Special Publication of
Burrell
The life, career, and legacy of the CEO who transformed Northeast Georgia Health System and the region’s healthcare
Carol
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Humble Beginnings, Deep Roots
By JEFF GILL
Carol Burrell wasn’t the best player on her high school basketball team, but the experience gave her les sons she has clung to throughout her life.
“It really taught me a lot about working hard and understanding that teamwork aspect,” she said. “Those are things that have really meant more to me here at Northeast Georgia Health System than, I think, anywhere else throughout my entire career.”
Burrell, 68, spent some time recently reflecting on her life and career as she prepares to retire as president and CEO of the Gainesville-based health system, overseeing 13,000 employees.
In her years with the health system, she’s been responsible for many construction programs and service expansions – most recently, the Feb. 8 opening of a new tower featuring patient rooms and a new emergency department.
In humble beginnings, Burrell grew up in Carl, a tiny town in Barrow County, raised to be “salt of the earth” in a family with a strong Christian faith.
Her father, a career electrician at the General Motors plant in Doraville, wanted his daughter
to get a trade for one simple reason. “I’d be sure to have a job,” she said.
It was a simple lifestyle, one that included her mother making all the clothes for her and her two younger sisters and encouraging Carol to play basketball. “I was a little bit of an introvert, ironically,” Burrell said. “My mother also was an
work ethic” and his serving on the local hospital board.
“I loved science and when I was a (high school) senior, decided to go into medical technology in the laboratory field,” Burrell said.
I loved science and when I was a (high school) senior, decided to go into medical technology in the laboratory field.
Carol Burrell
introvert, but she would push me.”
With her grandmother living next door, Burrell said she “had a great opportunity to grow up with friends all through school.”
She recalled her father’s “very strong
Plus, she added, she would be the first in her family to earn a four-year degree. Burrell would go on to earn her undergraduate degree at Georgia Southern College and Emory University Hospital.
Inspiration came from others in her community, including her doctor.
“I can remember him pulling me up in the stands one night after a basketball game – I was probably a junior or senior – and he said, ‘You know, Carol, I want you to go and get your educa-
Photos courtesy of NGHS
tion, but don’t forget about us here. I want you to come back and be a part of the community.”
“Well, it took me a number of years for that to happen, but he actually was still alive when NGHS bought Barrow Regional Medical Center,” Burrell said.
Lifelong friend Jackie Wallace, who retired as United Way of Hall County president in 2016, said she and Burrell took different paths after high school, with Burrell’s career taking her to Florida.
The pair reunited when Burrell returned to the area in the late
“It has been just a great joy for me, for us, to reconnect in this stage of our lives and ... become even closer friends through the years,” Wallace said. “We’ve had a lot of opportunity to be a part of each others’ lives, and I’m very grateful for that.”
Even in Burrell’s earlier days, “we knew she was going to be a rock star,” Wallace said. “That was apparent even when we were in high school.”
She said she believes her friend, as she retires, may spend some time relaxing in the front porch rocking chair –but not much.
Burrell “certainly is going to still have a great interest in not only Hall County but in all of Northeast Georgia,” Wallace
said. “Probably better than a lot of people, she knows the potential and the growth that’s coming our way.
“And because her children and her grandchildren are here, she obviously has a very vested interest in making sure that Hall County and this area remain the kind of community it’s always been –where people care about their neighbors, where people are involved in the community.”
Starting the Journey: Be Better Tomorrow than You are Today
By JEFF GILL
Carol Burrell loved biology and science, but as a high school student, “I didn’t really know what to do with it.”
She knew she wanted to go to college and then she got further influenced after her father introduced her to a lab technician at Barrow County Hospital.
“That’s how I found out what medical technology was,” Burrell said, reflecting on a career that would lead to her becoming president and CEO of the Gainesville-based Northeast Georgia Health System.
After graduating from college, she started her career as a medical technologist in the late 1970s.
“Even though I only did it for three years, it was that first steppingstone, as I’ve liked to say, that started my entire career,” Burrell said.
