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Home / News / SCHA Out & About, Vol. 8: Legislative Luncheon, EmPATH Launch, & More
March 6, 2024

SCHA Out & About, Vol. 8: Legislative Luncheon, EmPATH Launch, & More

In this edition of “Out and About,” SCHA President & CEO Thornton Kirby runs through the latest run of SCHA meetings, including the Legislative Luncheon and the launch of the EmPATH behavioral health crisis stabilization grant!

Legislative Luncheon

We’re halfway through the 2024 state legislative session, and SCHA just hosted our annual Legislative Luncheon on Wednesday, March 6th.  It was a great success, thanks in large part to the blue skies that surprised everyone after a very rainy morning. Our hospitals turned out in force, and it was a spectacular event!!!

Michael Cunningham (AnMed), Thornton Kirby, Representative Roger Kirby (Lake City, SC), and Clarence Sevillian (Prisma) at the Legislative Luncheon
Nicole Woods and Ty Collier (Encompass Health Rehab—Columbia) with Thornton.
Clarence Sevillian (Prisma), Anthony Jackson (Prisma) and Donna Isgett (McLeod) talk with a legislative staffer at the luncheon

Thanks to all of you who came out to thank our legislators for their support of South Carolina hospitals!

Hospital-Specific Legislative Receptions

It’s great for SCHA to host legislative receptions, but it’s equally effective when a particular hospital or health system hosts an event. I’ve been to two such receptions recently, both in Columbia. (It’s easier to get a good turnout of lawmakers in Columbia.) MUSC and McLeod both hosted excellent events!

 

McLeod Health hosted a successful event for their various delegations on March 5th
Thornton at the MUSC Legislative reception on January 31st.
Representative Roger Kirby (Lake City), Donna Isgett (McLeod Health), and Thornton Kirby at the McLeod event. (Donna was lucky—not many people get their photo taken with two Kirbys!!)

Executive Orientation

Last week we also hosted our Spring Executive Orientation at SCHA’s offices. This has become one of our staff’s favorite events, as we get to meet new members of the SCHA family. It’s open to anyone from a hospital leadership team who wants to learn more about SCHA’s priorities, our staff, and our organization.

Sign up for the next Executive Orientation by contacting Lara Hewitt or Mandy McMillan!

EmPATH Launch

Another exciting development this month is the launch of our EmPATH implementation grant. Our colleagues at SCDHHS have contracted with SCHA to assist with the implementation of 13 EmPATH units across the state, and our learning collaborative kicks off next week.

The first visit (pre-kickoff) was to AnMed, where CNO Shaunda Trotter hosted several SCHA staff to demonstrate their new crisis stabilization unit.

I have a lot more visits on the schedule, so stay tuned!

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