Welcomes Spencer Wood, Certified Genetic Counselor, to the Maternal Fetal Medicine Clinic
Summerville, SC (July 2, 2018) – Summerville Medical Center is ensuring that Lowcountry families have easy access to cutting edge, high quality prenatal care close to home. The hospital is the only healthcare facility in the North Charleston area offering genetic counseling for Lowcountry area mothers who are pregnant or considering pregnancy and have a potential for genetic syndromes.
This month Summerville Medical Center’s Maternal Fetal Medicine Clinic welcomes certified genetic counselor Spencer Wood, MS CGC. Wood joins the board-certified and fellowship-trained maternal fetal medicine specialists at the clinic comprised of Christopher Robinson, MD, Alison Dillon, MD and Richard Adams, MD.
“We are able to take care of mothers and babies at high risk due to issues such as pre-existing health conditions like diabetes, family history, mothers pregnant with multiple babies, and women giving birth at a later age,” explained Christopher Robinson, MD and medical director for the Maternal Fetal Medicine Clinic. “Wood is one of two prenatal genetic counselors in the Charleston area and the only one located in Summerville. Being able to provide our Lowcountry families with a comprehensive prenatal genetic counseling program close to home is critical.”
The comprehensive genetic counseling program provides a personalized care plan for mothers throughout their pregnancy and delivery. Women who can benefit from genetic counseling include those with abnormal screening or ultrasound results, a family history of genetic syndromes, women over 35 years old, or a previous pregnancy with a genetic syndrome. The clinic also offers advanced services including detailed ultrasound, fetal MRI, chorionic villus sampling, and amniocentesis to provide women with comprehensive information about their pregnancy.
“I am proud to be joining the exceptional team at the Maternal Fetal Medicine Clinic,” said Spencer Wood. “I play many roles from educator to advocate to coordinator for families throughout their pregnancy. I look forward to working closely with our high risk mothers to ensure they get the highest quality, compassionate care.”
Wood graduated from the University of South Carolina with a Masters in Genetic Counseling, a Bachelors in Biotechnology from Virginia Tech, and receiving training at the University of South Carolina Molecular Genetics Lab, Martha Jefferson Hospital, Mary Washington Healthcare, and the Medical University of South Carolina.
“I am very excited to welcome Spencer Wood to our highly specialized team of maternal fetal medicine specialists,” said Lisa Valentine, Summerville Medical Center CEO. “He brings a commitment to providing prenatal genetic care that will be a significant resource for many families in our community. The genetic counseling program is a wonderful complement to our growing women’s and children’s program at Summerville Medical Center.”
In September 2018, Summerville Medical Center is opening 30 new patient beds, additional labor and delivery rooms, and a neonatal ICU as the first major milestone in a $53 million expansion designed to improve access to the highest quality of services for women and children. The women’s and children’s hospital is scheduled to be completed and fully open in 2019.
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Summerville Medical Center is a 94-bed, acute-care hospital with a 24-hour emergency room, a dedicated ER for children, and comprehensive medical services. The facility enjoys an enviable reputation for its women’s and children’s services including "home-like" birthing suites. Surgical services include orthopedic, reflux, robotic and weight loss surgeries. Summerville Medical Center is part of Trident Health, which has earned recognition as a leader in the delivery of healthcare in the Lowcountry.
For more than 40 years staff and physicians at Trident Health have provided acute healthcare services to families in South Carolina’s Lowcountry. Services are provided through its two hospitals, Trident Medical Center and Summerville Medical Center; two freestanding emergency departments, Moncks Corner Medical Center and Centre Pointe Emergency; and two urgent care centers, CareNow Urgent Care Goose Creek and CareNow Urgent Care North Charleston. Both hospitals have received top ranking as Joint Commission Top Hospitals for Quality Performance and are Joint Commission Certified for Advanced Heart Failure and Advanced Primary Stroke Centers. Trident Health is one of the South Carolina Lowcountry’s largest employers with more than 2,500 employees and has a medical staff of nearly 500 physicians. In 2017 it provided $47.6 million in uncompensated care and paid $35.5 million in local, state and federal taxes. To learn more about how Trident Health is growing to meet the needs of our growing region and how to join our team go to www.tridenthealthsystem.com.
