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The Florida Department of Health works to protect, promote, and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county, and community efforts.

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Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) Frequently Asked Questions

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  • What is the Medical Reserve Corp?
  • Who is eligible to volunteer for the MRC?
  • What might I be asked to do?
  • If I volunteer, what is the time commitment?
  • What if I am a full-time member of a hospital staff?
  • What are the benefits of volunteering for the MRC?
  • Do volunteers receive any monetary compensation?
  • Are volunteers covered by the county’s insurance?
  • How do I become a volunteer?
The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) is a national network of local groups of volunteers committed to improving the health, safety and resiliency of their communities. MRC units identify, screen, train, and organize the volunteers, and engage them to support routine public health activities and to augment preparedness and response efforts.
Anyone who lives or works in Escambia County, Florida can join the local unit (Unit 61) of the Medical Reserve Corps. You do not have to be a licensed medical professional to volunteer. Your expertise, licensure, or certification will help to determine what role you may be asked to fill during an emergency.
Volunteers may be asked to contribute in several different ways, such as providing medical treatment or evaluation, assisting with volunteer management, providing education, administering vaccines, or distributing medication. We do our best to ensure that the role you are asked to play is appropriate for your level and area of expertise.
A volunteers time contribution depends on the type and scale of the event. During non-emergency events, such as attending training or administering vaccines to members of the homeless community, a volunteer might contribute two to six hours of time. If the Medical Reserve Corps is activated for a large scale emergency, services might require greater volunteer flexibility and commitment, such as daily 12-hour shifts for several days in a row. The Medical Reserve Corps works with its volunteers to establish.

Full-time hospital staff members who register to participate in the Medical Reserve Corps during a public health emergency must be released by their hospital administration before they are‚ able to volunteer. The MRC Staff will coordinate emergency deployment volunteer scheduling with the hospital administrators where MRC volunteers regularly work.

MRC, volunteers gain valuable knowledge, skills, and abilities through classes, trainings, exercises, drills, and real-world disaster response.
No, you will be volunteering to help your community in a time of need.
Medical Reserve Corps volunteers are covered by workers compensation laws. Additionally, liability is covered by state laws regarding Sovereign Immunity (768.28), Good Samaritan (768.13), Volunteer Protection Act (768.1355) and Volunteer Benefits (110.504). Please note, MRC volunteers are only covered by these provisions during official MRC activities.

Step 1: Request an application by emailing MRC.Escambia@flhealth.gov

Step 2: Complete the application and return by email, fax, mail, or hand delivery to:

Attention: MRC Coordinator
1300 West Gregory Street, Pensacola, FL 32501
FAX: 850-595-6268
Phone: 850-595-6683, Extension: 2005

Step 3: Complete required trainings and provide certificates of completion to MRC Coordinator

FEMA IS 100: http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/courseOverview.aspx?code=IS-100.b

FEMA IS 700: http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/courseOverview.aspx?code=IS-700.a

Step 4: Set up appointment with MRC Coordinator to have your fingerprints taken for Level II Background check, and to have your photo taken for MRC badge.

Step 5: Once your background check is complete, you will receive an email from the MRC Coordinator, inviting you to register on Everbridge. Everbridge is the emergency alert system. This system is used to activate the MRC and gauge volunteer availability during disasters. You must register on Everbridge in order to be considered an active, fully-deployable MRC volunteer.

Step 6: Serve your community!  Attend trainings, classes, and outreach. Assist with points of distribution (PODS), etc. Grow as a valuable member of the Escambia MRC!