This newsletter will summarize some of the items that were discussed at the SMC MRC meeting on Saturday, October 29, 2011. It will be posted on the SMCMRC.ORG website.
NATIONAL MRC UPDATE:
· There will be a national MRC advertising campaign scheduled for next year.
· In the past 3 months, there have been 1,979 activities of MRC units. 283 have been emergency responses.
· MRC challenges have been funding, liability, and leadership of MRC units.
OTHER LOCAL MRC UNITS:
· WOODSIDE MRC UNIT: Armando Muela (former Woodside Fire Chief) and Gaylynne Mann are continuing their efforts to move forward with their unit. Their fire district has an excellent training program that we have used before for our first aid classes. Armando attended our meeting and hopefully we will be able to coordinate with them to strengthen their unit and also provide training for our members.
· MENLO PARK – ATHERTON MRC UNIT: This unit has had problems getting started and has not yet had any meetings, financing, recruiting, or other activities.
501c3 STATUS:
· The Articles of Incorporation have been approved by the State of California and the San Mateo Coastside Medical Reserve Corps Foundation has been established. We now have a tax ID number, new address (P.O. Box 373 Half Moon Bay, CA 94019) new bank account, and will approve new By-Laws. The Board of Directors are Michael Klass, Carole Klove, Midge Schmidt (CPA), James Howie, Kevin Rose, and Susan Vandiver. We will add a link on our website so that we may receive contributions from individuals or charitable organizations. There will now be some tax advantages (i.e. travel) for our MRC members.
NEW ID CARDS:
· We have purchased a new ID card system with software, ID card printer, and cards. It was a $1,500 investment but will now provide rapid ID cards for our members. Photos were taken of the members who attended the meeting and new ID cards will be mailed out to them next week. Siobban Smith, HMB City Clerk, attended the meeting and swore in those present as Disaster Service Workers. The expiration date of the new cards will be December 31, 2013
TRAINING:
· TRAINING COORDINATOR: Carol Masterson, RN has volunteered to be our new training coordinator. Congratulations to Carol for recently passing the Certified Emergency Nursing exam! Carol will work with the steering committee as well as other MRC units and the County to promote training classes and exercises for our unit.
· CERT TRAINING: CERT training is still required for all MRC members. Courses are offered by the many Fire Departments on the Peninsula and schedules can be obtained at SMCREADY.ORG. Mark Chidester, San Mateo County CERT Coordinator will be holding a 3-hour CERT Refresher class for those that have already completed the training. The date will be December 7 from 6:30 – 9:30 PM at the HMB Fire Station. Everyone is welcome. Early next year, Mark is also planning on a CERT class for the Coastside.
· CPR (NOW CCR)TRAINING: The Coastside Fire (Cal-Fire) Department conducted a CPR class for our members on July 31st. It was the new American Heart Association course with a 2-year certificate. We will schedule another class in 4-6 months.
· FIRST AID TRAINING: A course will be scheduled in the spring.
· WILDERNESS FIRST AID COURSE: The 2-day, 16-hour class scheduled for September 24 & 25th was cancelled. We may re-schedule the class for next spring or summer.
· PSYCHOLOGICAL FIRST AID (PFA): San Mateo County may again be sponsoring classes at local hospitals next year. These have been excellent classes and with the support of Kevin Rose, have been free to SMC MRC members.
· CBRNE(CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL, RADIOLOGICAL, NUCLEAR, EXPLOSIVE)TRAINING:
The Center for Disaster Preparedness (CDP) is still offering free (airfare, lodging, food) training at the FEMA training facility in Anniston, Alabama. There are dozens of courses and most last 2-4 days. Courses are for fire, police, first responders, administrators, MRC, CERT, etc. and include classroom and hands-on training. These are excellent classes and there is usually a waiting list to attend. Several of us may go this spring (as a group?) for training. If you are interested or want more information, contact Michael Klass or the CDP website.
MERCHANDISE & SUPPLIES:
· We now have our SMC MRC 6x12 foot mobile trailer. It has been customized with a ramp-door, side door, AC/DC power, inside and outside lighting, roof vent, and reflective striping. The trailer now contains our 10,000kw generator, portable halogen lights, cots, tables, chairs, first aid supplies for 500 patients, our 10x10 ft. enclosed MRC tent, and our 20x40 ft. field treatment tent. Thanks to Jim Asche and the County EMSA for going through the red tape and obtaining the trailer with grant funding and also to Jim Howie for assisting in stocking and maintaining the trailer. The trailer is currently stored at the HMB public works yard.
· Our MRC unit is now scheduled to receive the DRI Company backpacks ($300 each) with first aid supplies in December or January. Originally, every SMC MRC member registered on the DHVC website as of a year ago was to receive a backpack. If we do not receive our full allotment, we will distribute the backpacks to those that have attended the most meetings, trainings, and disaster exercises.
