Georgetown
Locksmith
Rhoda K. McClain, a resident of
Georgetown, is accustomed to helping other
people out of sticky situations.
Self-sufficient and independent, McClain prides
herself on her old-fashioned grit. After all, the
62-year-old mother of three overcame infantile
paralysis, escaped an abusive marriage and built a
business that for 28 years put food on her table and
paid for her diabetes and blood-pressure medications.
But one day, McClain—like many of the working
class—found herself locked into a situation for
which there was no master key.
Last summer, a nurse practitioner at St. James
Santee Family Health Center recommended that
McClain see a specialist for the intense pain she was
feeling in her lower abdomen. When McClain told
her she had no way to pay for the specialized care,
the nurse referred her to Georgetown Community
Community Care Network
provides keys to care
Care Network, which was established in 2011
to improve access to health care for the region’s
medically underserved population.
As an AccessHealth SC initiative in partnership
with Georgetown Hospital System and the Duke
Endowment, GCCN includes faith communities,
human service providers, health educators, state
agencies, and primary care and specialty care
providers.
Accepting help
Reluctantly, McClain agreed. “I felt guilty because
I was asking for help,” she says, “but the GCCN
coordinator made me feel comfortable and assured
me that she would help me through this.”
Within weeks, McClain was referred to
gastroenterologist John Orchard, MD, of
Waccamaw Gastroenterology. He performed a
colonoscopy, removed several polyps and referred
her to Anthony deHaas, MD, of Winyah Surgical
Specialists for a colectomy—GCCN also put her in
touch with Welvista, a nonprofit organization that
works with pharmaceutical companies to make
medications affordable, to get help paying for her
diabetes medication.
McClain has had another procedure to remove
more polyps, but she is getting back to work and
trying to rebuild her business.
She says the assistance that GCCN provided has
given her a better quality of life and kept her from
getting cancer.
“I don’t know what would have happened or
where I would be right now without the help of
GCCN,” McClain says. “They made my quality of
life better, and I know I have a little more time.”
To read more about GCCN, turn to page 5.
From left, Marie Lovett Taylor,
FNP-C; Lynne Weiss, community
educator, community health
education; Rhoda K. McClain;
Jane Cooper, NP; Elaine Cobb,
coordinator, Georgetown
Community Care Network
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GEORGETOWN HOSPITAL SYSTEM
