Medshore Ambulance’s Barnwell-Bamberg County EMS system won top honors at the South Carolina Emergency Care Symposium, accepting the Large System of the Year award for outstanding professionalism and service to its communities and citizens. The award was presented last Saturday during ceremonies in Myrtle Beach.

“We are extremely proud and pleased to accept this award and to be recognized for our longstanding commitment to rural EMS,” said Greg Shore, Medshore founder and CEO. “Rural emergency medical services present unique challenges and considerations, and we have worked diligently in Barnwell and Bamberg counties to create a system that is responsive to citizens across this vast geographic region.”

“Medshore Ambulance has invested in providing excellent emergency response to the Barnwell and Bamberg communities despite great challenges with hospital closures and the statewide staffing shortage, which particularly affects rural communities,” said Medshore Ambulance Barnwell-Bamberg Operations Supervisor Phil Clarke. “We worked together with our county and local first responder partners to meet these challenges head-on and collaboratively find solutions. Together, we have created an excellent EMS system that benefits our communities, and I am proud that the South Carolina EMS Association has recognized our collective achievement.”

The Medshore Ambulance Barnwell-Bamberg County EMS System provides emergency 9-1-1 and non-emergency medical transportation across a 953-square-mile service area.  Since 2014 , Medshore Ambulance has been a mainstay in rural southwestern South Carolina, supporting a widely dispersed population of citizens who often utilize the 9-1-1 system as a first line of care.

In 2019, Medshore took over as the 9-1-1 provider in Bamberg County in a rapid transition process, meeting increased call volume with increased staffing and vehicle resources. “In addition to such vital cooperative efforts of Medshore in a terrain within South Carolina that can only be called a medical desert, Medshore and its staff have provided superior accountability, reliability and professionalism to all aspects of their duties for Bamberg County,” wrote 2019 Bamberg County Council Chairman Trent Kinard in a letter of recommendation.

Additionally, Medshore leaders played a key role as  members of the 2019 Barnwell County Emergency Services Committee, formed in support of shared EMS community concerns following the closure of the county’s only hospital. According to Tim Bennett, Barnwell County Administrator, that process led to a “roadmap of solutions” to improve emergency services in Barnwell County. “Medshore continues to lead from the front in working with our communities to maintain and improve the quality of emergency services in the county,” Bennett wrote in his recommendation letter.

About Medshore Ambulance

Founded in 1976, Medshore Ambulance Service is the largest privately-owned ambulance service in South Carolina and is the 9-1-1 service provider to Anderson, Barnwell and Bamberg counties. Medshore is a member of the Priority Ambulance national family of companies.