Senator Verdin Welcomed Dr. Bill Childers as Doctor of the Day at South Carolina Senate
March 26, 2025
In a heartfelt moment on the Senate floor last Thursday, Senator Danny Verdin offered a warm and personal welcome to Dr. William “Bill” Childers of Laurens, S.C., who served as the South Carolina Senate’s Doctor of the Day.
Dr. Childers, a family and geriatric medicine practitioner, was recognized not only for his medical expertise but also for his longtime commitment to the Laurens County community, where he has served patients for more than three decades.
Senator Verdin, a longtime Laurens resident, expressed his appreciation for Dr. Childers’ roots and service, noting the doctor’s journey from Blacksburg to Laurens in 1988 under a rural health scholarship program. “In my time, I have known you to be a superlative member of the medical community of Laurens County,” Verdin said. “Your accomplishments and contributions are very demonstrable.”
Verdin added with humor, “I’m more geriatric but the body as a whole is less geriatric after the last election cycle,” acknowledging Dr. Childers’ specialty and joking that his patient load for the day would likely be light. “Anyone who feels the need, please go see Dr. Childers. I don’t have an ailment, but I will come see you anyway,” he said with a smile.
Senator Verdin Introducing Dr. Childers
The Senate’s Doctor of the Day program, coordinated by the South Carolina Medical Association (SCMA), allows volunteer physicians to be available at the Statehouse to provide basic medical assistance to legislators, staff, and visitors during the legislative session. The program not only ensures timely access to healthcare if needed but also strengthens connections between the medical community and state lawmakers.
The program has a long and meaningful history. In the early 1970s, the SCMA made the decision to move its headquarters to Columbia, and with ready access to the Statehouse, it began the Doctor of the Day program to attend to any health needs that may arise each day during the legislative session. The SCMA has continued to serve the State in this way since then by providing a physician volunteer to be present at the Statehouse every day that the General Assembly meets. These physicians have provided everything from care to legislators and staff who present with a cold to being the first on the scene when massive coronary issues have arisen both inside the chamber and the lobby. The Doctor of the Day program has been credited with saving the life of more than one person at the Statehouse during their time of service.
Dr. Childers’ career spans multiple transitions in the Laurens County healthcare system—from the early days of two separate hospitals to the eventual unification and partnership with the Greenville Health System, now known as Prisma Health. Throughout those changes, he remained a leader, serving as past Chief of Staff of Laurens County Hospital and most recently as Practice Chief for Laurens Family Medicine.
A graduate of Clemson University and the USC School of Medicine, Dr. Childers has served in numerous leadership roles, including Vice Chair of Clinical Affairs for the Department of Family Medicine, past chair of the County Medical Society, and board member for both the YMCA and the Good Shepherd Free Medical Clinic. He is also a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians, a distinction he has held since 1984.
Dr. Childers and his wife have two children and two grandchildren. In his spare time, he enjoys running, golfing, yardwork, and cheering on his Clemson Tigers.
For Laurens County, his service to the Senate last week was just one more example of the steady commitment and leadership Dr. Childers has shown for nearly four decades.
