potential volunteers can find out about your unit. If the information is not correct or does not reflect the activities that your unit is participating in, they may lose interest. It is recommended that you update your online profile at least once per quarter. View your unit’s online profile (you will need to be logged in as the coordinator or director to make changes).

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 “look” button, and you will see the Web resources I’ve collected under that topic, along with a brief clipping from the page and possibly a note from me about the link. Recent additions include: FEMA Winter Preparedness, Resources for Screening Volunteers, Hurricane Pam and Hurricane Katrina Pre-event 'Lessons Learned', and Upcoming Conferences on Hazards and Disasters.

There are 18 different categories in the archive, including:

• Pandemic Influenza
• Funding and Sustainability
• Individual and Community Preparedness
• Mental Health
• Non-Emergency Public Health Initiatives
• Risk Management and Liability
• Volunteer Relations

You can also subscribe to the archive and receive a notice when new resources have been added. Happy surfing!

Upcoming Health Observances

January is Cervical Health Awareness Month

February is Heart Health Month

February 3 is Wear Red Day 

February 14 is National Donor Day

March is National Nutrition Month®

April 3–9 is National Public Health Week

April 23–29 is National Volunteer Week 

“Volunteering creates a national character in which the community and the nation take on a spirit of compassion, comradeship, and confidence.”
– Brian O’Connell

Regional Coordinator Contact Information

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Also, don't forget to regularly visit the National MRC Web site: sponsored by the Office of the Surgeon General
The Medical Reserve Corps is a specialized component of Citizen Corps.

Last Updated on 11/8/2006