Marketing Campaign Aims to Recruit Volunteers in Vermont

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In a bid to resolve declining volunteer numbers, the Vermont Department of Health, Division of Emergency Preparedness, Response and Injury Prevention (VTEMS), recently launched a statewide EMS and Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) recruitment and retention campaign.

Prior to the campaign, VTEMS had consistently received feedback from EMS agencies that they were having a difficult time getting new volunteers in the door. A VTEMS survey indicated that 2/3 of agencies felt they were understaffed. Vermont has a strong history of volunteerism, with 36% of Vermont's EMS agencies relying entirely on volunteers and 79% of agencies relying on volunteers in some capacity (e.g., a few paid FTE and all other members are volunteers), yet volunteer response has still been identified as an emergency response capability the state needs to strengthen.

VTEMS decided to create a campaign to present medical/public health response volunteer opportunities, highlight the similarities between EMS and the MRC, and let potential volunteers choose the path best for them.  

The campaign consists of TV and radio broadcast announcements. There are two 30-second clips of provider interviews, one EMS and one MRC. These broadcast spots also play online as pre-roll, targeted to Vermont users on sites like Hulu, YouTube, and local newspaper and news outlets. The campaign is a sponsor for a “local heros” segment on the local FOX/ABC news station and for public TV and radio. VTEMS also has ad presence on Pandora, Facebook and several newsletters/journals targeting health professionals and, with internet advertising, they have the ability to target specific audiences based on their interests (such as health), monitor the success of each ad placement by which ads send the most people to the website, and then reallocate funds to those ad placements that are most successful. There are also brochures for EMS agencies, MRC units or health department staff to use during local events and postcards distributed to provider mailing lists. More recently, VTEMS has been focusing on utilizing earned media and encouraging local MRC units and EMS squads to take advantage of local events and reach out to media for coverage.

Vermont also developed a dedicated website, named OnCall for Vermont and accessible at www.oncallforvt.org. The website features information on response activities, training requirements and time commitments that come with both opportunities.

Potential EMS and MRC volunteers often share characteristics:

• They are interested in ensuring their communities are prepared to respond to emergency events;
• They are achievers and have a need to help;
• They are curious about what’s going on in the community and want to be in the know;
• They want to feel good about giving back to the people around them.

With those factors in mind, VTEMS made the decision to develop one website to better capture all potential volunteers and worked with a local advertising agency to identify their target audience, and develop the campaign and website.

One of the more interesting areas of the website is the “stories” section where volunteers from across Vermont share their stories about volunteering, each one focusing on what made them volunteer, what they have experienced and how they got involved.

According to Chris Bell, EMS Director for the Vermont Department of Health, "Since its beginning, Vermont EMS has relied on a primarily volunteer workforce. Our EMS licensees donate over 100,000 hours of EMS training and response each year to protect the lives of Vermonters. OnCall for Vermont is an attempt by the state to help our many EMS agencies and Medical Reserve Corps (MRCs) with their recruitment and retention work by highlighting best practices from across Vermont and around the country. We are lucky to be able to leverage Pubic Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) and Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP) funding to help build the volunteer workforce in Vermont."

Although this campaign is new and relatively untested, there was a 21% increase in registered MRC members in the first three weeks of the campaign. Clearly, these campaigns need a sustained effort in order to succeed long-term, but it appears that the Vermont Department of Health is on its way.  To that end, VTEMS offers the following advice:

• Encourage members to spread the word. People want to help, but they are much more likely to say yes if they are asked, rather than come up with the idea on their own. They need to know more about what you do and how to get involved.
• Earned media is free, and everyone loves a feel-good story. Take advantage of open houses, trainings and exercises to get a news camera there, not only to capture what you are doing for the community, but also express the need for more help.
• MRC and EMS aren’t in competition for volunteers. Often if someone gets in touch with an MRC and they are looking for "action," the MRC will encourage them to look toward EMS as a good volunteer opportunity. Similarly, someone who does a ridealong with an ambulance service and decides the excitement or time commitment is too much for them, they are encouraged to look toward an opportunity like an MRC, where the response is a little more controlled. Instead of letting these volunteers leave disappointed because they didn’t get the experience they were looking for, it is a great opportunity to help guide them to support a similar cause, but in a different setting. Finally, EMS providers can also be encouraged to participate in MRCs to use their skills in a different setting!

Raphael M. Barishansky, MPH, MS, CPM, is director of EMS for the Connecticut Department of Public Health. A frequent contributor to and editorial advisory board member for EMS World, he can be reached at rbarishansky@gmail.com.