MRC Help Hurricane Victims

Fairfax Medical Reserve Corps Volunteers to Help Hurricane Victims

September 13, 2005

Volunteers from the Fairfax Medical Reserve Corps (MRC), a corps of medical and non-medical volunteers managed by the Fairfax County Health Department, currently are registering with the American Red Cross (ARC) to assist Hurricane Katrina victims in the Gulf Coast region.

To date, 11 volunteers have signed up since Sept. 7, when ARC deployment applications were made available to Fairfax MRC members, with more expected to sign up this week. Two volunteers will deploy to the Gulf Coast this week for a 14-day assignment.

Due to the extensive need for trained volunteers in the Gulf Coast region, the American Red Cross has partnered with the national MRC office to extend Hurricane Katrina-related volunteer opportunities to MRC members.

“We are proud of the 11 who have already signed up, and I am confident more Fairfax MRC members will ask for deployment to assist their distant neighbors in the Gulf Coast region,” said Donna Foster, MRC coordinator, Fairfax County Health Department.

The Fairfax MRC is an all-volunteer group of people from medical and non-medical backgrounds who stand ready to assist the Fairfax County Health Department in the event of a local public health emergency. Fairfax MRC volunteers are trained to staff dispensing sites for the distribution of medications or vaccines to local residents in response to a public health emergency. The Fairfax MRC program provides training and practice for all members to assure response readiness

The Fairfax MRC has more than 3,300 members, but needs up to 13,000 to assure total coverage of the county’s population. In a worst-case scenario, this could mean providing medication or vaccine to more than 1 million people in three to five days. To accomplish this, 54 teams, comprising 232 people per team, are needed.

“The devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina underscores the need for communities to be prepared for worst-case situations,” said Foster.

Those interested in becoming a Fairfax MRC volunteer may do so by contacting Fairfax Medical Reserve Corps (MRC), or calling Donna Foster at 703-246-8636, TTY 703-591-6435. Based on qualifications, new MRC volunteers may be eligible for future opportunities that support Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.