South Carolina AHEC News & Updates

Practice of the Year Award The South Carolina AHEC Practice of the Year Award recognizes practices and training sites that exhibit exemplary dedication to the teaching of health professions students and a commitment to serving their communities. The South Carolina AHEC recognizes Morphis Pediatric Group as the 2017 Practice of the Year. Dr. Elizabeth Morphis accepted the award on behalf of the practice at this year’s award luncheon. Located in Hartsville, the entire interdisciplinary team was recognized by students who experienced firsthand the positive impact of a team effort.   One Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine – Carolinas Campus student, Karalyn Hillebrecht, writes: Morphis Pediatrics epitomizes the true meaning of a health care family.   The time I spent with Morphis Pediatrics taught me so much about having a caring and supportive health care team, from diligent nurses and techs, to skilled physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants,...

Pee Dee AHEC's Continuing Professional Development Coordinator Cheryl Neuner was recognized on April 22 as a Palmetto Gold award recipient at the 2017 Annual Gala in Columbia.  Palmetto Gold is a recognition and scholarship program for South Carolina nurses who amplify excellence in nursing practice and commitment to their nursing profession.   “It is an awesome experience to be nominated, much less awarded the Palmetto Gold for doing the things that you feel are incredibly important and that you, as a nurse, were meant to do,” remarks Cheryl. “South Carolina AHEC has been supportive and instrumental in helping me to educate and to disseminate information to providers statewide.” Cheryl is responsible for providing accredited continuing professional development programs for nurses in the twelve county Pee Dee region and the coordination of the National AHEC HPV vaccination education program for South Carolina. She also serves on the South Carolina Nurses Association C...

Lowcountry AHEC Center Director Diane Mathews, Senator Bright-Matthews and South Carolina AHEC Executive Director Dr. David Garr Lowcountry AHEC was honored to host Senator Margie Bright-Matthews for the welcome address at the 2017 South Carolina AHEC Annual Meeting in March. Senator Bright-Matthews, who received her Bachelor of Science and her Juris Doctorate from the University of South Carolina, serves as Senator of District 45, which includes Allendale, Beaufort, Charleston, Colleton, Hampton, and Jasper counties. She was elected in a Special Election on October 20, 2015, to fulfill the unexpired term of Senator Clementa Pinckney, who was killed while in bible study at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston on June 17, 2015. Senator Bright-Matthews spoke of the people and communities from the district she serves and connected their healthcare needs with the work that South Carolina AHEC is doing in her region and the state. Her opening message set an inspiring tone fo...

Lowcountry AHEC hosted the first offering of Primary Palliative Care Practices and Principles in April in conjunction with MUSC. The two-day workshop, which sold out, featured national and international speakers, Constance Dahlin, ANP-BC, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN and Patrick J. Coyne, MSN, ACHRN, ACNS-BC, FAAN, FPCN.   The program focuses on assisting rural facilities with the creation of palliative care teams. Along with the didactic portion of the course, there is a clinical portion in which the instructors will visit the site to provide further training and assistance. Beaufort Memorial Hospital will be the first hospital to be provided this additional training. One of the participants, Dr. Kurt Gambla from Beaufort Memorial Hospital (BMH) shared his thoughts and experiences from the two-day program.   Prior to the program, BMH was in the initial planning stages of the creation of their palliative care team. “We had the general concept prior to now,” remarks Dr. Gambla, “bu...

Upstate AHEC is pleased to announce it achieved accreditation by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).   ANCC Accreditation distinguishes organizations that demonstrate quality and excellence in the curriculum design and delivery of continuing nursing education (CNE).   Accreditation organizations, like Upstate AHEC meet comprehensive, evidence-based criteria to ensure CNE activities are effectively planned, implemented and evaluated.   Nurses in the market served by Upstate AHEC now gain access to the highest caliber of education to meet certification or licensure requirements, which in turn contributes to improved health care outcomes. “We are proud to be recognized by ANCC for our commitment to continuous improvement and the highest quality and integrity of continuing education for nurses, “says Jennifer Walker, Director of Distance Education and Lead Nurse Planner at Upstate AHEC.   “ANCC accreditation gives nurses assurance that by cho...

Imagine being sick with a bacterial infection that the doctor is unable to cure, suffering with feelings of despair and hopelessness, or limiting your activities due to breathing difficulties. What should you do? No need to worry, call on a super trio of science explorers! Vanessa, Brian, and their trusty sidekick RX (pronounced Rex) guide the reader on an exploration of the population health topics of super bugs, PTSD, and asthma in the newest health information literacy comic book series. The three books are the third set in the South Carolina AHEC Health Information Literacy Comic Book Series.   Previous sets within the series were developed by high school students enrolled at North Charleston High, Colleton High, and Lowcountry Leadership Charter Schools. In partnership with the National Library of Medicine (NLM) and the Biology Department of Winthrop University, AHEC sponsored the development of the books as a project associated with Winthrop University’s spring semeste...

Jennifer Bailey Joins South Carolina AHEC Program Office South Carolina AHEC welcomes Jennifer Bailey as Associate Program Director of Education and Evaluation. Jennifer joins the SC AHEC Program Office from MUSC where she was the Director of Operations in the Office of Interprofessional Initiatives. She also has a faculty appointment in the Department of Library Science and Informatics at MUSC and works closely with the interprofessional leaders at both MUSC and USC. Jennifer brings over 11 years of experience in medical and health professions education, building community partnerships for clinical education and service-learning and developing and evaluating interprofessional education and collaborative practice initiatives. She has also previously worked in program evaluation; research, scholarship and clinical education for physician assistant studies; and student affairs at the University of South Carolina, Wake Forest School of Medicine and MUSC, respectively. In he...