The Medical Reserve Corps is a volunteer organization of healthcare
professionals and others who help meet medical needs in times of
disasters or public health crisis. The mission of the MRC is to improve
the health and safety of our community by training and organizing public
health, medical and other volunteers to be part of our local government
disaster response and relief efforts.
During past disasters, we have:
• staffed medical special needs shelters after hurricanes,
• helped deliver Meals on Wheels to medically fragile elderly and provided a quick health
check to make sure that they had all the resources required to meet their medical
needs,
• augmented hospital and clinic staff, and
• provided assistance at City of Houston and Harris County hurricane shelters.
Other MRC non-disaster activities have included participating in a
one-day free clinic at Reliant Center, providing clinical support to the
National Kidney Foundation’s free kidney screenings and providing over
100 non-clinical volunteers for the City of Houston’s H1N1 flu
vaccination clinics.
What are the benefits of joining?
Volunteers are part of the region’s disaster response and have the
opportunity to help meet urgent medical needs of those affected by
disasters in our region. Volunteers that help staff Points of
Distribution (PODs) in the event of a biological event will be able to
get medication for themselves and their families before the PODs are
opened to the general public. We offer CEUs for some of our trainings
each year, usually at no charge. Volunteers will also be trained in
disaster preparedness and have access to resources to help them develop
preparedness plans for their households and businesses.