System News

The North Charleston Coliseum has hosted huge acts over the past three decades including Prince, Jay-Z, Kenny Chesney and Bruce Springsteen.

But the Roper St. Francis Healthcare Vaccination Drive-Thru that operated for five months during the pandemic while the venue lost revenue stands as the Coliseum’s most important achievement.

“The greatest show we ever put on happened when we were out of business,” North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey said Thursday night during a party to celebrate the 75,000 doses delivered at the Drive-Thru. “We’ve had all kinds of events but no other event will ever be more important to this community than the vaccinations.

“Working with Roper St. Francis Healthcare has been an honor. We truly appreciate those of you who were on the frontline every day so that others could be better.”

Teammates and volunteers who worked an extended period of time at the Drive-Thru were invited to the celebration with the City of North Charleston at the Performing Arts Center. They ate cake, laughed and signed a giant poster that read “bringing back handshakes and hugs” that will be hung backstage of the PAC, along with posters signed by the teams of famous Broadways shows including Wicked, Peter Pan, Chicago and Miss Saigon.

RSFH President and CEO Dr. Jeffrey DiLisi said the healthcare system has been been inundated with thank you notes and phone calls from the community who received their vaccination at the Drive-Thru, the first of its kind in South Carolina and one of the largest in the state. He said many described how professional our teammates were. Others said they were greeted with smiles. One patient wrote, “not once did we have the feeling that any of the RSFH employees HAD to be there.”

“You made our patients feel as if you wanted to be there because you truly did,” Dr. DiLisi said. “You gave our patients a memorable interaction with our healthcare system that they’ll tell others about for years to come. One day, when this all is a distant memory, they’ll remember exactly where they were when they received the first and second dose of the COVID vaccine and they’ll think of you and Roper St. Francis Healthcare.”

While addressing the crowd, Dr. DiLisi turned to North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey and thanked him, everyone at the Coliseum and North Charleston City Hall for partnering with RSFH for the sake of patients. He then gave Mayor Summey a RSFH Excellence in Action Award, the same recognition our own teammates receive for going above and beyond. “It’s a big deal at Roper St. Francis,” Dr. DiLisi told Mayor Summey.

Although the final vaccination was delivered at the Drive-Thru on June 4, RSFH is scheduling vaccine appointments for all patients ages 12 and up at our five Express Care locations in James Island, Summerville, West Ashley and North Charleston.

To schedule call (843) 727-DOCS or schedule online.