Faculty receive distinguished service award

Recipients of the August Distinguished Faculty Service awards were:

Dr. Charles P. Darby. Darby has devoted his professional career to improving the state of pediatric health in South Carolina. He joined MUSCās Department of Pediatrics in 1970 and has been the departmentās chairman since 1982. He was the driving force behind the opening of the Childrenās Hospital in 1987. The opening was the culmination of 15 years of planning, fundraising and constant public education to gain legislative approval. He has recruited outstanding physicians, scientists and other health care professionals to staff the facility. Under his leadership the Department of Pediatrics has grown to include 15 divisions and has come to be well respected throughout the region, state and nation.

Margaret Ann Kerr. Kerr has devoted more than four decades of her life to the art of nursing, with its emphasis on service, compassion, knowledge and ethics. As a teacher she has imparted knowledge and provided inspiration to generations of nurses and nursing leaders. She has been recognized consistently for her dedication to teaching, being a three-time recipient of the Golden Lamp Teaching Award in the College of Nursing, a two-time recipient of the teacher of the year award from the junior nursing students as well a recipient of the S.C. Nursesā Association Excellence in Nursing Education Award. She is also recipient of the S.C. League for Nursing Excellence in Nursing Award.

Dr. H. Biemann Othersen Jr. A nationally renowned pediatric surgeon, Othersen has treated countless children who have suffered burns, tumors, trauma and other serious conditions. Along with firefighters across the state he has brought the danger of fires to the forefront, raising funds for burned children and promoting educational programs throughout the state. Through his hard work and devotion, children in the state have a better chance of growing up safe and healthy. His dedication to the children of South Carolina has recently been recognized by his receipt of the William Weston Distinguished Service Award of Excellence in Pediatrics from the University of South Carolina.