However, “I realized pretty quickly I wasn’t content to do the same thing every day in a routine,” Burrell said. “I found out I was more outgoing, more of an extrovert than I thought I was. And so, I got into pharmaceutical sales and got some incredible training.”
“I’ve joked over the years, I used to sell Maalox, now I take it,” she said.
A pathologist who had offered Burrell a job leading a new business venture was an early influence on her career. He told her that her thoroughness on a job task had “made a mark on me.”
“The takeaway I have had all these many years is even in the little things, somebody is always watching,” she said. “What had an impact on him ultimately had an impact on me and my career moving forward.”
A couple of people inspired her to pursue healthcare leadership – which she did, returning to school to complete a master’s degree in healthcare administration at Central Michigan University.
Burrell served as a vice president at St. Vincent’s Health System in Jacksonville, Fla., before being recruited to Northeast Georgia Health System in 1999 to work with what was then called the Primary Care Network.
In 1998, she met John Ferguson, an iconic figure in Hall County health care who died in 2022. He was named the Hall County Hospital administrator in 1968 and retired as NGHS CEO in 2004.
“He taught me so much, so much,” Burrell said.
She said she remembered telling Ferguson she had formed a plan after evaluating the Primary Care Network.
“He just kinda nodded and moved on,” Burrell said. “And then, he came back probably three days later, and said, ‘Carol, I hear what you’re saying, but here are the things you’ve got to think about. If you go in and you do this, these are going to be the unintended consequences.’”
He continued: “I think you’re right, but you’ve got to come up with a plan on how to make that happen so that at the end, it’s a positive result and people understand the why. That lesson, I carry on to today.”
Ferguson “left an incredible foundation,” Burrell said. “He and LeTrell Simpson (former NGHS vice president of corporate development) really crafted the vision of being a regional health care provider, having physician practices throughout the region and working in partnership with those small hospitals.”
Burrell understood the regional push “from the beginning,” Simpson said.
Such efforts involve many people – “in this case, hundreds of people,” she added. “It’s collaborative and nobody appreciates that more than Carol.”
Burrell was promoted to executive vice president and chief operating officer in 2004. She
Photos courtesy of NGHS Carol, LeTrell Simpson, and Nancy Colston
became interim CEO in November 2010 before the interim tag was lifted.
A major high point for Burrell before becoming Northeast Georgia Health System’s CEO in June 2011 was leading an effort to recruit the first specialty physicians NGHS would employ.
“In the mid-2000s, there were some struggles with some coverage, primarily it started because we didn’t have sufficient ER coverage in neurology as an example,” Burrell said.
In 2008, the system “really envisioned the future of having an integrated health care delivery model, so you had your specialists working with primary care while working with independent physicians as well,” she said.
“It was an evolution – a somewhat painful transition, because you still had independent medical staff, and they viewed the system hiring specialists as a threat to them,” Burrell said. “We managed it over the years, and it has come full circle today.”
Another major endeavor that came under Burrell’s watch as COO was the opening of the North Patient Tower – now known as the Blue Tower under a new campuswide color code system – in 2009.
The $180 million structure was the result of the system – and the Hall area’s – growth.
“I feel like we have had more patients than beds since the day I got here,” Burrell said.
There had been a debate concerning financing the project, and “we made the decision that it was absolutely critical for us to get it done,” Burrell said. “And so, we went through a cost reduction that was called ‘Green Dollar.’ It was painful, but it set the course for us to be able to build that tower.”
The North Patient Tower may have been a big expense, but with that project, Burrell also helped “usher in a design concept that you see throughout all our facilities now,” said Melissa Tymchuk, chief strategy officer and
chief of staff to the president and CEO.
The designs are based on “trying to bring a lot of the outdoors in as far as nature and colors that are reminiscent of Northeast Georgia,” she said.
Burrell said her “pinnacle moment” at NGHS came in 2010, when she was named interim CEO.
