Maryland Medical Reserve Corps, MD Responds Prepared New Volunteers to Respond to Health Emergencies

“It is a key priority for ASPR to invest in efforts that strengthen the preparedness and resiliency of state and local governments and the volunteers that graduated this program will only enhance Maryland’s ability to respond to emergencies,” said ASPR’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary John Knox. “Response always starts at the local level, and the Medical Reserve Corps represents neighbors helping neighbors. Volunteers with MRC are an important tool that serves as a force multiplier in some of the worst times when communities need assistance the most.”

Caroline County is a rural community without a local hospital. Recognizing that neighbors will often act as first responders to those in need, the local MRC unit, Public Health Department, and Emergency Management Officials partnered together to offer needed training and build resilience. Caroline County launched its first-ever Citizen Preparedness Training course, a free, 10-week program designed to help residents build practical emergency response skills and confidence this past February. Each week, classes focused on a key area of emergency preparedness, providing participants with hands-on instruction and real-world guidance they can use to protect themselves, their families, and their community.

Topics included personal awareness and de-escalation techniques, severe weather response and emergency communications, search and rescue basics, psychological first aid, and life-saving skills such as CPR and AED use. Participants also learned how to properly use fire extinguishers, administer Narcan, and effectively communicate critical information when calling 911 during large-scale emergencies. The program includes deployment readiness training and the issuance of personal emergency “GO-bags” to those who graduated.

MRC units are managed by state or local agencies as part of a nationwide program led by ASPR’s Office of Medical Reserve Corps. The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) comprises over 250,000 volunteers in 700 community-based units across the U.S. and its territories. These units work within their local communities to enhance emergency response, boost community preparedness, and reinforce public health and safety measures. Each MRC unit is unique, tailoring its activities based on community needs, volunteer expertise, and partner assistance.

MRC units prepare for and respond to natural disasters, such as wildfires, hurricanes, blizzards, and floods, as well as other emergencies including those affecting public health, such as disease outbreaks and power outages. MRC volunteers also regularly contribute to community preparedness, engaging in activities like Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation/Automated External Defibrillator (CPR/AED) and naloxone administration training and assisting with community health care clinics. Volunteers encompass practicing, retired, or employed medical professionals (e.g., doctors, nurses, pharmacists, veterinarians), public health professionals, and community members providing administrative and essential support, such as translation services and transportation.

The training program utilized funding from ASPR’s MRC State, Territory and Tribal Nations, Representative Organizations for Next Generation (MRC-STTRONG) grant. Caroline County MRC received more than $46,000, the bulk of which was used to fund this training.

For more information about the MRC and how their volunteers assist communities, visit: https://aspr.hhs.gov/MRC/Pages/index.aspx.

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About ASPR:

ASPR is the nation’s lead health security agency—driving preparedness before disaster strikes, securing domestic medical supply chains, advancing gold standard science, and delivering a fast, accountable federal response when lives are on the line. We partner with states, local communities, tribes, territories, other federal agencies, and the private sector to strengthen readiness at home. We invest in American manufacturing to reduce foreign dependency, and steward taxpayer resources with transparency, discipline, and measurable outcomes. ASPR protects the American people and ensures that the United States can prepare for, respond to, and recover from any threat to national security, anytime, anywhere.

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