The Hidalgo County Health Department is looking for volunteers to join its medical reserve corps to help during emergency response operations.

Licensed medical workers can give vaccines and perform other duties. People without a medical license can help plan events and lead outreach. Training will be provided.

The program started because of the pandemic.

"During COVID-19, we saw that our workforce was stretched really thin very quickly and we needed a way to enhance our support and our staffing capacity and during the time of COVID we didn't have that structure or way of accepting volunteers," Clarissa Perez, Hidalgo County’s division manager for public health preparedness, said. 

The department needs 100 volunteers. So far, only 14 have signed up. Email mrc@hchd.org for more details.