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"Make Every Minute Count"
Preparing, preventing and responding to disasters
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Ohio Community Service Council to become primary agency for mass careOhio Citizen Corps to be an integral part of response |
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The Ohio Community Service Council (OCSC) recently accepted the Ohio Emergency Management Agency’s invitation to become the primary agency for Emergency Support Function (ESF) #6 – Mass Care. As the primary agency for ESF-6, OCSC will monitor and report on mass care activities throughout response and recovery. ESF-6 addresses, coordinates and reports on emergency mass care activities of state-level organizations responsible for sheltering, feeding, counseling, providing first aid, and related social services and welfare activities required to assist the victims of an emergency. The primary and support organizations of ESF-6 work as a team in the State of Ohio Emergency Operations Center (State EOC) and at the site of a disaster to address the emergency mass care needs of Ohio citizens. The Ohio Community Service Council was established by state statute in 1994, specifically to administer grants under the federal National & Community Service Trust Act of 1993. However, the Council has always worked under a broader mission: “to strengthen Ohio's communities through service and volunteerism.” OCSC focuses on four major activities: |
Emergency
workers |
Ohio Citizen Corps will use its growing volunteer database and vast network of affiliates and programs to help support EFS-6 operations. Support agencies
for ESF-6 include: American Red Cross; Ohio Department of Aging;
Ohio Department of Agriculture; Ohio Department of Development;
Ohio Department of Education; Ohio Department of Health; Ohio
Department of Job and Family Services; Ohio Department of Mental
Health; Ohio Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental
Disabilities; Ohio Emergency Management Agency; Ohio Housing
Finance Agency; Rehabilitation Services Commission; and Voluntary
Organizations Active in Disasters. |
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Surgeon
General Praises |
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Ohio MRC Coordinators with Surgeon General Richard Carmona 1st Row: Florence Drayden-Montgomery County;
Melette Bailey-Miami County; Sandy Miller-Clark County; Margo
Schramm-Lucas County; Roohi Husain-Regional Coordinator Chicago;
Mary Collier-Champaign County; Paul Bender- OMRC Public Information
Officer. |
United States Surgeon General Richard Carmona recently praised the Medical Reserve Corps’ organization, coordinators and especially the volunteers, while attending the MRC Leadership Conference in Dallas.
The surgeon general proclaimed the MRC has moved from "a concept to a movement” starting with 42 local units, and has now grown to 420 with 75,000 volunteers. This has already surpassed the projected goal of 400 active units by the end of 2006.
Carmona said this could not have been done without the dedication and effort of the MRC coordinators. He offered his profound “thanks” for their hard work bringing together unique attributes into one broad mission.
He also said that ingenuity of volunteerism this past year has been overwhelming. This was proved during the Gulf Coast Hurricanes when MRC joined forces with American Red Cross to handle shelter medical efforts. “There was a need and we made it happen - even though a plan was not in place,” Carmona added. The generosity was immense as 1,500 MRC volunteers asked to be deployed. Four-hundred volunteers were actually sent on missions, 64 from Ohio.
Carmona said, “the
nation is better and stronger because of the MRC and its volunteers.”
He called each volunteer an ambassador of public health. “Our
hard work has not gone unnoticed, said Carmona. The White House commended
MRC units and the Office of Homeland Security calls the MRC a valuable
resource. The Surgeon General finished his address by saying he is convinced
“the nation is healthier, safer and stronger because of the MRC”
and he looks forward to another great year!
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MRC noted in White House Press Briefing |
The Medical Reserve Corps continues to get noticed at the highest levels. In a White House Press Briefing concerning Pandemic Flu Preparedness on May 3rd, Scott McClellan and Homeland Security Advisor Fran Townsend singled out the MRC for its performance and results! Ms. Townsend states the following:
"The administration takes this threat seriously. And therefore, the actions contained within this plan -- we take the actions contained in this plan seriously, which is the reason that we have assigned performance measures and aggressive time frames. No one should leave with the impression that this work is only beginning today. Many of these actions began weeks or months ago. In some cases, we have already made -- seen remarkable performance and results despite laying out very aggressive measures for action.
