COVID-19

There has certainly been a lot more outdoor activity since the start of the pandemic.  And this has generated a lot more traffic on our state’s premier hiking and biking path that stretches from the mountains to the coast.

Mike Switzer interviews Mary Roe, executive director of the Palmetto Conservation Foundation, the organization responsible for the creation and maintenance of the Palmetto Trail.

When Kati Durkee got a sore throat, she went to the pharmacy.

A week later, she found out that it wasn't a cold. Or allergies. And that food poisoning that settled in, that wasn't food poisoning either. 

A week later still, Durkee's son (Durkee has a son in 11th grade and a daughter in 10th, but did not want their names in this story) got what she had -- COVID-19. 

"We were not the two-week people," she says. 

There were bouts of dizziness, migraines, tachycardia, and extreme fatigue. 

This episode of the South Carolina Lede for November 17, 2020 features: a continued look into the 2020 election with two of South Carolina's top political science professors; insight from one of the country’s most outspoken voices on anti-racism, Prof. Ibram X. Kendi, director of the Center for Antiracist Research at Boston University; a profile of one restaurant chain growing amid the pandemic; and more.

  This week Bobbi Conner talks with Emily Warr, for an update about a remote, online home monitoring program for COVID-19 patients with mild to moderate symptoms. Ms. Warr is a Registered Nurse and Director of Operations at the Center for Telehealth at MUSC. 

This episode of the South Carolina Lede for November 14, 2020, features: a look at the exponential growth of COVID-19 cases across the country; an update on election security, including comments from South Carolina lawmakers regarding the presidential race; how the likelihood of mental illness increases with a COVID-19 diagnosis; and more.

Small businesses continue to suffer through this pandemic and fortunately, assistance continues to be available.  For example, our next guest’s South Carolina-based marketing company has just partnered with a California company to create a free, open-source, brand-building toolkit for businesses, nonprofits, and social enterprises.

Mike Switzer interviews Teresa Coles, President of Riggs Partners in West Columbia, SC.  Their new initiative is called Responsible Brand.

Since first opening in 1997 in Pawleys Island, our next guest’s restaurant has grown to 43 locations across the Southeast. And the pandemic hasn’t slowed them down.  Since June, they’ve signed agreements for ten more, opened nine more, and three additional locations are scheduled to open from now until the end of the year.

Mike Switzer interviews Ricky Richardson, CEO of Eggs Up Grill in Pawley’s Island, SC.

The community and workplace experiences of minorities, both sex and race-based, as collected and displayed in libraries and museums are often under-represented.  But new grant money is now available to these institutions to help alleviate this situation.

Mike Switzer interviews Kerri Forrest, director of Lowcountry programs at the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation in Charleston, SC.

The election is over.  But is it?  We do know though, that the pandemic is not finished.  Should investors be thinking about portfolio readjustments before the end of the year regardless of these unknown timelines?

Mike Switzer interviews Doug English, a certified financial planner and resident stock market prognosticator for this program with ACT Advisors in Charleston, SC.

On this episode of the South Carolina Lede for November 10, 2020, features: the latest on presidential election, including comments from Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Majority Whip Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC); a look at Pfizer's promising COVID-19 vaccine; an update from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on the health of the US economy; and more.

On this episode of the South Carolina Lede for November 7, 2020, we hear from Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) about how he won the most expensive Senate race in history, his thoughts on the current presidential election count, and how he plans to work with Joe Biden, should the Democratic candidate become president. Also on this episode: an update on the First Congressional District race; warnings from DHEC about a potential COVID wave; suicide prevention efforts during the pandemic; and much more.  

As the COVID pandemic continues, it also continues to alter virtually every aspect of life and work in South Carolina as well as the nation.  For some, working at home or wearing a mask to the store is a minor inconvenience.  For others, however, the isolation of working from home, or sometimes the worry of unemployment or other stressors can be major traumas and have catastrophic results, including suicide.  

After recently separating from the Air Force, our next guest who is an epidemiologist and a former public health officer, decided to join a national consulting and staffing firm to help schools, businesses, airports and others deal with the job site complications caused by COVID-19.

Mike Switzer interviews Mike Klingshirn with Fusion Cell in Sumter, SC.

Laboratories across the country have pivoted this year to include COVID testing to help with demand.  And we’ve uncovered another one in our state.

Mike Switzer interviews Michael Conroy, a vice president with Premier Medical Laboratory Services in Greenville, SC.

Our economy continues to follow the curve of the pandemic and so while it has significantly rebounded from the depths seen in the spring, it may soon be on its way back there if the coronavirus numbers continue their current trajectory.  And then there’s today’s election.  Regardless of who is our next president, our next guest says don’t expect a magic economic fix anytime soon.