Maryland's MRC sttrong application - the recipient, maryland department of health - office of preparedness and response, supports this two- year MRC-sttrong project in collaboration with twenty-four…

Maryland's MRC sttrong application - the recipient, maryland department of health - office of preparedness and response, supports this two- year MRC-sttrong project in collaboration with twenty-four local medical reserve corps (MRC) units. The goal of the project is to improve MRC response readiness and capacity. The approach rests upon three main pillars: recruitment and retention, updating of the plan, training and exercise cycles and professional standardization. The objectives are: 1) recruitment and retention of volunteers with targeted community outreach; 2) advertising in the form of radio, digital and printed ADS promoting the MRC program; 3) recognition of existing volunteers through a series of appreciation events; 4) revise existing plans to include MRC participation; 5) employ a regional training and exercise model allowing for the entire state to have the training necessary to bolster the readiness of their volunteers; and 6) standardize MRC member badging, identifiable uniforms and deployment equipment. The expected outcomes of this project are: 1) increased number of events for MRC unit administrators, increased outreach materials, and more individuals requesting information regarding the MRC program; 2) engagement with existing MRC volunteers and those interested in registering; 3) updated plans to include MRC participation; 4) increased metrics on the number of trained and deployable MRC volunteers; 6) increased number of onboarding sets to all deployable MRC volunteers; and 7) an MRC that projects a more professionally standardized appearance while deployed. The products from this project are: 1) routine metrics from local jurisdictions on activities that are sub-awarded; 2) quarterly reports highlighting the new registration and training numbers; and 3) a quarterly digital newsletter depicting events across all regional MRC units.