Clemson Rural Health receives $7.7M maternal grant

Clemson Rural Health received $7.7 million from the South Carolina Department of Public Health to implement the Maternal Care Access Project in underserved communities in the Midlands and Upstate.

The grant includes $702,750 in one-time funding for the purchase of a Mobile Maternity Unit and annual funding of $1.4 million for its operating costs. The grant covers a three-year project period, with two one-year renewal terms, according to a news release.

The goal of the grant is to expand access to high-quality maternal health services, including preconception counseling, prenatal and postpartum care, in designated areas with limited health care access — which the university said is a critical public health need in South Carolina. A signature goal of the grant is to reduce the number of preventable maternal deaths due to lack of access to care.

“This transformative grant provides an opportunity for Clemson Rural Health and its partners to expand access to high-quality maternal care and improve health outcomes for mothers and babies across our state,” said Leslie Hossfeld, dean of the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences. “By strengthening care and advancing research in underserved areas of South Carolina, CRH is building a healthier future for families statewide.”

The grant will fund a Lakelands Region mobile maternity health unit, to be named the BLOOM Clinic, for Bringing Lasting Outcomes for Optimal Motherhood. The clinic will serve as South Carolina’s first comprehensive mobile maternity program thanks to a partnership between Clemson Rural Health and Self Regional Healthcare’s clinical departments and disciplines including obstetrics, family medicine and supporting specialties; their Guided Beginnings Program; and their collaborating community-based organization, Community Initiatives Inc. HOPE (Healthy Opportunities for Perinatal Equity).

The BLOOM clinic will integrate technology-enabled solutions to expand access to care and improve maternal health outcomes. Services will include preconception counseling, prenatal and postpartum care, chronic disease management, and lactation support. Patients will also benefit from remote patient monitoring, access to obstetric and maternal-fetal medicine specialists, and connections to community-based support services.

“Too many women in South Carolina have had to travel long distances to get the prenatal and postnatal care they need,” Dr. Edward Simmer, Department of Public Health interim director, said in the release. “This has contributed to poor health outcomes for mothers and babies. Today, that begins to change. By bringing quality care directly to communities, DPH and the Clemson Rural Health of Clemson University are making it easier for women to get care close to home. Clemson is a strong partner in this work, and together we’re committed to improving the health of mothers and children in underserved areas.”

The BLOOM Clinic will serve Abbeville, McCormick, Edgefield, and Saluda counties — areas identified as maternity deserts—bringing essential care directly to women who would otherwise face significant barriers to access.

“This is an exciting initiative that brings comprehensive maternal care to women in a cluster of maternity desert counties and will save lives of moms and babies,” Ron Gimbel, Clemson professor and director of CRH, said in the release.

Family physician Dr. Trey Moore of the Abbeville Area Medical Center agreed.

“This first-of-its-kind partnership in the Lakelands region allows Self Regional Healthcare and Clemson Rural Health to bring advanced maternity care directly to the highest-risk pregnant individuals in our communities,” Moore said in the release. “By building on our hands-on approach to improving pregnancy outcomes, this program strengthens our ability to address the chronic conditions that contribute to poor birth outcomes.”

For DPH, the grant ensures that mothers from areas of South Carolina identified as needing services the most get the care they need.

“With this multi‑year investment, we are strengthening South Carolina’s commitment to improving maternal health outcomes,” Danielle Wingo, director of DPH’s Bureau of Maternal and Child Health, said in the release. “This mobile maternity unit will create new pathways to care for individuals who face significant barriers to accessing routine services. We look forward to partnering with them to expand access to high‑quality prenatal and postpartum care in our rural communities.

Clemson Rural Health is the organizing framework for Clemson’s rural health service delivery and prevention efforts statewide — with locations including the Clemson Health Clinic at Walhalla, Clemson Health Clinic at Orangeburg, Clemson Community Primary Care — home of the Joseph F. Sullivan Center, Clemson Rural Health Support Office at Abbeville, and a fleet of Clemson Rural Health mobile health units.