For instance, one of
the actions in the plan is to expand the Medical Reserve Corps, a community-based
program of volunteer health and medical providers, by 20 percent. That
meant from 350 to 420 chapters in 2006. That objective was placed in
the draft plan early in 2006, and the Medical Reserve Corps has already
achieved it."
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Welcome - Ohio MRC continues to Grow! |
New MRC units are forming faster than this editor can type. We would like to welcome our eight newest units in Auglaize, Cuyahoga, Franklin, Fulton, Jefferson, Lawrence, Madison and Williams Counties. With the addition of Franklin and Cuyahoga Counties, all of Ohio's major metropolitan areas are covered. OMRC now serves 36 counties with more than 4,000 healthcare professionals. Look for even more expansion in the near future as several counties have applied for official status.
Click Here for a Larger
Map
Red=MRC Unit
Orange= MRC Regional Unit
Blue = Applied for Application
| Contacts
for New MRC Units |
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| Auglaize
County 214 S. Wagner St., Wapakoneta, OH 45895 Michael Wurst (419) 738-3410 mwurst@auglaizehealth.org |
Cuyahoga
County 5550 Venture Drive Parma, OH 44130 Rebecca Hysing (216) 201-2001 rhysing@ccbh.net |
Franklin
County & Columbus 280 East Broad Street Columbus, OH 43215 Mitzi Kline 614-462-3028 mrkline@franklincountyohio.gov |
Fulton
County 606 S. Shoop Avenue Wauseon, OH 43567 Dee Jackson 419-337-0915 djackson@odh.ohio.gov |
| Jefferson
County 16001 State Rt. #7, Steubenville, OH 43952 Ty Lollini 304-527-4833 tyl@wheeling-nisshin.com |
Lawrence
County 2122 South 8th Street, Ironton, OH 45638 Jason Harlow 740-532-3962 jharlow@odh.ohio.gov |
Madison
County Roger Roberts 66 West High Street, London, OH 43140 Phone: (740) 852-3800 rroberts@co.madison.oh.us |
Williams
County |
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Mass Vaccination Drill in Gallia County |
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The Gallia County MRC and Health Department conducted a mass vaccination drill responding to a small pox outbreak. A Volunteer Reception Center was established to process and deploy volunteers. Volunteers from Citizen Corps, CERT, Teen SERT and the Boy Scouts helped make the event a success. The drill was organized by Cathy Clark, MRC Coordinator and Vice President of the Gallia County Citizen Corps, as a kickoff to Gallia County's new formed MRC unit. For information about
the Gallia County MRC, you can contact Cathy, 740 441-2965 or
cclark@odh.ohio.gov. |
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State Looks to Strengthen Homeland Security Programs at Two-Day Conference |
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enforcement, first responders, emergency medical personnel and homeland security officials from across the state met at the Columbus Convention Center on May 10 and 11 to focus on ways to strengthen Ohio’s homeland security programs. The two-day conference was part of the 2006 Ohio Homeland Security Symposium and Intergovernmental Technology Conference. As part of the conference, an international panel comprised of representatives from the British Embassy and Turkish National Police participated in a panel discussion entitled: “Global Lessons Learned.” The panel shared their experience in preventing, responding to and recovering from terrorist acts. Ohio Senator Steve Stivers served as moderator of the discussion. |
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“The high turnout for
this conference illustrates Ohio’s strong commitment to homeland
security and
protecting the citizens of our state,” said Ohio Department of
Public Safety Director Ken Morckel.
“Whether it’s preparing for an avian flu pandemic, strengthening
our school emergency plans or
improving interoperable communications for law enforcement, the wide
variety of educational
opportunities offered by the conference will help to strengthen and
advance homeland security
programs throughout the state.”
