Medical Reserve Corps

NACCHO in partnership with the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) Program Office, Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) is pleased to announce the selection of 80 MRC units to receive the 2018 MRC Challenge Award. Over 240 MRC units across the country submitted applications for one of three funding categories, $2,500, $7,500, or $12,500. The tiered funding levels allowed MRC units to select the funding level that met their needs and those of the community they serve.

Download the list of selected 2018 MRC Challenge Award projects.

Through a cooperative agreement with ASPR and the MRC Program, NACCHO has sponsored 468 MRC Challenge Awards since 2013. The Challenge Awards aim to support innovative projects that are aligned with national health initiatives and provide a significant impact at the local level. Proposals may draw from ASPR’s National Health Security Strategy (NHSS), the six Surgeon General’s Priorities which includes the National Prevention Strategy (NPS), CDC's Winnable Battles, and the strategic plans of other partner organizations. The challenge is for MRC units to address community needs in an innovative way and then share their results with the hope that beneficial practices and initiatives can be replicated nationally among the network of MRC units.

MRC Challenge Awards offer an insight into the MRC unit, it's capabilities to support their local community, and the impact of MRC volunteers across the country. NACCHO is proud to share some of the MRC Challenge Award stories through the MRC InTouch newsletter, NACCHO's Preparedness Brief, and the 2017 Summer edition of NACCHO Exchange.

Download the 2017 MRC Challenge Award Projects.

Featured 2016 MRC Challenge Award Projects:

Sheltering Residents with Substance Dependency - South Hadley / Granby / Northampton MRC

Addressing the Opioid Epidemic - Bureau Putnam MRC

Preventing and Treating Chronic Disease - Richmond City MRC

Fruit and Vegetable Prescription Program - Siouxland District Health Department MRC of Woodbury County, Iowa

Prescribe for Health- Greater Monadnock, New Hampshire Medical Reserve Corps

Mass Fatality Training - LeFlore County, Oklahoma Medical Reserve Corps

Enhancing Community Collaboration & Coalition - King County MRC

See a recent article on Lake County MRC.

See all of the 2015-2016 MRC Challenge Award recipients and their project names.

Meet previous NACCHO MRC Challenge Award winners and view videos featuring awardees' project updates.

Medical Reserve Corps toolkit is a free, online collection of local public health tools produced by members of the public health community and MRC units. Tools within are materials and resources MRC unit leaders and other public health professionals can use to inform and improve their work in the promotion and advancement of the MRC and public health objectives.

NACCHO is excited to launch the initial cohort of The Bob Cohen MRC Mentorship Program in September of 2017. This initiative between NACCHO, the MRC Program, and members of NACCHO’s MRC Advisory Group, is designed to support new MRC Unit Leaders, with less than two years of experience seeking guidance, through a collaborative and supportive environment by building mentorship relationships with experienced Unit Leaders, overcoming potential challenges, and sharing resources and successes among the MRC network.

The goal of the Bob Cohen MRC Mentorship Program is to provide participants with a unique opportunity to build a one-on-one mentorship relationship with an experienced MRC Unit Leader, and network among other experienced professionals to overcome potential challenges. This program additionally provides participants with MRC related resources, guidance, and useful tools to develop the necessary skills and knowledge to successfully manage an MRC unit.

To further expand the reach of The Bob Cohen Mentorship Program, NACCHO will share resources and tools developed or identified through the program with the MRC Network through the MRC listserv, the MRC InTouch Newsletter and the NACCHO MRC Webpage. Please see the The Bob Cohen Mentorship Program Handbook for a general overview of the program.

For any questions about the Bob Cohen MRC Mentorship Program, please contact us at mrc@naccho.org.

NACCHO, in collaboration with the MRC, is pleased to announce that the MRC has adopted the Competencies for Disaster Medicine and Public Health (DMPH Competencies) as the new competency set for the MRC Volunteers.

The DMPH Competency set is designed specifically for disaster and public health preparedness, response, and management. They are widely understood to define the knowledge and skills needed for a healthcare professional and/or first responder to perform a task in a safe and consistent manner.

Learn about the newly adopted Competencies for Disaster Medicine and Public Health for MRC volunteers and resources available to implement a training plan.

