NGHS Administration

Carol Burrell

• BS in Medical Technology, Emory/Georgia Southern
• MHA - Health Care Administration, Central Michigan University
• Responsible for all health system operations including clinical, support and human resources, facility and construction projects, physician practice management

Roy Griffin

Vice President, Financial Planning & Decision Support

• BS in Accounting, Alabama State University
• MACC, University of South Florida
• MBA, University of Tampa
• Responsible for financial planning, budgeting, and decision support services

Tony Herdener

• MBA, University of Puget Sound
• Responsible for financial planning, reporting, investments, capital formation, treasury, risk management, internal audit, managed care and Health Partners (PPO Network)

Pranav Jain, MD, FHM

Chief Medical Informatics Officer

• MBBS, Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, India
• Residency, Internal Medicine. Saint Peter’s University Hospital, NJ
• AMIA 10 x 10 Certification,  Health Informatics, University of Alabama at Birmingham
• Responsible for providing strategic guidance to help leverage technology throughout the healthcare system. Focus on workflow integration to provide actionable data at point of care help improve health outcomes of the whole community.

Sam Johnson, MD

• MD, Medical College of Georgia
• MMM, Tulane University
• Responsible for overseeing Medical Staff Services, Performance Improvement, Case Management and Risk Management departments; also serves as liason for NGHS' relations with the medical staff

Steve Kelly

Sonja McLendon

• BS in Biology, University of North Carolina
• MEd, Sports Medicine, University of Virginia
• MBA, University of South Carolina
• FACHE, Fellow, American College of Healthcare Executives
• Responsible for Pharmacy, Lab, Imaging, Bariatrics, Security, Plant Operations, Environmental Services and Nutrition Services

Steve McNeilly

Linda Nicholson, CPA

• BS in Accounting, University of Georgia
• Responsible for financial reporting and operations including Accounting, Payroll, Cost Accounting, and CMS cost reporting for the Health System and entities

Chris Paravate

• BS in Business Operations, DeVry Institute of Technology
• MBA, Brenau University
• Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems (CPHIMS)
• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification

Brenda Simpson

Louis Smith

President of Northeast Georgia Medical Center Gainesville

• MHA, Medical College of Virginia-Virginia Commonwealth University
• BBA, Mississippi College
• Responsible for overseeing continuing development of Northeast Georgia Medical Center Gainesville and market development in Gainesville

Tracy Vardeman

• BS in Business Administration/Marketing and Management, Shorter College
• MBA, Georgia State University with study emphasis in health administration
• Responsible for guiding strategic planning and marketing efforts for the Health System

Bo Walpole, MD

Vice President of Clinical Effectiveness

• MD, Medical College of Georgia
• MBA, Emory University
• Responsible for provider technology interaction, data analytics and sharing, improved clinical documentation, waste reduction, cost effectiveness, patient flow and transitions of care. 

Debbie Weber

Chief Human Resource Officer

• Responsible for workforce planning and recruitment, employee benefits, compensation, human resource information systems, employee wellness, employee education and occupational health and safety.

Anthony Williamson

• MBA, University of Florida
• MHS, University of Florida
• BS, Florida State University
• CHE, Certified Healthcare Executive
• FACHE, Fellow, American College of Healthcare Executives
• Responsible for overseeing continuing development of Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton and market development in Greater Braselton