Volunteer Spotlight - Spring 2007

 

The focus of the Oxford County Medical Reserve Corps is to provide surge capacity in support of the Surgeon General’s public health priorities, and be able to support the rural health community in the event of any major emergency.

 

 

Kevin Saisi is the unit coordinator for the Oxford County Medical Reserve Corps. He works as a substance abuse counselor and part-time EMT.

 

Kevin Saisi has overcome great barriers to establish the Oxford County MRC. In his role as unit coordinator he has tenaciously networked and made contact with various agencies and other potential partners for support of the unit. As a result, the Oxford County MRC is being transformed into a functioning multi-divisional MRC with the potential of a junior MRC component, ski patrollers, hospital support, and state involvement.

 

Mr. Saisi has been in touch with local health providers, local health officers, and hospitals to support the unit. Because there is not a recognized mechanism by the state for volunteers, he has also been working with his MRC Regional Coordinator and Regional Health Administrator to gain state recognition for the Medical Reserve Corps.

 

Due to the vast geographical extent of the Oxford County MRC, different areas of the unit have varied needs and issues. Therefore, Mr. Saisi is setting up teams within the MRC to handle response in the community. He is also developing an auxiliary of mental health volunteers who would qualify as crisis counselors. This would utilize mental health agencies that deal with case management to assist with victim recovery.

   

Kevin Saisi saw the mental health and medical need for a Medical Reserve Corps unit in the community and observed that there was a lack in preparedness as far as the availability of emergency and hospital personnel for disasters. Mr. Saisi wanted to find a way to get more involved. Therefore, he completed a CERT course and searched for a means to approach preparedness from a medical perspective and identified the Medical Reserve Corps as that resource.

 

 

Mr. Saisi has always been involved in his community and was the youngest person to be elected to Board of Selectman in his hometown.