By Lia Russell
The Virginian-Pilot
NORFOLK, VA. — In the event of a widespread influenza outbreak or a biochemical terrorist attack, Norfolk is now better equipped to respond to citizens’ health needs with a trained Medical Reserve Corps, a group of volunteers who can assist during civil emergencies.
Garnzie West, a Coronado resident who also is president of his community’s civic league, said a newspaper ad prompted him to join the Medical Reserve Corps, or MRC, last year.
“I wanted all the information I could get about preparedness,” said West, 54, who, in addition to MRC instruction, completed Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT, training in 2006 . “Through MRC I’ve learned how to help in case of a disaster. If a Hurricane Katrina strikes here, I want to know what to do.”
A post-9/11 product sponsored by the U.S. Office of the Surgeon General, the Medical Reserve Corps is comprised of medical, public health and other community volunteers who are willing to respond to small- and large-scale emergencies in the city requiring medical intervention.
“When the towers fell in New York in 2001, lots of people came out to help, and no one could verify their credentials or skills,” said Tracy Walker, Norfolk’s MRC coordinator. The result, she explained, was a difficult-to-manage group with no standards of operation.
The need for organization became apparent in the aftermath of that terrorist attack.
In his 2002 State of the Union Address, President George W. Bush asked all Americans to volunteer with Citizen Corps, a national network of volunteers dedicated to ensuring hometown security. The MRC falls under the auspices of the Citizen Corps.
The Norfolk MRC, established Dec. 19, 2006, currently has “between 75 and 100" members who volunteer at different levels of participation, depending on their training, abilities and credentials, said Dr. Valerie Stallings, Norfolk’s recently retired public health director.
Other area MRCs have as many as 400 registered volunteers on their roles.
“We’re in a building phase,” Stallings said . “We really need a body of skills in the MRC. We’d like to have as many volunteers as we can get.”
The July orientation included nurses, practicing and retired doctors, emergency medical technicians, firefighters, military personnel, students and even a scientist.
Clara Heyder, a Ghent resident who teaches at The Health Sciences Academy in Virginia Beach’s Bayside High School, said her interest was piqued by a newspaper ad about MRC.
“I thought it sounded interesting, a good way to be involved with my community,” she said.
Heyder and others at the orientation filled out applications which included authorization for a background investigation. Medical professionals also had to provide their credentials for verification. That way, when an emergency occurs, volunteers are already cleared and authorized to act.
“The MRC provides a credible way for volunteers to identify themselves during emergencies,” Stallings said. “The program also prepares individuals to respond to a crisis in an orderly fashion and know what to do.”
The MRC provides required training to volunteers in bioterrorism, disaster preparedness, CPR and first aid, as well as information on the Strategic National Stockpile of pharmaceuticals and National Incident Response System, which coordinates responses to emergencies at all levels of government.
The training can be completed through self-directed online courses or by attending sessions at the Norfolk Department of Public Health.
“These classes are free,” West said. “And they’re not difficult. They’re fun. It’s a wonderful opportunity for citizens to get education and pass it on to others.”
Volunteers also are mobilized for non-emergency response such as during Norfolk’s “Homeless Connect” program, a periodic event that refers homeless citizens to resources and services.
But the primary focus of MRC, Stallings said, is to be able to supply additional medical responders in the event of a “surge” in the community - an event which exceeded normal capacities for medical services.
Exercises or “drills” are staged periodically for volunteers to practice emergency response - such as assisting with citywide inoculations or pharmaceutical distribution.
“But more and more, we are looking for natural opportunities to practice readiness, like Suffolk did during the recent tornadoes,” Stallings said.
Volunteers at the recent orientation had concerns about liability issues while volunteering with the MRC.
Johnson put those issues to rest after reviewing the Code of Virginia, which states that volunteers are protected from liability except under conditions where “gross negligence or willful misconduct” is proven .
“The concept of trained volunteers responding within an incident command structure offers comfort to the people receiving treatment or services,” Stallings said. “They know the volunteers are legitimate and that they know how to do what they’re asked to do.”