State Recruits Medical Volunteers During National Volunteer Week

Friday, April 17, 2009 | 09:22am

Doctors, Nurses and Other Trained Health Professionals
Needed for Emergency Preparedness Efforts

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Department of Health is recruiting and registering licensed or trained medical professionals for volunteer service in the event of state public health or medical emergencies. The launch of the Tennessee Volunteer Mobilizer (TVM) coincides with National Volunteer Week, which is being observed April 19-25, this year. With the theme, “Celebrating People In Action,” National Volunteer Week provides a fitting opportunity to get out the call for assistance in the Volunteer State.
 
The Tennessee Volunteer Mobilizer is a Web-based system designed to serve as a single, centralized source of information to ease the intra-state, state-to-state and state-to-federal deployment or transfer of volunteer health professionals and other volunteers. A part of the federal Emergency System for Advance Registration of Volunteer Health Professionals, or ESAR-VHP, TVM gives Tennessee the ability to quickly identify and assist in the coordination of volunteers in an emergency.
 
"Tennesseans have a knack for answering the call for assistance when a neighbor is in need, and medical personnel have specialized training that is essential to ensuring the health and wellness of residents especially in emergency situations,” said State Health Commissioner Susan R. Cooper, MSN, RN. “Tennessee Volunteer Mobilizer has the capacity to make the coordination of volunteers more efficient, getting help to where it is needed as quickly as possible.”
 
The National ESAR-VHP program provides guidance for the development of standardized state programs for registering and verifying the credentials of volunteer health professionals in advance of an emergency or disaster. Related state programs are built to a common set of national standards.
 
A related program at work in Tennessee is the Medical Reserve Corps. The MRC is a national network of community-based volunteer units that focus on improving the health, safety and resiliency of local communities. MRC units organize and utilize public health, medical and other volunteers to support existing local agencies throughout the year with preparedness and response activities during times of need. MRC volunteers are registered and deployed through TVM and are involved in organized efforts at the local level as units.
 
ESAR-VHP and the Medical Reserve Corps each represent key national initiatives of the United States Department of Health and Human Services to improve the nation’s ability to prepare for and respond to public health and medical emergencies. The MRC is housed in the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General; ESAR-VHP is based in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.
 
In the future through use of TVM, Tennessee will develop state level teams for mass shelter operations and other public health responses. The program also allows for a ready pool of volunteers by providing mechanisms for the recruitment and registration of individual health professionals who are willing to help in an emergency, but prefer not to be part of a unit structure, such as MRC.
 
In the event of public health or medical emergencies, volunteers with all types of skills and experience will be needed for clinics, sheltering operations and potential inter-hospital emergency support. Volunteers needed include:
  • Physicians
  • Physicians Assistants
  • Nurses
  • Clerical/Secretarial
  • Data Entry/Medical Records Personnel
  • Pharmacists/Pharmacy Technicians Ÿ         Individuals for traffic control and parking
  • Individuals for crowd control
  •  Translators (multiple languages including sign language)
  • Emergency Medical Technicians
  • Information Technology Personnel
  • Clinical professionals and/or students who are willing to be trained & assist with immunizations (must be at least 18 years of age)
There are a number of health care professionals already included in the TVM registration and notification system. These individuals are being asked to update their contact and licensure information. The system can be accessed on the Web at https://thanvolunteer.health.state.tn.us. The information provided will be used in the first step toward verification of health care professionals' credentials when responding during emergencies. When updating a volunteer profile, make sure to select a "Healthcare Provider Type" and fill out the required fields under the "State License" section.
 
To become a credentialed volunteer or to learn more visit the Web at https://thanvolunteer.health.state.tn.us/VolunteerMobilizer/.
 

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