Rural Communities Take Center Stage at Telehealth Summit

As hundreds of healthcare providers and administrators settled in to the main ballroom at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center, all eyes focused on Bamberg.

At the 2019 Telehealth Summit, stories from communities like Bamberg showed how critical telehealth can be to a small town.

“That’s really why we do what we do,” said Kathy Schwarting, CEO of Palmetto Care Connections, the Bamberg-based non-profit that hosts the annual summit. “South Carolina is predominantly rural…and telehealth is a great way to infuse services into those communities.”

Gov. Henry McMaster delivered the keynote address, emphasizing collaboration among healthcare groups to provide services where they’re needed most.

“If we can communicate and collaborate with each other, we can be a model for other parts of the country,” said McMaster. “I think we have technology, we certainly have the will, and as demonstrated, we certainly have the talent to do it right here in South Carolina.”