COVID-19: Calls for Volunteers

SCCM is able to recruit and organize volunteer critical care clinicians to respond to emergency situations, such as earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes. The Society has aided in calls for volunteers since 1990, when the Gulf War left many U.S. hospitals short-handed as clinicians were called to active duty, and most recently during the COVID-19 pandemic response.

Active Call for Volunteers 
The following jurisdictions are recruiting ICU clinician volunteers during the COVID-19 pandemic. See SCCM’s Frequently Asked Questions document for more information.

The Navajo Area Indian Health Service (NAIHS) is seeking volunteers to aide in the COIVD-19 response at healthcare facilities in Arizona and New Mexico. Sign up here.

A request to organize a call for volunteers must include the contact information of a governmental agent with licensure clearance authority. SCCM will then work directly with the agency to provide the information required and recruit volunteer clinicians from the critical care community. This process ensures volunteers are processed properly, so that when they arrive, they can immediately go to work helping those in need.

 

A call for volunteers isn't as simple as some might think because of the licensing issues necessary for medical personnel. SCCM follows a standardized procedure to activate a call for volunteers. Please read the information below before requesting a call for volunteers.
 

SCCM is pleased to coordinate calls for volunteers. If you need assistance, please reach out to SCCM with the contact information of the official capable of clearing licenses, or have the official contact SCCM directly at emergency@sccm.org. A member of our Emergency Response team will respond quickly.
 

To issue a call for critical care volunteers, SCCM requires an official request from a state or national agency who has authority to manage interstate licensing. We do this, not to add another layer of complexity to an already difficult situation, but rather to ensure that when our members respond they can be legally licensed to practice in that state.
 

The Uniform Emergency Volunteer Health Practitioner Act (UEVHPA) is model legislation developed in 2006 by the Uniform Law Commission. The legislation allows any state that has enacted it to recognize out-of-state licenses for a variety of health practitioners during a state of declared emergency. Participating states must maintain a registration system under which all volunteer practitioners must register. As of 2020, 18 states and the District of Columbia have enacted UEVHPA legislation.
 

Existing occupational licensure compacts are also helpful in these difficult circumstances. For example, the Enhanced Nurse Licensure Compact (eNLC) allows nurses who are licensed and in good standing in one of the Compact member states to practice in any of the other member states automatically Thirty-two states are currently members of the eNLC Compact, and three states are considering legislation that would allow them to join in 2020. 
 

Similarly, the Recognition of EMS Personnel Licensure Interstate Compact (REPLICA) allows EMS personnel licensed in any one of the 19 Compact states (as of March 2020) to practice in any of the other member states. 
 

Many individual states also have enacted special legislation specifically for the COVID-19 pandemic, which govern this matter.