Mission Ready Packages (MRPs) are a specific response and recovery resource capability that is organized, developed, trained, and exercised prior to an emergency or disaster. The MRP template is a resource tool available for State Emergency Managers as a part of the Emergency Management Assistance Compact.

Although MRPs are intended for state to state mutual aid, the template can be adapted at the local level for MRC units to identify their MRC resource capabilities when collaborating with local emergency planners. MRC Unit Coordinators can develop an MRP based on their local community response needs and the volunteer capabilities within their unit. The MRP can be used as a vehicle to train and develop teams for specific response roles and missions. Read the NACCHO Prep blog "An Ideal Match: Mission Ready Packages and the Medical Reserve Corps" for additional information on how MRC units can adapt MRPs for their local use.

The Mission Ready Packages Resource Guide for MRC Unit Leaders provides background information on the evolution of MRPs, examples of emergency response activities that MRC units support, developing MRPs to fit local response needs, and examples of MRPs for MRC units. The MRP Resource Guide is available for download below and can also be found in NACCHO's Toolbox. You can search by title or select MRC toolkit from the drop down menu.

In addition, an overview of MRPs is available in an eLearning option through NACCHO University. You can access the MRP eLearning here.

For additional information or to provide a sample of your MRP, please contact us at mrc@naccho.org.

See the self-paced learning modules created for MRC units around the Factors for Success and Core Competencies.

NACCHO has developed resources to assist MRC Unit Leaders and Stakeholders with their communication and messaging strategies. The NACCHO MRC Strategic Messaging Guide provides a roadmap for MRC units as they conduct community outreach and media interviews. It touches on the history of the MRC and shares some of the facts and figures behind this extraordinary organization.

The 2017 Network Profile of the Medical Reserve Corps report provides a comprehensive look at MRC unit composition, administration, and community impact, collected from a comprehensive survey administered in spring 2017. View the full report and infographics at http://bit.ly/2017MRCNetworkProfile.

MRC: In Touch is the monthly MRC e-newsletter. Each edition features unit activities, resources, announcements, and a calendar of events. All volunteers are eligible to sign up to receive the monthly e-newsletter via the MRC one-way and two-way ListServs.

View back issues of MRC In Touch (July 2013-present).

To read archived issues of In Touch (August 2008 – June 2013), click on the links below.

• Edition 1: August 2008
• Edition 2: September 2008
• Edition 3: October 2008
• Edition 4: November 2008
• Edition 5: December 2008
• Edition 6: January 2009
• Edition 7: February 2009
• Edition 8: March 2009
• Edition 9: April 2009
• Edition 10: May 2009
• Edition 11: June 2009
• Edition 12: July 2009
• Edition 13: August 2009
• Edition 14: September 2009
• Edition 15: October 2009
• Edition 16: November 2009
• Edition 17: December 2009
• Edition 18: January 2010
• Edition 19: February 2010
• Edition 24: July 2010
• Edition 25: August 2010
• Edition 26: September 2010
• Edition 27: October 2010
• Edition 28: November 2010
• Edition 29: December 2010
• Edition 30: January 2011
• Edition 31: February 2011
• Edition 32: March 2011
• Edition 33: April 2011
• Edition 34: May 2011
• Edition 35: June 2011
• Edition 36: July 2011
• Edition 37: August 2011
• Edition 38: September 2011
• Edition 39: October 2011
• Edition 40: November 2011
• Edition 41: December 2011
• Edition 42: January 2012
• Edition 43: February 2012
• Edition 44: March 2012
• Edition 45: April 2012
• Edition 46: May 2012
• Edition 47: June 2012
• Edition 48: July 2012
• Edition 49: August 2012
• Edition 50: September 2012
• Edition 51: October 2012
• Edition 52: November 2012
• Edition 53: December 2012
• Edition 54: January 2013
• Edition 55: February 2013
• Edition 56: March 2013
• Edition 57: April 2013
• Edition 58: May 2013
• Edition 59: June 2013

NACCHO in collaboration with the MRC Program office conducted a one day workshop prior to the 2017 Preparedness Summit for MRC Unit Leadership.

The workshop was designed to provide MRC Unit Leadership with tools and resources to effectively manage and grow their MRC Unit, learn through best practices, and network with other MRC units.

Resources from the workshop include Adaptive Leadership, Communications, Social Media strategies, and Advocacy.