Hundreds receive free medical and vision care in the Midlands

SC Mission 2014 Midlands Comes to a Close

COLUMBIA, SC –  The fourth consecutive year of SC Mission 2014 Midlands ended today at Noon. The two-day medical event hosted at the SC State Fairgrounds provided free vision and medical care to the community.

The event, which is designed  to meet the critical health care needs of people in our community who are uninsured and underserved, saw a total of 535 patients, many of whom received multiple services for a total of 744 patient encounters over two days. This number includes a total of 331 eye exams, 275 free eyeglasses, 413 medical exams, 101 mammograms and 381 prescriptions. These are preliminary numbers.

“We are so grateful for the volunteers who make this event possible,” said Mac Bennett, Chair of the SC Mission Midlands steering committee and President and CEO of United Way of the Midlands, of the over 1,000 total volunteers that run the event. “Everyone has an important role to play throughout the weekend, but we are especially grateful to our 500 clinical volunteers who enable us to provide quality, comprehensive services to patients who may otherwise have nowhere to go.”

Several community partners come together every year to make this event possible, including Palmetto Health, Lexington Medical Center, Providence Hospitals, and the South Carolina Hospital Association, along with many non-profit organizations and private service providers.

“Health care continues to be a huge need in our community,” said Bennett. “It’s crucial to so many that these services are provided, and we are happy to come together each year to make this impact on the Midlands.”