BLUFFTON, S.C. – Greater Bluffton Jasper County Volunteers in Medicine (BJVIM) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Kathleen Casey as the new Medical Director, effective January 1, 2020.
Dr. Casey recently completed a 32-year career at the Jersey Shore University Medical Center in central New Jersey. She has spent most of her career as Chief of Infectious Diseases and had the distinction of originally starting and subsequently managing a primary care HIV clinic for over 30 years. Dr. Casey has also been the Director of a Tuberculosis clinic for the past 15 years in addition to running an STD clinic for most of her career. Her expertise is in general Infectious Disease with a particular interest in Hepatitis C and HIV. She has participated in Internal Medicine inpatient care, rotating as the hospitalist for indigent care in the Jersey Shore Medical Center. During her career she has trained medical students in Physical Diagnosis and Internal Medicine and worked with Internal Medicine residents and Infectious Disease Fellows. Dr. Casey joined the Bluffton Jasper Volunteers in Medicine in April of 2019, after moving to the Bluffton area with her husband.
Dr. Ronald E. Smith is stepping down after serving as Medical Director for the past 5 years.
BJVIM is also pleased to announce the 2020 Board of Directors for the Clinic – Executive Committee Board Chair, Tom Upshaw; Vice Chair, Barbara Elberston; Treasurer, Zina Harter and Secretary, Joe Pantano. Joining the Executive team and continuing as board members: Danny Henderson, Dot Jeger, Renty Kitty, Rich Reed, Martin Saul and Pam Toney. New to the Board for 2020: Tom Wood, Christina Brzezinski and Dr. Kathleen Casey.
BJVIM Executive Director Pam Toney was elected to a three-year term on the Board of Directors of the SC Free Clinic Association, during the Association’s November meeting.
ABOUT BJVIM
In operation since 2011, BJVIM’s new Bluffton facility is located at 29 Plantation Business Park, Units 601-604. There is a second office located in Ridgeland at 11332 N. Jacob Smart Blvd. BJVIM operates with the help of 110 medical and non-medical volunteers, including bilingual volunteers that speak Spanish. BJVIM sees an average of 100 patients a week and requires a minimum of 67 volunteers per week to operate; this includes administrative staff, doctors and nurses.
Bluffton-Jasper County Volunteers in Medicine is one of over 90 independent clinics under the guidance of the National Volunteers in Medicine Alliance. The clinics offer free medical exams, counseling and nutritional services, as well as preventative disease education. The greater Bluffton and Jasper County clinic sees more than 2,000 patients a year. For more about BJVIM visit www.BJVIM.org
