
	Search:

Developing: Spontaneous Unaffiliated Volunteers

Despite efforts to recruit, train, and prepare volunteers, spontaneous unaffiliated volunteers will appear during emergencies or times of community need. Spontaneous volunteers may be individuals who are unaware of the MRC or were not interested in volunteering before. Or, these may be individuals who are visiting from other states or communities. Regardless, it is important to plan for volunteer convergence with your response partners. You may wish to create a means of processing all spontaneous volunteers and channeling them to the appropriate volunteer opportunities where they can be best used. A local volunteer center or United Way organization may have existing plans for volunteer convergence in an emergency.

Ensure that medical professionals understand their skills may not be utilized if they do not affiliate with a volunteer group prior to an emergency (this may be important information for the public).

Once you have made initial contact with spontaneous volunteers, you may consider some to be potential recruits for a more planned involvement with your MRC in the future.

As appropriate, follow up, invite them in for an interview, and encourage them to be trained for the next time their skills can be utilized for the community.

Previous | Table of Contents | Next

Last Updated on 8/21/2006