“I had been with the organization for a number of years and knew a lot of people. I’d seen (the system) but also understood what it was going to take for it to move forward,” Burrell said.
She considered two key administrators at the time – Tony Herdener and Tracy Vardeman – and herself as part of a “triad.” She said she realized she could, as interim, “kind of hold it together or you act like you’re in the role and push it forward.
“We forged ahead with the team that was here at the time and made some pretty big decisions,” including moving forward with building Northeast Georgia Medical Center Braselton, which has become a huge campus of its own with a $384 million-plus expansion currently underway.
Burrell added, “Knowing the growth that was ahead of us, having that foundation of our values and our core competencies, was probably one of the best early decisions that I made, not realizing
how much it was going to impact my leadership and approach as the CEO.”
Herdener, who was chief financial officer until retiring in 2018, said of Burrell, “Throughout her career, she’s had some monumental challenges. Contracts with insurance companies is the one that is out in the public, but there’s hundreds of big decisions inside the organizations.
“And one thing about health care is it’s amazingly diverse, amazingly relational, and Carol had the ability to build that trust, to be authentic.”
Tracy Vardeman, who retired in 2022 as chief strategy executive, also recalled the “triad,” saying, “we had to be completely in step because we’re going to the bond markets.
“We were working with the board. We had to really paint a cohesive picture of what we thought the future was going to be and be very honest about where we might have any weaknesses that could be a threat to some of those plans.”
So how does Burrell envision the system moving forward as she wraps up her time in the system? Being a “learning organization of never being satisfied – always being better tomorrow than you are today,” she said.
Carol oversaw development of NGMC Gainesville’s Blue Tower, which opened as the North Patient Tower in 2009
Letter from Mary Lynn Coyle
It was during my tenure as Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) Board Chair that we promoted Carol to be CEO. Having worked alongside her for 20+ years while serving on the board and various committees, I find it impossible to condense my praise relative to her accomplishments and what she has meant to me personally, but I’ll try my best.
Carol is an extraordinary woman who wears many hats and wears each of them well. She is a wife, mother, grandmother, mentor, friend, and community/state leader who is also the CEO of NGHS – an organization that she has put at the national forefront of health care.
The numbers reflecting size, scope, and growth of the organization – plus the accolades and awards she has received – speak volumes about
her leadership. Most importantly, Carol knows how critical it is to build a foundation of values that guide an organization. Early in her tenure as CEO, she led an organization-wide process to clarify NGHS’ core values and explicitly define them for all employees to help them when making difficult decisions:
• Respectful Compassion – I impact life’s most sacred moments.
• Deep Interdependence – I can’t do my job without you.
• Responsible Stewardship – What I do ensures tomorrow.
• Passion for Excellence – I bring my best every day.
Carol led with tenacity, empathy, and courage. I’ve witnessed firsthand her high level of personal integrity. Being at the helm of an organization the size of NGHS in the challenging environment of health care requires tough decisions, some of which are not popular and none of which is easy.
Carol consistently navigated these rough waters with sound judgement, open perspective, and an inner compass that guided her to make the best decisions for those she holds most valuable: patients and their families, physicians, employees, and the communities we serve.
What I admire most about Carol is her ability to lead equally with her head and her heart, to always put patients first with careful attention to responsible stewardship, and – in every decision –to do the right thing for the right reasons for the betterment of our patients, our health system, our community and our state.
I am so very proud of Carol and so very grateful for her leadership. What a difference she’s made in our lives. Thank you, Carol, and congratulations on your well-deserved retirement!
Congrats Carol on your retirement!
Best wishes from the McGarity's Team.
Mary Lynn Coyle NGHS Board Member and Former Chair
Longstreet
Photos courtesy of NGHS
Photos courtesy of NGHS
The People’s CEO: 14 Years of Leading with Innovation and Passion
Carol Burrell never set out to be a CEO. In fact, when a colleague predicted in 1999 that she would one day lead Northeast Georgia Health System, she
“When she said that to me, I cackled,” Burrell recalled. “I didn’t even know what CEO stood for,” she joked.
