Clemson Rural Health expands mobile health services to diagnose and treat Oconee County inmates

Clemson University nurse practitioners and health educators provide lifesaving testing and treatment to inmates at Oconee County Detention Center.

Clemson Rural Health (CRH) – the organizing framework for statewide health service delivery and prevention eff­orts in the Clemson University College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences (CBSHS) – has expanded its mobile health outreach to serve inmates at Oconee County Detention Center.  

This expansion elevates the scope of an existing collaboration between CRH, Dr. Alain Litwin, addiction treatment specialist for Prisma Health, professor of practice in the Department of Psychology and co-director of the Center for Addiction and Mental Health Research in CBSHS, Gilead Sciences and the South Carolina Center for Rural and Primary Healthcare to diagnose and treat hepatitis C (HCV) in high-risk populations.

In 2020 – the latest reported year from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – there were 4,798 new short-term infections and 107,300 new chronic cases of hepatitis C nationwide. While there is no vaccine to prevent the infection, it can be cured through medical intervention.

Kristie Boswell, family nurse practitioner and associate director for mobile health operations at Clemson Rural Health, oversees the project which will deliver Dr. Litwin’s evidence-based model of care for hepatitis C infection to inmates who are at higher risk for HCV and opioid use disorder and have limited access to health care services.

“Providing HCV screening and treatment services to OCDC has been an exciting and rewarding initiative for our team,” said Boswell. “Through these clinics, we have been able to provide access to care and health resources to support these residents as they transition into their next phase of life.”

Boswell said this innovative care would not be possible without the strong, collaborative partnership between Clemson Rural Health, Oconee County law enforcement and the College’s commitment to the health of Oconee County residents.

Additionally, the CRH mobile team travels around the Upstate to methadone and outpatient treatment facilities for opioid use disorder, homeless shelters and soup kitchens to provide lifesaving treatment to patients and reduce the burden on emergency rooms and other taxpayer-funded health care programs.

Along with delivering innovative mobile services in Oconee County and the city of Walhalla, CRH also provides high quality primary care services through the Clemson Health Clinic at Walhalla. Located downtown at 200 Booker Drive, the primary care clinic accepts most forms of health insurance and boasts a multidisciplinary team ready to manage acute and chronic conditions. Appointments are available by calling 864-656-3076.

Clemson Rural Health and the Department of Psychology are a part of the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences (CBSHS). Established in July 2016, CBSHS is a 21st-century, land-grant college that combines work in seven disciplines – communication; nursing; parks, recreation and tourism management; political science; psychology; public health sciences; sociology, anthropology and criminal justice – to further its mission of “building people and communities” in South Carolina and beyond.