Oconee inmates receive enhanced heath care

The mobile health outreach of Clemson University has expanded its Oconee County services to inmates at the local jail.  It’s part of a collaboration to diagnose and treat hepatitis C in high-risk populations.  In 2020, the latest year for numbers from the CDC, there were nearly 4,800 new, short-term infections and more than 107 thousand new chronic cases of hepatitis C in the country.  While there’s no vaccine to prevent the infection, it can be cured through medical intervention.  Kristie Boswell of Clemson Rural Health says the care would not be possible without collaboration on the part of Oconee County.  Nurse practitioner Boswell’s mobile team travels the Upstate to methadone and outpatient treatment facilities for opioid use disorder, homeless shelters and soup kitchens.  Clemson Rural Health centers its Oconee services at 200 Booker Drive, Walhalla.