The mission of the Thurston County Medical Reserve Corps is to allow local health professionals and others to voluntarily contribute their skills and expertise to provide public health surge capacity.

2001

The Medical Community Bioterrorism Response Team came together to assist Thurston County health Officer Dr. Diana Yu to respond to anthrax scares.

2002

President George W. Bush called on Americans to make a lifetime commitment of at least 4,000 hours (the equivalent of two years of their lives) to serve their communities, the nation, and the world. President Bush announced the creation of USA Freedom Corps (including affiliated programs such as Citizen Corps, AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and Peace Corps) to help Americans answer his call to service and to foster a culture of service, citizenship, and responsibility (President George W. Bush, State of the Union Address, January 29, 2002).

2003

The Thurston County MRC was one of the first Washington State Units. We are one of 21 recognized units in Washington State (Washington State Department of Health, 2024).

Thurston County MRC is actively recruiting both medical and non-medical volunteers who are 18 years or older.

Basic eligibility requirements for the Thurston County MRC include:

• Be at least 18 years old
• Pass a criminal background check
• Have a valid driver’s license and auto insurance
• Be current on required immunizations (Measles/Mumps/Rubella, Hepatitis B, Seasonal Influenza, COVID-19 primary series)

Other Ideal requirements:

• Work well in stressful situations
• Have good customer service skills
• Work well in a team

All new Thurston County Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) members are required to attend a volunteer orientation and a Welcome to Medical Reserve Corps training the National Medical Reserve Corps program has established core competencies for all Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) units.

The following training must be completed during the first 6 months of becoming an MRC member to become active and eligible for deployment:

• Personal and Family Preparedness Plan
• IS 100.C Introduction to Incident Command Systems
• IS-700.B Introduction to National Incident Management System (NIMS)
• Psychological First Aid
• CPR/AED (Automated External Defibrillator) 
• There may be additional training or skillsets that volunteers are required to have before they can serve during an emergency or event

Thurston County MRC volunteers support everyday public health initiatives that support our community as well as during emergencies and disasters. 

Emergencies and disasters can quickly overwhelm the capacity of our first responders and local medical infrastructure. Thurston County MRC’s pre-credentialed and trained volunteers are ready to respond in times of crisis, which allows first responders to focus on the most critical, life-threatening needs. 

Additionally, Thurston County MRC volunteers:

• Gain a sense of pride and accomplishment through community service
• Get to know their community better
• Network and build community resilience 
• Gain public health experience
• Learn and develop skills through training and hands-on drills/exercises
• Help our community better prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters
• Belong to a dedicated public health and emergency response team

All MRC volunteer members are registered with the Washington State Emergency Worker program. Being registered is a requirement to be eligible to volunteer for an emergency response with the Thurston County MRC. The Emergency Worker program provides MRC volunteer members with benefits and legal protections found in RCW 38.52.180.  

• Retired Volunteer Medical Worker Application (DOH)
• Volunteer and Retired Providers (VRP) Program
• National Medical Reserve Corps (HHS)
• Thurston County Emergency Management Volunteer page
• Citizen Corps Volunteer Program
• CDC Public Health Emergency Preparedness