Stacey McPhail has been taking a stand against teenage pregnancy.

As Richland County marked an 18 percent drop in the teen birth rate between 2009-10, the health care professional is being credited for influencing the decrease.

McPhail, director of the Palmetto Health Maternal and Child Health Initiative, has been awarded the Murray L. Vincent Outstanding Prevention Professional Award. The recognition is the highest and most distinguished given by the S.C. Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. It is named in memory of Dr. Murray Vincent, whose work is credited with significantly impacting the prevention of adolescent pregnancy in South Carolina.

“I knew Dr. Murray Vincent and have first-hand knowledge of his commitment to teen pregnancy prevention,” McPhail said. “To be given an award in his name validates my work and passion for teens in South Carolina.”

McPhail was honored during the S.C. Campaign to the Prevent Teen Pregnancy’s recent annual meeting.

“This award affirms the commitment Stacey has to reducing the rate of teenage pregnancy in our state,” said Vince Ford, Palmetto Health’s senior vice president of community health. “The progress we have made in Richland County is a testament to her leadership and the strength of the teen health programs at Palmetto Health.”

The Teen Health Initiative at Palmetto Health provides support and assistance to teens to help them make better choices when faced with tough issues. McPhail has served as director of the initiative since 2000.

A winning formula

The title was a mouthful, but Ben Bartlett made it a winner.

The Lexington High School junior recently won first place for his senior physics project at the National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium in Maryland.

Bartlett’s project was called “Unidirectionalization of Particulate Distributions in Isotropic D+D->He3+n Reactions Utilizing Differential Ion Velocities.”

More simply put, Bartlett designed a new method of neutron beam projection using a fusion reactor he designed and built as a freshman. Neutron beam technology is used in many areas including cancer treatment, medical imaging and defense.

Bartlett won a $12,000 scholarship to the college of his choice from the U.S. Department of Defense and an all-expense-paid trip to London, where he will represent the U.S. at the London International Youth Science Forum in August.