States unhealthy ranking leads to ambitious health improvement plan

In addition to access to health services and the quality of health services, determinants of health take into consideration issues such as poverty, quality education, job opportunities, crime and safety, transportation and living wages as well as the availability of resources people need to meet their daily needs like nutritious food, safe drinking water, clean air and toxin-free environments.

Cawley explained the TCHIP endgame: building a healthier community. 

“I’m really, really excited,” he told the participants. “First, as an MUSC leader, part of our mission is to improve the health and wellness of the entire state. And I’m also excited that one of MUSC’s strategic goals is building health communities. But the reason I’m most excited is I’m a member of this community. I’ve been member of this community for 16 years now. And everybody in this room knows real change starts in the community — it doesn’t start up high.”

He shared one of his favorite quotes. “Mother Teresa said a long time ago, ‘If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.’ Isn’t that what we’re doing here today? We’re loving our extended family, and real change is going to come out of this. I can’t be prouder that this community has come together to do what we’re doing. It’s all interconnected, and that’s where the real strength is.” 

He thanked the large group for the hard work they had committed to, reminding them that what they had in front of them was just a plan. “It’s not real work until we execute it." He congratulated them on taking that very important first step.

Gunn said that only by everyone taking a small piece of the puzzle can the whole be successful together. “By identifying the major issues plaguing the overall health and wellness of our Tri-county area, we’re collectively getting to a place where we can begin to make scalable, effective and positive changes in the health disparities and challenges that our neighbors, friends and families are dealing with every day.” 

Gunn came from a military family and never knew what it was like to lack access to health care. He always went to the doctor when he was sick. He never missed a dental appointment. But when he began to travel the state, he learned that was not the case for many South Carolinians. 

Beyond the Battery or shops on Summerville’s Main Street or the latest episode of “Southern Charm” lie parts of Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties where people don’t know where their next meal is coming from. Where poverty is rampant. Where no transportation can mean no health care or inoculations for the kids.  

Gunn shared one of many moving stories that led him to this work. Years ago, he visited a classroom in Allendale, South Carolina. He noticed one of the third graders was huge compared to his classmates. The young man was, in fact, two years older than everyone else. His family was among the poorest in the area and didn’t have a car. He couldn’t get his immunizations on time, and because the family had no access to a dentist, he was out of school with an infected tooth and then held back. That hurt Gunn to his core. He vowed he would do everything in his power to ensure every child, every South Carolinian, could enjoy the promise of a bright future.  

For an hour, he spoke passionately about why that’s important — why the TCHIP is so important. In that time, there wasn’t a yawn in the room. Participants listened, transfixed by his message. The gravity of their personal involvement was not lost on this group, thanks to a speaker who got them up and out of their chairs and into a mindset of changing what’s possible.