News & Press

Dr. April McDonald, interventional pulmonologist for Northeast Georgia Physicians Group, performs a robotic bronchoscopy using Ion. NGMC Gainesville recently celebrated its 500th procedure — a milestone in advancing lung cancer detection in the region. People in northeast Georgia can breathe easy knowing there’s advanced technology to diagnose lung cancer early at Northeast Georgia Health System […]

Ugochukwu Egolum, MD, (second from left) is pictured with Maggie James (far left), major gifts officer for the NGHS Foundation; Debbie Jones, endowment donor and patient of Dr. Egolum; Donna Brown, executive director of GME; and Chris Bray, chief philanthropy officer and president of the NGHS Foundation. In December 2019, Debbie Jones found herself in […]

Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) held a groundbreaking ceremony for its new Chuck and Diane Stephens Hospice house on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025, in Gainesville. The fully philanthropy-funded project is located at the corner of Thompson Bridge Road and Price Road and should be complete in 2026. From L-R: Mary W. Keith, MD, medical director […]

Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) recently recognized 183 volunteers – with more than 115,000 combined hours of service over the past 12 months – during its annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon held at the Braselton Civic Center. Three volunteers also received awards for their exceptional service and dedication. Donna Hill was awarded the Joan Kosmala Volunteer of the Year Award, recognizing her 15 years and more than 2,600 hours of service. “Donna […]

Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) Braselton recently completed the first phase of a two-part expansion project to meet the growing needs of the community. Two new floors added to the hospital’s main tower are now home to the intensive care unit (ICU) and the intermediate care unit (IMCU), adding 48 beds to the hospital’s bed […]

The new lead cardiologist at Georgia Heart Institute comes south from Minnesota with a vision of helping the practice stay true to its reputation of providing both routine and innovative cardiac care exceptionally well. Mudassar Ahmed, MD, recently joined Georgia Heart Institute, the comprehensive heart and vascular service line of Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS), […]

Northeast Georgia Health System’s (NGHS) commitment to giving patients the highest-quality care for heart failure, stroke, diabetes and more is earning national recognition. The American Heart Association recently presented the system’s Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) hospitals with 21 awards through the national Get With The Guidelines program. The program honors excellence in quality improvement, […]

The nuclear cardiology team at NGMC Gainesville is pictured with the hospital’s new PET/CT machine. NGMC Gainesville provides the full range of nuclear cardiology services, including cardiac viability scans, stress tests, and testing for cardiac sarcoidosis.  Heart patients in northeast Georgia now have access to advanced testing and expert diagnosis for a rare, potentially fatal […]

NGMC endoscopy team and leadership celebrate 100 histotripsy procedures. Patients in Georgia continue to benefit from a groundbreaking, non-invasive cancer treatment option offered by Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS), which has now successfully completed over 100 histotripsy procedures. Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) Gainesville is the only hospital in the state—and one of the few […]

Two of the world’s leading credit rating agencies – Fitch Ratings (Fitch) and S&P Global Ratings (S&P) – recently upgraded Northeast Georgia Health System’s ratings from “A” to “A+” and issued a stable outlook for the organization. Key drivers that influence the ratings include market position, service area, payor mix, operating risk and flexibility, quality […]

Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) is one of the region’s largest employers, and now it’s being recognized among the greatest employers in the nation as well. Newsweek recently named NGHS to several of its America’s Greatest Workplaces lists for 2025. In addition to being named one of America’s Greatest Workplaces overall, NGHS earned specific recognition […]

Books for pediatric patients; clothes for children and teens in mental health crisis; and a therapeutic visual artist are just some of the ideas from Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) employees that will soon become a reality. Six employee ideas were recently approved for nearly $100,000 in total funding through the NGHS Foundation’s Change Grant program.  ​The program, which is funded by donations through the NGHS employee giving club called WATCH (We Are Targeting Community Health), allows employees to submit […]

A national nursing group now says people can trust they’re receiving the highest quality emergency care at any Northeast Georgia Health System hospital. Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) Habersham recently received the Emergency Nurses Association’s Lantern Award, which recognizes emergency departments that demonstrate exceptional and innovative performance in leadership, practice, education, advocacy and research. With […]

The northeast Georgia region’s first freestanding hospice house is one step closer to becoming a reality as members of the James H. Downey Society, a group of philanthropic physicians across Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS), pledged $100,000 toward the development.  ​“We are incredibly grateful to each physician in the Downey Society for this gift,” said Pierpont “Pepper” Brown, MD, chairman of the NGHS Foundation Board. “These physicians […]

An international group now says Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) hospitals provide excellent cardiac care based on a review of facilities and services. DNV awarded NGMC’s hospitals, which are part of Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS), its Cardiac Center of Excellence status following a survey last month. “This designation should help reassure people that NGMC […]

When patients arrive at Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) in Gainesville with traumatic injuries, they’re not only receiving the most advanced, expert care – they’re helping to improve health care for people around the world. NGMC recently enrolled the 170th patient in the Partial REBOA Outcomes Multicenter ProspecTive (PROMPT) study, whichshares data to improve outcomes for those critically injured patients. A pREBOA-PRO™ catheter was used to control life-threatening bleeding in the 170th patient, who arrived at the hospital’s Level I […]

People living in and around Braselton will have expanded access to emergency care starting in 2026, thanks in part to funds raised through the Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) Foundation’s annual Cheryl Shippey Memorial golf tournament. The tournament held last month at Legends at Chateau Elan raised more than $300,000, with funds going to support the expansion of the emergency department at Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) Braselton.  […]

One of the nation’s premier hospice programs is right here in northeast Georgia, according to a national survey. Hospice of Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) was recently named a Hospice Honors Elite recipient by HEALTHCAREfirst, which recognizes fewer than 5 percent of hospice organizations nationwide. “This recognition reflects our team’s deep commitment to caring for […]