Board of Trustees honors memory of Dr. Charles Darby Jr., hears update on burn center successes

CHARLESTON, S.C. (Feb. 9, 2024) – The Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) and Medical University Hospital Authority (MUHA) Board of Trustees held their regularly scheduled committee sessions and board meeting on Feb. 8 and 9, respectively.

Remembering Dr. Charles Darby Jr.

MUSC Trustees, MUSC leaders and others in attendance opened the Feb. 9 BOT meeting honoring the memory of Dr. Charles Darby Jr. with a moment of silence. Charles Darby, M.D., a beloved figure and truly exceptional visionary who dedicated more than five decades of his life to providing outstanding pediatric care at MUSC, passed away Feb. 7. 

Among his many accomplishments, Dr. Darby built a national-caliber Department of Pediatrics as chairman, campaigned to build a children’s hospital, which became a reality in 1987, and played a vital role in transforming that facility into the current MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital and Pearl Tourville Women’s Pavilion, which opened in 2020. 

James Lemon, D.M.D., chairman of the MUSC Board of Trustees, called Darby a good friend to MUSC. “As many of you know, he dedicated his life to providing wonderful pediatric care.”

MUSC President David Cole, M.D., FACS, remembered Darby for his impact on families across the state. “His unwavering commitment to providing exceptional care has left a lasting impression on the lives of many individuals. His visionary leadership and tireless efforts have unequivocally transformed the landscape of children’s health care and research at MUSC and beyond.”

The MUSC Health South Carolina Burn Center

Transformational impact was also the focus of another segment of the meeting. Steven Kahn, M.D., chief of Burn Surgery at MUSC, provided an update on burn care at MUSC Health-Charleston. He highlighted the team’s successes in terms of quality, outcomes for patients and the number of patients seen. Kahn came to MUSC in 2019 to open the comprehensive South Carolina Burn Center, more than 20 years after the original burn center at MUSC closed, except for noncomplex pediatric burn care. 

Kahn said the S.C. Burn Center, the only one in the state, has been No. 1 in the country for five out of nine quarters since its opening, for patient survival rates in a database that compares outcomes for similar burn centers. And its reach is growing. 

“The Burn Center is providing a public health service to a significant portion of the state. We have innovative, minimally invasive approaches to care. We try to avoid surgery when possible and get people back on their feet as quickly as possible.”

MUSC treats children with burns as well as adults. In 2022, Shriners Hospitals for Children gave a $3 million grant to the pediatric center, money matched by funding from MUSC and support from S.C. General Assembly. The goal was to establish cutting-edge research and top-quality pediatric burn care.

That goal is becoming a reality, Kahn said. Meanwhile, the number of patients – children and adults – coming to MUSC for burn care has grown dramatically. It’s on track to top 400 patients this year. The center has also reduced the number of burn patients flown out of state.

Cole said later, “It’s important to have that kind of care close to home. Our premise was, and remains, South Carolina should take care of South Carolinians. I am so very proud of the success and impact of this center.”

3 Minute Thesis Competition

Board members also heard from Ph.D. students who attend the MUSC College of Graduate Studies. These young women were highlighted as standout participants in the 3 Minute Thesis, or 3MT, Competition. The challenge: communicating the impact of their complex research theses in a manner and language that everyone can understand – in three minutes or less. 

That’s no easy feat. But Amber Hazzard pulled it off in a talk titled “The HIGHway to hell: A weedy path to Alzheimer’s,” as did Logan Manusky in a talk called “Just say no? It’s not that easy…” Both focused on the effects of drugs on our health. 

Lori McMahon, Ph.D., vice president for Research at MUSC, was proud to see their success. “The board looks forward to the February meetings because the students present novel research; it’s memorable, fun and educational,” McMahon said.

About the Boards

The MUSC/MUHA Board of Trustees serve as separate bodies to govern the University and hospital system, normally holding two days of committee and board meetings six times a year. For more information about the MUSC Board of Trustees, visit this page. 

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About MUSC 

Founded in 1824 in Charleston, MUSC is the state’s only comprehensive academic health system, with a unique mission to preserve and optimize human life in South Carolina through education, research and patient care. Each year, MUSC educates more than 3,200 students in six colleges – Dental Medicine, Graduate Studies, Health Professions, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy – and trains more than 900 residents and fellows in its health system. MUSC brought in more than $300 million in research funds in fiscal year 2023, leading the state overall in research funding. MUSC also leads the state in federal and National Institutes of Health funding. For information on academic programs, visit musc.edu.

As the health care system of the Medical University of South Carolina, MUSC Health is dedicated to delivering the highest-quality and safest patient care while educating and training generations of outstanding health care providers and leaders to serve the people of South Carolina and beyond. Patient care is provided at 16 hospitals (includes owned or governing interest), with approximately 2,700 beds and four additional hospital locations in development, more than 350 telehealth sites and nearly 750 care locations situated in all regions of South Carolina. In 2023, for the ninth consecutive year, U.S. News & World Report named MUSC Health University Medical Center in Charleston the No. 1 hospital in South Carolina. To learn more about clinical patient services, visit muschealth.org.

MUSC has a total enterprise annual operating budget of $5.9 billion. The nearly 26,000 MUSC family members include world-class faculty, physicians, specialty providers, scientists, students, affiliates and care team members who deliver groundbreaking education, research, and patient care.