Courses
MRC volunteers are first required to complete a couple of introductory courses to provide a basic knowledge about assisting in an emergency event. The National MRC office has set up a Tier system which will give you an orderly way to build your skills and add to your knowledgej to support your community. Wachusett MRC will then provide additional opportunities to explore disaster preparedness, community assistance and public health. All courses are free and some carry CEUs for nursing. Watch for new courses periodically.
‘Train’ is a very large database of courses for the many areas of Public Health. MRC-TRAIN is a learning management system with a centralized, searchable database of courses relevant to the Medical Reserve Corps. These courses are offered in the form of web-based learning, on-site learning and satellite broadcasts.
Tier 1
Entrance level courses that give you an introduction to emergency event assistance and to personal protection.
When an emergency event occurs the rule of thumb is to take care of your family first, take some time to check on your neighbors especially those that you know may be more impacted by the emergency, and then prepare to help your community. Here are some courses to get you started. They are video/powerpoint presentations with a quiz/certificate at the end. Don’t give up, you can view and take the quiz as often as you need.
Tier 2
Will add to your skills and hopefully you will find them useful in your daily life as well.
Psychological First Aid (PFA) and Skills for Psychological Recovery (SPR) are promising practices for disaster behavioral health response and recovery. Both PFA and SPR were developed by the National Center for PTSD and the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, as well as other individuals involved in coordinating and participating in disaster response and recovery.
CDC and CDC Train offer several programs for emergency preparedness. Here are a couple:
Tier 3
Encourages activities that may include taking on a leadership role in the MRC unit. For the Wachusett MRC this may look like taking the leadership to develop a committee and action plan for a specific topic. Examples would include leading an animal care group or a Healthy Homes project.
Tier 4
Continues to build on what was started in all the other tiers- skills and leadership but also encourages getting involved in the community through local committees (board of health) or through other volunteer agencies (i.e. North Quabbin Coalition in Athol or Cultural Diversity group out of Fitchburg)
Other Courses and Links for Emergency Preparedness and Public Health Information
Massachusetts Emergency Management courses
MEMA offers serveral courses online and in person for advancement toward a management certificate.