About Volunteering
Who can volunteer for the Medical Reserve Corps?
- Practicing, retired, or otherwise employed medical professionals, such as doctors, nurses, emergency medical technicians, pharmacists,
nurses' assistants, and others.
- Public health professionals. Even community members without medical training are encouraged to volunteer to assist
with administrative and other essential support functions.
- United States citizenship is not required to be part of the Medical Reserve Corps. Non-citizen, legal U.S. residents are also
welcome to volunteer and contribute their time, knowledge, and skills to protecting and improving their communities.
What do MRC volunteers do?
It varies, depending on the nature of the emergency and the ongoing need for community health outreach and education.
What we do know is that major emergencies can overwhelm the capabilities of our first responders, especially during the
first 12 to 72 hours. Medical and other health volunteers can provide an important "surge" capacity during that critical period.
They can also augment medical staff shortages at local medical and emergency facilities. In short, communities often need medically
trained individuals to fill in the gaps in their emergency response plans and to improve their response capabilities overall.
What training will I need?
Emergency preparedness and response is a highly coordinated effort that allows communities to maximize their capabilities
during times of extraordinary disorganization and stress.
You may already know how to perform some of the medical and health functions we so desperately need. In most cases, your training as an
MRC volunteer will focus primarily on learning your local emergency and health procedures, trauma response techniques, use of specialized
equipment, and other methods to enhance your effectiveness as a volunteer.
Perhaps the most important part of your training will be learning to work as part of a team. An organized, well-trained
MRC unit will be familiar with its community's response plan, will know what materials are available for use, will know its response
partners, and will know where its skills can be put to best use and in a coordinated manner.
Find out how to become part of your community's team.
Locate the MRC unit nearest you.
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