Other topics covered during the conference included:
* Avian Flu Pandemic * Behavioral Health Preparedness
* Evacuation Planning * Dealing with Limited English Proficiency Populations
* Interoperable Communications * Improving Relations with Arab and Muslim
Americans
* IT Risk Management * Ohio Response System
* Communications for Leaders * Maritime Security
* Preparing for Medical Surge * School Emergency Plans
* Wireless Information Sharing for Emergency Responders (WISER)
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Guernsey County Citizen Corps -Getting the Message Out |
Guernsey County Citizen’s
Corps' members are getting the message about the important programs
of Citizen Corps. They staffed a booth at the Guernsey County
Chamber of Commerce’s Swing into Spring Home Show at the
Prichard Laughman Civic Center in Cambridge. The volunteers spent
the weekend talking to more than 2,000 residents about disaster
preparedness, CERT, and Neighborhood Watch. They also distributed
disaster preparedness literature to event attendees. Citizen Corps
members received donations from area businesses and gave away
several door prizes during the event. |
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| From Left to Right- Portia Pulsifer of Ohio EMA, Citizen Corps members: Betty Shoemaker, Kathy McClure, Rebecca Hosta, and Jeff Haney. |
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Northwest Ohio receives money for Citizen Corps with the help of Senator DeWine |
| The Volunteer Connection of Northwest Ohio in Defiance was awarded the "Capacity Building Around Disasters Grant" from the Points of Light Foundation. The $15,000 grant will be used to strengthen preparation for overall disaster initiatives in the region. This grant will allow Volunteer Connection to work closely with local organizations through the Ohio Citizen Corps' structure to properly train volunteers to manage a reception center should a disaster hit rural Northwest Ohio. It will also create a team of approximately 75 volunteers willing to travel to other parts of the country and set up such centers as part of a disaster response. Senator DeWine helped secure the funding by writing a letter to the Points of Light Foundation supporting the Volunteer Connection of Northwest Ohio’s grant request. The Volunteer Connection was one of 23 volunteer centers across the country to receive funding and was one of only a few to receive the full amount requested. |  |
“We need to be ready for disasters whenever they strike and properly trained volunteers play a critical role in our response,” said Senator DeWine. “I am pleased that the Points of Light Foundation is supporting the efforts of Volunteer Connection of Northwest Ohio to keep our families safe in the event of a disaster.”
The Volunteer Connection for Northwest Ohio is one of 360 volunteer centers in the United States, 22 of which are in Ohio. Although each center varies in size and structure, the core values are the same: to connect people with opportunities to serve, build capacity for effective local volunteering, promote volunteering, and participate in strategic initiatives to mobilize volunteers to address community needs. Four Volunteer Centers, serving as regional coordinators, help maintain Ohio Citizen Corps operations across the state.
The Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Center National Network engages and mobilizes millions of volunteers who help solve serious social problems in thousands of communities. Through a variety of programs and services, the Foundation encourages people from all walks of life – businesses, faith-based organizations, low-income communities, families, youth, and older adults – to volunteer.
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Fairfield County Update |
The
Fairfield County Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security
proudly acknowledges Todd Beery (fourth from left) as the new
Citizen Corps/Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) coordinator
for Fairfield County. Beery’s background includes, but is not limited to: firefighter, paramedic, search and rescue specialist; search and rescue canine handler; member of Ohio Task Force-1; Fairfield County incident safety officer, Fairfield County EMA Hazmat special response; Central Ohio Strike Team; and Miami Valley Fraternal Order of Leatherheads Society. |
 Pictured from left to right: Matthew Keefe, Dee Hopkins, Tom Moe, Todd Beery, Bob Clark (all of Fairfield County), and Rudi Blaser of Ohio EMA. |
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Safety
Tip - |
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www.ohiopandemicflu.govThe Web site offers general information as well as tips to help protect yourself and your family. |
For Kids |
Learn about bike helmets, play ground safety and tips around the house. This web site features plenty of interactive games for children. www.cpsc.gov/kids/kidsafety/index.html
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Upcoming Events |
May 23rd - Licking County MRC - Pandemic Flu Exercise
June 7th - Franklin County - VRC/MRC Regional Training, Registration Form
June 12th - Delaware County - CERT Training
August 4th - Scioto County - CERT Training