But in 2011, Burrell stepped into the role and spent the next 14 years transforming NGHS into one of the most well-respected health systems in Georgia.
A legacy of growth and expansion
Under her leadership, the organization grew from a single hospital to a fivehospital system. Its economic impact increased from $1 billion to $7.5 billion. The number of employees nearly tripled from 4,700 to more than 12,000, making it the
county’s largest employer. When Burrell took the helm, the system employed fewer than 30 physicians. Today, it employs more than 550.
NGHS didn’t just expand — it became a powerhouse, “the envy of the state,” as Burrell put it. Burrell led the opening of a 100-bed Braselton campus in 2015 and the acquisition of Barrow Regional Medical Center in 2017. When Chestatee Regional Hospital in Dahlonega closed in 2018 amid a billing scandal, Burrell worked with the University of North Georgia and local elected officials to convince the University System’s Board of Regents to purchase the hospital to ensure that patients in Lumpkin County didn’t go without care. NGHS stepped in to save another failing hospital in rural northeast Georgia and purchased Habersham Medical Center in 2023, making it the system’s fifth hospital.
Throughout her tenure, Burrell oversaw expansion of services that led to accolades, including having Georgia’s number one heart program for more than 10 years in a row; starting its Graduate Medical Education program in 2019 which is now among the largest programs in state; and NGMC Gainesville becoming one of just six Level I Trauma Centers in the state.
‘She knows the names of every employee’
But the way Burrell and others see it, her legacy isn’t defined by the numbers or the physical expansion of the health
system. It’s defined by the culture she built, the bold decisions she made and the way she led — not from an ivory tower, but from the hospital floors.
“It’s remarkable, if you walk around the hospital with her, how many people she knows by first name,” said RK Whitehead, former chairman of NGHS’ Board of Trustees.
It’s remarkable, if you walk around the hospital with her, how many people she knows by first name.
RK Whitehead
is to connect with the frontline staff, with the person that’s cleaning the floors.”
Core values: The foundation of Burrell’s leadership
As she prepares for retirement, many people have asked Burrell what legacy she thinks she will leave.
The growth of the health system and its ability to serve the region’s growing population come to mind, but what she returns to time and again are the core values — respectful compassion, deep interdependence, responsible stewardship, and passion for excellence — that she helped develop in 2013 and has fostered since.
were already at capacity and knew we needed additional beds. We could not have continued to function in this ER here,” she said, referring to NGMC Gainesville.
And Burrell didn’t manage the crisis from behind a desk.
“During COVID, she was out there moving patients around,” Whitehead said. “She actually rolled her sleeves up and dove in, along with all the other senior staff, to help figure out how we could manage through the pandemic.”
Likewise, said Mohak Davé, MD, chief of emergency medicine, “When she walks down to the hospital cafeteria, she knows the names of every employee.”
“She’s a very personable and very genuine person who is not afraid to talk with people at any level,” said Tim Scully, MD, co-founder and first president of Northeast Georgia Heart Center. “As opposed to some people who lead from the top down, I think she’s a consensus builder and is able to consider all sides of an issue before moving forward.”
Although Burrell has been described as a natural leader, she has sometimes found it difficult to reconcile her humble upbringing with her role as CEO.
“I have always seen myself as just another person, which actually has been somewhat challenging for me,” she said. “When you are in a senior-level position, like a CEO, others often look at you as being something untouchable. And one of the things that I have always tried to do
“What’s important to me in my legacy are the core values and the core competencies — how we conduct ourselves,” she said. “They’ll get you through any crisis, and there will be more crises. That’s what got us through COVID. We didn’t create those in COVID. Those were foundational, and that’s what helped us get through that crisis. It’s what’s helped us get through everything.”
Rolling up her sleeves during the COVID-19 crisis
The COVID-19 pandemic tested healthcare leaders worldwide, and Burrell met the challenge head-on. While some hospital systems halted expansion projects, NGHS forged ahead with the construction of the Green Tower.
