FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Aug. 19, 2022

COLUMBIA, S.C. –  As part of South Carolina Immunization Awareness Week, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) and the South Carolina Immunization Coalition (SCIC) held a press conference today at MUSC’s Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital focusing on the importance of immunizations that protect people of all ages from many different diseases. 

The event was livestreamed on DHEC’s Facebook page and archived on DHEC’s YouTube channel.

“Vaccinations help us lead safe, healthy, and happy lives by protecting people of all ages from common, yet serious diseases,” said Beth Poore, Outreach and Education Coordinator for DHEC’s Division of Immunization. “With children going back to school across South Carolina, now is the perfect time to talk to your healthcare provider about which vaccines are right for you and your family.”

Earlier this week, DHEC and SCIC announced the 2022 state and national winners of SC's Immunization Champion Awards program, and today’s press conference recognized those winners. 

“We at MUSC are proud that one of our own, Dr. Allison Eckard, Chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, is SC’s 2022 Advocacy winner,” said Dr. Mark Scheurer, Chief, MUSC Children’s and Women’s Health ICCE. “We were also very excited to be able to host this event in our new Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital and Pearl Tourville Women’s Pavilion, a state-of-the-art 250-bed facility that opened in February 2020 and offers the state’s highest levels of NICU and trauma." 

Today’s event also celebrated the partnerships necessary to promote vaccine education, awareness, and confidence, said Alexandra Hayes, SCIC Organizing Director. 

“SCIC achieves its success through partnerships, and it gives us great pleasure to see the number of partners that are involved today to honor our state’s immunization champions,” Hayes said. “The collaborative effort with the Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) to recognize SC’s national impact on increasing vaccine confidence is demonstrated through our national champion award recipients like Dr. Gibbs, Kim Nelson (2019), and Dr. Eliza Varadi (2018).”

Speakers at today’s event were:
•    Dr. Edward Simmer, DHEC director
•    Dr. Allison Ross Eckard, MUSC
•    Dr. Beth Sundstrom, SCIC
•    Alexandra Hayes, SCIC Organizing Director
•    Dr. Youlanda Gibbs, Palmetto Place Executive Director

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