Beaufort Memorial Nurse Wins Palmetto Gold Award
September 19, 2022
Beaufort Memorial Hospital Family Nurse Practitioner Annemarie Gault has earned the Palmetto Gold Award, a designation given each year by the South Carolina Nurses Foundation to recognize the state’s top 100 registered nurses for the valuable contributions they make to patient care and the leadership they have shown to promote the nursing profession.
Gault is the certified nurse practitioner at Beaufort Memorial’s Sickle Cell Clinic, the only program of its kind in the Lowcountry. Gault established the clinic in 2016 in partnership with the Medical University of South Carolina, under the supervision of Dr. Julie Kanter-Waschko, as part of the statewide SC2 Pilot Program to offer people in South Carolina with Sickle Cell better access to care.
Recognizing the critical need, Gault worked closely with the SC2 program to establish patient-specific care plans and protocols to provide services in a dedicated, on-campus clinic that currently serves more than 40 patients. The result has been a better quality of life for Sickle Cell patients, and drastically decreased emergency room visits and reduced inpatient admissions.
“We would not have a successful Sickle Cell program without Annemarie Gault,” said BMH Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer Karen Carroll. “Her commitment, persistence and innovation has vastly improved the lives of Sickle Cell patients in our community.”
Gault also identified and advocated for transportation assistance, a key barrier for many local patients resulting in missed appointments and increased ER visits. In coordination with BMH leadership and a grant from the Coastal Blood Foundation, the hospital was able to purchase a van to transport patients to and from their clinic visits.
“In addition to her role in the clinic, during the height of the pandemic Annemarie set up and personally managed a second clinic to provide monoclonal antibody infusions to COVID-19 patients,” said Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kurt Gambla. “She does the work of five people without hesitation or complaint. Annemarie Gault is the embodiment of the unsung hero, and I cannot think of anyone more deserving of this recognition.”
Gault received the award at the 20th Annual Palmetto Gold Gala Sept. 16 in Columbia.
“I am very proud of everything we accomplish on behalf of our patients,” Gault said. “Without this program they would continue to face crises, continuous trips to the ER and other hardships. By helping them manage their disease they can focus on other parts of their lives, like working and maintaining relationships with friends and family.”
Proceeds from the Sept. 16 event support the Palmetto Gold scholarship program, which provides funding to nursing students across South Carolina.