“Many organizations likely would have said, ‘Let’s just stop that. We’re going to deal with where we are, and then we’ll pick it back up later,’” Burrell recalled. But NGHS leadership “made the very courageous decision” to move ahead, she said.
It was a fork-in-the-road moment and may have been one of the most consequential decisions in the history of the health system.
“I don’t know if we would still be independent today had we not done that,” Burrell said. “Even before COVID, we
“She was not directing from an ivory tower,” said Antonio Rios, MD, NGHS’ chief of population health. “She was walking the floors during COVID,” and taking medical samples to the lab herself.
She was not directing from an ivory tower. She was walking the floors during COVID, and taking medical samples to the lab herself.
Antonio Rios, MD
Burrell was a strong leader but was not afraid to wear her heart on her sleeve.
“I knew I had to stand up strong for them,” she said of NGHS’ employees. “But I was nervous. I didn’t know what the future would hold, and so that emotion came through when I held Town Hall meetings for all employees. I mean, my voice would shake, I’d tear up.”
A pivotal test as CEO: The transition from Paragon to Epic One of Burrell’s most difficult tests
came early in her tenure during the transition from an electronic medical record (EMR) system called Paragon to the EMR system NGHS uses today (called Epic).
The Paragon system had cost tens of millions, but it was almost immediately clear it wasn’t meeting NGHS’ needs.
“She had to have the courage to go to the board and say, ‘We made a mistake, this is not the system we need,’” said Mary Martin, former chief nursing informatics officer. “And if I had to say there was one telling moment where her leadership and her courage came through, it was at that time, because it took a lot of courage for her to do that.”
“I really do think it was one of the most — no pun intended, but it was an epic demonstration of her leadership,” Dr. Davé said. “Our care is better coordinated. Information sharing is much easier than it would have been had we stuck with the Paragon system.”
Under Burrell’s leadership, NGHS has also positioned itself at the forefront of medical innovation. In 2024, NGMC Gainesville became the first hospital in Georgia to acquire the da Vinci 5 surgical robot. And later that year, it became the only hospital in the state and one of the few in the nation to offer histotripsy, a groundbreaking, non-invasive treatment for tumors.
A trailblazer for women in leadership
In an industry where female CEOs remain the exception, Burrell has been a trailblazer.
“It wasn’t like, ‘I’m a woman and I’m going to prove to men I can do it,’” she said. “Some of my greatest supporters have been men. What I have come to appreciate, though, is what me being in this role as a woman has said to so many others, because not everybody has the same attitude and confidence that I had. I’ve had many people tell me that to see me in that role
She had to have the courage to go to the board and say, ‘We made a mistake, this is not the system we need.’
Mary Martin
gives them hope and aspirations.”
When asked who has inspired her, she mentioned Katherine Graham, publisher of the Washington Post during the Watergate scandal and the first-ever female CEO of a Fortune 500 company. “When she was put in the position of having to decide if they were going to share the Watergate tapes or not, she went back to the mission and the values that her father had established, and that resonated with me incredibly,” Burrell said.
She also looked up to Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. “She was upset with her parents that she didn’t get the kind of college education and academic education she wanted, but what they gave her was integrity,” she said. “There’s a lot to experience and a lot to skill set, … but it’s always coming back to those core
tenets that I think is what helped get me through.”
Even in the final months of her tenure, Burrell has not rested on her laurels. For example, she pushed for the planned employment of Longstreet Clinic announced at the beginning of the year, which will allow NGHS to care for more patients and strengthen its position in the healthcare market.
“It would have been easy to sort of just kick that can down the road, so to speak, because it was a tremendous amount of work,” Whitehead said. “She could have left that to Matt Hanley, MD, our new CEO, to handle, but I think she believes it’s her obligation to make sure that she is leaving the system in the best possible shape.”
She could have left that to Matt Hanley, MD, our new CEO, to handle, but I think she believes it’s her obligation to make sure that she is leaving the system in the best possible shape.