· The Disaster Healthcare Volunteers of California organization has selected our MRC unit as one that will receive recruitment supplies that will include MRC pins, vests, Quickbooks covering disaster preparedness and response, etc.
· The UASI-grant first aid supplies for Bay Area MRC units have arrived. Rather than distributing the supplies to the active MRC units, the supplies will be maintained at the Oakland Fire Department facility.
SAN MATEO COUNTY EMSA UPDATE:
Kevin Rose gave an update on EMSA activities and involvement with the MRC.
· Kevin discussed the trailer acquisition. It was a 1-year process with lots of red tape and obstacles but Kevin and Jim Asche were instrumental in acquiring the trailer.
· The State Medical & Health Exercise will be on Thursday, November 17th. The scenario is a disruption in water service.
· We all need to thank Kevin, Carl Hess, Jim Asche, Theresa Smith, Robyn Ziegler, and the others at the San Mateo County Health Department and Emergency Medical Services Agency (EMSA) for the continued support of our MRC unit.
DISASTER HEALTHCARE VOLUNTEERS OF CALIFORNIA (DHVC)
· Please update your information!! (contact information, professional license renewal). If not, it will take a lot of my time (or others) to review each person’s records and make calls to verify that your information is up to date.
MRC ACTIVITIES IN THE PAST 3 MONTHS:
· COASTSIDE EMERGENCY ACTION PLAN (CEAP): This is a bi-monthly meeting of non-profit organizations that are interested in disaster preparedness on the Coastside. The SMCMRC has been an active participant since its inception.
· AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY “RELAY FOR LIFE”: (August 20-21, 2011)
The SMCMRC participated in the annual RLF event. It was a 24-hour event and we used our large disaster tent and mobile trailer. Thanks to Jim Howie, Carole Klove, and Helen Aragoni for helping to staff the event. The event raised $80,000 for cancer research.
· HMB INTERNATIONAL MARATHON: (Sept. 25, 2011) We were asked by the organizers of the inaugural HMB International marathon to assist in managing 6 of the 10 first aid stations. This was a great event and great experience for everyone. Dr. Pamela Carrington-Tribble, was the medical director and coordinated the medical team. Pamela attended the meeting, discussed some of the medical issues, and will be joining (and will be a great addition) our MRC unit. Next year we may be more involved and will plan pre-event meetings to discuss supplies, policies, and procedures. Thanks to Dianne Baker, Elizabeth Yano, Jim Howie, Patty Lacey, Carole Klove, and Jan Pretto for working the first aid stations at the event.
· WESTERN REGION MRC SUMMIT MEETING: (Seattle) – 75 MRC directors and coordinators attended. There were discussions about women in disaster responses, MRC responses to the tornados in Missouri and floods in New England, and updates from the national office.
· SEASONAL FLU SHOTS: (October 19 & 22) We provided 2 seasonal flu vaccination clinics for first responders (fire, sheriff), city and county employees, and all MRC members and their spouses. Thanks to our RNs (Carole Klove, Janet Pretto, Sandi Feaster, Dianne Baker), support staff (Jane Kingston, Eric Shapira), and others that volunteered (Susan Schabinger, Shirley Madden, Jeffrey Wolf).
PRESENTATION: Diana Roberts-Mitchell, RN has worked in the burn units of several local hospitals and gave a very nice review of burns and their treatment. Thank you Diana!
DISASTER MEETING SITE: In the event of an emergency or disaster, we will alert all SMC MRC members by the Disaster Healthcare Volunteers of California (DHVC) system and information will be provided on your cell phone, land line, pager, or computer. In the event that a disaster occurs and all means of communications are disrupted, the SMC MRC WILL MEET IN FRONT OF THE HMB POLICE (SHERIFF) STATION.
UPCOMING EXERCISES & ACTIVITIES:
· CPR, CERT, & FIRST AID CLASSES: We are planning for some classes in the spring.
· HOLIDAY PARTY: We will schedule our 3rd annual holiday party. It will be on December 18th and a casual pot-luck.
· BAY AREA MRC TRAINING EXERCISE: We will be meeting with the Fremont MRC and other Bay Area MRC coordinators and discuss having a full-day classroom training class and/or disaster training exercise next summer.
· SILVER DRAGON BIOTERRORISM DISASTER EXERCISE: This County exercise will be next spring and we will again participate.
COMMUNICATIONS: Most emails are now sent as “blind copies” so that people don’t accidently reply to everyone.
NEXT SMC MRC MEETING: The next meeting will be in February or March, 2012 and will again be on a Saturday morning. It is apparent that many more people are able to attend a Saturday morning meeting than an evening meeting during the week.
Michael Klass, MD | 
