Health briefs for November 2nd-8th

Acute care nurse joins Beaufort Primary Care

Board-certified acute care nurse practitioner Mary Beth Donovan has joined Beaufort Memorial Primary Care where she will work with internist Dr. Alejandro “Alex” Garcia Salas.

Mary Beth Donovan
Mary Beth Donovan

Donovan, who received her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from the Medical College of Georgia and her Master of Science degree in Nursing from the University of South Alabama, has been a member of the hospital’s medical staff since early 2013, practicing with Dr. Clark Trask at Beaufort Memorial Coastal Care MD.

Dr. Garcia Salas
Dr. Garcia Salas

Garcia Salas, a board-certified internal medicine specialist, joined Beaufort Memorial Primary Care earlier this year after a career with the U.S. Navy Medical Corps, most recently as a staff physician at Beaufort Naval Hospital.

A graduate of the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Garcia Salas completed his internship and residency at Portsmouth Naval Hospital in Virginia and received additional training in cardiology at the Balboa Naval Hospital in San Diego. Fluent in both English and Spanish, he has participated in humanitarian missions in Mexico and Nicaragua, and was deployed for eight months aboard the USNS Comfort Hospital Ship. 

Beaufort Memorial Primary Care also includes board-certified internal medicine specialists Drs. Andrea Hucks, Steven Kessel and Robert Webb and nurse practitioners Amy Wagner and Ronda O’Connell. The practice, which is located at 989 Ribaut Road, can be reached by calling 843-522-7600.

Statewide events bring awareness about hospice

During November, Agapé Hospice will be joining thousands of organizations and individuals around the country to recognize and support hospice services. 

Agapé Hospice will host Life Blooms Eternally, which will be held at multiple locations across South Carolina throughout November in honor of National Hospice Care Month.

Each location will feature a display of floral umbrellas and transform the grounds of the Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park in Beaufort, the State House in Columbia, Falls Park, Greenville, Central Carolina Tech College, Sumter, US Customs House, Charleston and many more. The displayed umbrellas represent lives touched by hospice services. 

The public is invited and umbrellas may be purchased in honor or memory of a loved one. Proceeds benefit the Agapé Senior Foundation. 

For more information about the 2017 Life Blooms Eternally events, go to LifeBloomsSC.com. 

For more information about Agapé Hospice, visit AgapeHospice.com or call 1-800-411-AGAPÉ (2427).

Drug testing for children available

Coastal Paternity is offering CHILDGUARD testing, also known as Hair Environmental Exposure Test, to detect drugs in children.

A positive CHILDGUARD test will show whether a child has had contact with drug smoke, and contact or ingestion of drugs.

The testing can detect up to nine drugs in a child’s hair. The tests are admissible in court and there is no age limit. It also tests for both exposure and ingestion.

For more information, visit www.coastalpaternity.com or call 855-521-1362.

Hospice in need of volunteers

Friends of Caroline Hospice Thrift Store is seeking a variety of volunteers to assist in the overall operation of the store.  

Opportunities include assisting in sorting/pricing donations, organizing, social media monitoring and customer service.  

Store hours are from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday and Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday.  

For more information, contact Sara, volunteer coordinator at 843-525-6257, or visit www.friendsofcarolinehospice.org for an online volunteer application.

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