As the year comes to an end, Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) has also ended the search for its next president and chief executive officer.
Matt Hanley, MD – whose 20+ year career includes first-hand experience from the bedside
to the boardroom – will take the reins from current NGHS CEO Carol Burrell in April.
“We all knew the CEO position would be very attractive based on NGHS’ history of
excellence, strong market position and rich culture – and Matt was selected after an exhaustive
national search that yielded dozens of impressive candidates,” said Spence Price, the chair of
NGHS’ Board of Trustees. “Carol has graciously agreed to continue to serve until Matt’s
targeted start date in April, which will give us all time to open Northeast Georgia Medical Center
Gainesville’s new Green Tower in February and work through a detailed plan to ensure a smooth
transition.”
Hanley started his career as an emergency medicine physician at Centra Health in
Lynchburg, Virginia. He progressed through several clinical leadership positions with Centra
Health and later Atrium Health in Charlotte, North Carolina, eventually becoming Atrium’s chief
medical officer.
In 2018, Hanley was recruited to SSM Health, a not-for-profit health system with 23
hospitals across four states. He first served as SSM’s chief clinical officer and later served as
interim president of the system’s operations in Wisconsin which included seven hospitals, nearly 100 additional care locations, 14,000 employees and medical staffs of more than 1,000 providers.
In 2022, Hanley transitioned to serve as Market President for Navvis Healthcare, a company
based in St. Louis, Missouri, that serves as a strategic and operating partner to help health
systems, health plans and physician groups transform to value-based care.
“Words can’t explain how blessed I feel to join NGHS, an organization with a passion for
excellence and a tradition of caring for the communities it serves,” Hanley said. “I look forward
to sharing my experience leading and working in large, multi-state health systems to help guide
NGHS as it continues to expand to meet the needs of the growing area.”
Burrell announced her plans to retire earlier this year, agreeing to stay on the job until her
successor was chosen and ready to take the helm. She joined NGHS in 1999 to lead the
organization’s network of primary care clinics, eventually became chief operating officer in 2004
and was named CEO in 2011.