RK Whitehead
Congratulations, Carol! You’ve made a lasting impact on our community. Thank you for your selfless service.
Leaving a Legacy of Growth and Care
By DENISE ETHERIDGE
Carol Burrell is at peace with her decision to retire.
The longtime CEO will retire after 26 years with Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS), including more than 14 years as CEO.
She’s looking forward to spending more time with family and pursuing personal passions.
“It’s time for the next leader to come in and take this organization to the next level,” Burrell said.
Burrell, 68, who began considering retirement in January 2020, delayed her plans to see key projects to completion, such as the Green Tower at Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) Gainesville. The 927,000-square-foot tower at 743 Spring St. opened in February, featuring a new emergency room, a rooftop helipad, expanded heart & vascular services, life-saving stroke care, 150 new inpatient beds, and a parking deck. The $538 million expansion marked a major milestone for the health system.
Under Burrell’s leadership, NGHS also opened the NGMC Braselton campus in 2015, which it continues to expand. The system also added hospitals in Barrow, Lumpkin and Habersham counties. Now NGHS is constructing a Rehabilitation Institute on Limestone Parkway in Gainesville, which is set to open later this year, and is also planning to break ground on a free-standing Hospice House in Gainesville later this year. Burrell said she wanted to ensure a smooth transition for her successor.
Matt Hanley, MD, 55, who served as chief market executive for St. Louis-based Navvis Healthcare, will succeed Burrell as CEO in April. NGHS Board Chair Spence
Price described Hanley as similar to Burrell in his leadership style, noting both leaders possess a quiet confidence and prioritize the team and organization over personal recognition.
A New Chapter
Burrell plans to embrace a more relaxed schedule in retirement, focusing on activities like gardening, playing the piano, horseback riding, exercising, and entertaining.
It’s time for the next leader to come in and take this organization to the next level.
Carol Burrell
Photos courtesy of NGHS
Carol with her daughter (Bradee), husband (Steve) and son (Lee)
“I love to cook,” she said, adding that she’s involved in two supper clubs, a group of five close couples who jokingly call themselves “Incognito,” and a group of friends called In Vino Veritas that enjoys quarterly wine tastings and dinner.
She also plans to travel with family members, starting with a trip to Italy in June, followed by visits to Switzerland, Munich, and Vienna.
Ongoing Community Involvement
Burrell’s lifelong friend, Jackie Wallace, said Burrell will continue to contribute to the community through volunteer work. Burrell currently serves on the Arts Council Board of Directors and is involved in planning the renovation of Gainesville’s old First United Methodist Church into a performing arts venue.
“She has the heart and compassion for the community,” Wallace said. “Carol served on our board, and I served on hers.”
Carol and her close friends
Carol with Philip Wilheit and Lorry Schrage
Photos courtesy of NGHS
Carol with Jackie Wallace, Anthony Williamson, Benny Bagwell and Mary Lynn Coyle
She took everything in her stride whether it was ups or downs. She was humble about all her awards and accolades.
Lee Burrell
Family Time
Burrell’s adult children, Bradee Aderholt, 34, and Lee Burrell, 39, are excited about spending more time with their mother. Aderholt, a nurse practitioner with two young children, said her mom has always been a constant source of inspiration.
“She never sits,” Aderholt said. “To have a mom like her is... well, what else can you ask for?”
Lee Burrell, who works in technology, said he didn’t fully appreciate his mother’s professional achievements until later in life. He recalled how she balanced a demanding career while still making homecooked meals for the family.
“She took everything in her stride whether it was ups or downs,” he said. “She was humble about all her awards and accolades.”
Carol was inducted into Junior Achievement’s Hall of Fame as a Laureate 2024.
The Georgia Alliance of Community Hospitals surprised Carol with its CEO of the Year Award in 2024
NGHS Board Chair Spence Price recognizes Carol during a 2024 holiday gathering
Carol receives the Georgia Alliance of Community Hospital’s CEO of the Year Award
Carol and Gov. Nathan Deal
