Each year Palmetto Care Connections presents the South Carolina Telehealth Awards during the Annual SC Telehealth Summit.  Please see the list below of all of the different awards that are presented.

State Telehealth Legislative Champion Award
The State Telehealth Legislative Champion Award recognizes a legislator as a champion who has assisted with breaking significant barriers or supported revolutionary processes including telehealth that benefit communities on a statewide level.

Rick Foster Primary Care Telehealth Champion Award
The Rick Foster Primary Care Telehealth Champion Award recognizes an individual champion in the area of primary care. The purpose of this award is to recognize individuals who have overcome significant barriers or developed revolutionary processes that benefit the communities they serve in South Carolina.

Technology Champion Award
The Technology Champion Award recognizes an individual champion in the area of technology who has overcome significant challenges or a local, state, and/or national level.

Telehealth State Champion Award
The Telehealth Champion Award recognizes an individual champion in the areas of clinical care, education, policy or IT support. The purpose of this award is to recognize individuals who have overcome significant barriers or developed revolutionary processes that benefit the communities they serve in South Carolina.

Telehealth Program of Excellence Award
The Telehealth Program of Excellence Award recognizes a mature program (academic or community-based) that can demonstrate considerable outcomes in the areas of clinical intervention, improved access, and community engagement.

Telehealth Pioneer Award
The Telehealth Pioneer Award recognizes an individual champion in the areas of clinical care, education, or policy who implemented telehealth within a practice, health center, school-based or administrative setting.

Telehealth Innovator Award
The Telehealth Innovator recognizes an individual champion in the areas of clinical care, education, IT support or policy who is excelling in the adoption and innovation of telehealth within a practice, health center, school-based, or administrative setting.

Telehealth Trailblazer Award
The Telehealth Trailblazer Award recognizes an individual or organization that is leading the way utilizing telehealth to improve access to care.

Congratulations to the 2023 Award Recipients:

2023 State Telehealth Champion: Kathyrn King, MD

2023 SC Telehealth Pioneer: Divya Ahuja, MD

2023 Rick Foster Primary Care Telehealth Champion – Rick Foster, MD

2023 SC Telehealth Programs of Excellence: SC Department of Mental Health Community Telepsychiatry Program

2023 Digital Health Equity State Champion: Kathy Schwarting, MHA

2023 State Telehealth Legislative Champion: The Honorable Bill Herbkersman, Chairman

2023 Telehealth Innovator: Marc Bingham, MD

Poster Award Winners:

Programmatic Winner: Impact of Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) on 12 Month BP Outcomes: An Innovative Approach to Hypertension Management

Scientific Winner: Vape X: A Digital Vaping Cessation Intervention for Adolescents with Depression

People’s Choice Winner: Get by With a Little Help From: Telehealth Centralized Support

Congratulations to the 2022 Award Recipients:

2022 State Telehealth Champion: Meera Narasimhan, MD, DFAPA, Prisma Health (Midlands), and the University of South Carolina.

2022 SC Innovator Award: Brandon Welch, PhD, Doxy Me

2022 SC Telehealth Pioneer: Connie Guille, MD, Medical University of South Carolina

2022 SC Telehealth Programs of Excellence: Prisma Health School-based Telehealth Program

2022 SC Telehealth Programs of Excellence: CareSouth Carolina, Inc., School-based Telehealth Program

Poster Award Winners:

Scientific Winner: Telehealth Etiquette and Equity Education to Address the Needs of Patients, Providers, and Communities. Medical University of South Carolina.

People’s Choice Winner: No Drama, Caitlin Kickham, MS, APRN, FNP-C and Hailey Britt, Clemson Rural Health.

Congratulations to the 2021 Award Recipients:

2021 National Telehealth Champion: United States Senator Tim Scott

2021 State Telehealth Champion: Kent Jones, MD and Cady Williams, MD, Ferlauto Center for Complex Pediatric Care

2021 SC Telehealth Pioneer: Michael Lyons, MD, Greenwood Genetic Center

2021 SC Innovator Award: The Navigation Center, Charleston

2021 SC Telehealth Programs of Excellence: Southeast Viral Interactive Case Conference, University of South Carolina and Project ECHO Opioid Use Disorder, Medical University of South Carolina

Poster Award Winners:

Scientific Winner: “The Financial Performance of Rural Hospitals,” Authors: Dunc Williams Jr, PhD.; Mary Dooley, PhD; Jada Johnson, MS; Sarah A. Sterling, MD; Alexandra Castillo, MPH

Programmatic Winner: “Telehealth Technologies, Data, and Process Improvement to Drive Innovation,” Authors: Evelyn Terrell, OTD, MHSA; Jason Stiles, MBA, PhD, LSSBB; Saima Aftab, MD, FACHE, FAAP; Elizabeth Sotolongo, MHSA; Laura Cerpa; Fahd Lahrech, MS

People’s Choice Winner: “Microsoft Teams for Clinical Telehealth Collaboration,” Authors: Ryan R. Lau, MS, REEG/EPT, CNIM, CLTM, FASET; Jessica Dustman, MS, RN; Denzil Coleman, MS; Laura Langston, MHA

Congratulations to the 2020 Award Recipients:

2020 National Telehealth Champion: Congressman James E. Clyburn, U.S. House of Representatives

2020 State Telehealth Champion: James McElligott, M.D., M.S.C.R., Medical Director, Center for Telehealth, Medical University of South Carolina

2020 SC Telehealth Pioneer: Brenda M. Ratliff, M.D., Psychiatrist, S.C. Department of Mental Health

2020 SC Telehealth Advocate: Rick Foster, M.D., former Executive Director of the Alliance for a Healthier S.C.

2020 SC Innovator Award: McLeod Telehealth Team, McLeod Health

2020 SC Telehealth Program of Excellence: The Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) Tele-ICU and ICU Innovations Program

Poster Award Winners:

Scientific Winner: “Comparison of Diagnostic Yield for Telegenetics versus In-Person Genetics Evaluations,” Author: Michael Lyons, Greenwood Genetic Center

Programmatic Winner: “Telenutrition Decreases Barriers to Surgery for Adolescents with Severe Obesity,” Authors: Molly Mills, R.D.N., L.D.; Sarah B. Hales, Ph.D.; Nina Crowley, Ph.D., R.D.N., L.D.; James McElligott, M.D.; Aaron Lesher, M.D., M.S.C.R. Medical University of South Carolina

People’s Choice Winner “Serving Up Wellness Telehealth Education in S.C. Schools,” Author: Kimberly South, Prisma Health.