Where We Started
Palmetto Community Care has been part of this community since 1985 — long before most people were talking openly about HIV.
We started as a small volunteer organization called Lowcountry Palmetto AIDS Life Support Services, founded at a time when an HIV diagnosis carried an enormous amount of fear, stigma, and uncertainty. On February 22, 1990, we were officially incorporated as Lowcountry AIDS Services (LAS). For the next 26 years, we grew alongside this community — expanding our services, deepening our partnerships, and showing up for people when they needed it most.
By 2018, the landscape of HIV had changed in meaningful ways. People living with HIV were living longer, healthier lives. Treatment had advanced. The word “AIDS” no longer captures the full picture of what we do or who we serve. So we changed our name — not to walk away from our history, but to reflect where we are now. Lowcountry AIDS Services officially became Palmetto Community Care. Same mission. Same community. A name that opens more doors.
Who We Are
Palmetto Community Care is a nonprofit organization based in North Charleston, SC. For nearly 34 years, we’ve been the Lowcountry’s dedicated home for HIV care, prevention, and community support — and we’re the only organization in Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties with a sole focus on HIV.
We serve people living with HIV, people at risk for HIV, and anyone in our community who needs a place to start. That includes LGBTQ+ individuals, Black and Latinx community members, people who are uninsured or underinsured, people who have been incarcerated, and anyone navigating a healthcare system that doesn’t always make it easy. You don’t need to have HIV to come through our doors.
Our services span medical care, case management, prevention, housing assistance, mental health support, legal services, food assistance, and more — all in one place, all built around you.
The results speak for themselves. Over a recent three-year period, 95% of our clients living with HIV achieved viral suppression — meaning the virus is undetectable in their blood, they feel better, and they can’t transmit HIV to others. That doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because of 34 years of relationship-based, whole-person care.
Our Mission
We’re here to make sure that no one in the Lowcountry faces HIV alone — and that everyone in our community has the tools and support they need to stay healthy.
In practice, that means:
- Standing beside people living with HIV/AIDS, and their families and loved ones, with real, practical support
- Educating our community about HIV, how it’s transmitted, and how it’s prevented
- Pushing back against discrimination and stigma wherever they get in the way of care
- Advocating for our clients at every level — locally, in South Carolina, and nationally
- Partnering with healthcare providers, social service organizations, and community groups to make sure people get connected to everything they need
- Working to ensure that people affected by HIV are treated fairly and that resources keep flowing to the communities that need them
What We’re Working Toward
Everything we do is aimed at one thing: helping people live full, healthy, self-determined lives.
For our clients living with HIV, that means getting into care early, staying in care, and reaching viral suppression — the point where HIV medications reduce the virus to undetectable levels. When someone is undetectable, they feel better, live longer, and cannot transmit HIV to others. Getting there takes more than just a prescription. It takes a case manager who knows your situation, a doctor who sees you as a whole person, and an organization that removes every barrier it can find.
For our community, it means fewer new HIV infections — through testing, education, PrEP, and honest, stigma-free conversations about sexual health.
For everyone who walks through our doors, it means being treated with dignity from the first interaction to the last.
Truesdale Medical Center
Truesdale Medical Center is PCC’s full-service medical clinic, right here on Rivers Avenue in North Charleston. It opened in October 2018 as an extension of PCC’s vision: that great medical care and great support services should exist in the same place, with the same team, working together on your behalf.
Truesdale is now accepting new patients.
The clinic offers a wide range of services, including primary care and chronic disease management; HIV medical care and treatment; mental health care; PrEP, PEP, and DoxyPEP; telehealth appointments; and LGBTQ+-inclusive and gender-affirming care.
What makes Truesdale different isn’t just the services — it’s the integration. Your Truesdale provider works alongside PCC’s case managers, peer advocates, and prevention staff. Your whole care team is in regular communication, so nothing falls through the cracks.
Visit Truesdale Medical Center’s website. Schedule an Appointment