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Marietta, GA— Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center has achieved a rare milestone in cardiac care, earning the highest possible rating—three stars—in four categories evaluated by the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS). This distinction places Wellstar Kennestone among the elite cardiac surgery programs in the U.S. and Canada.

The STS Star rating system is one of the most rigorous, verified and respected measures of quality in healthcare, based entirely on objective patient outcomes and implemented medical care processes. The latest analysis evaluates performance during a three-year period, from January 2022 to December 2024. Wellstar Kennestone earned the coveted three-star rating in the following key areas: isolated coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG, or open-heart surgery), aortic valve replacement (AVR), AVR + CABG, and multiprocedural cardiothoracic surgeries.

“This extraordinary recognition reflects the world-class quality of care offered by Wellstar,” said Lorrie Liang, senior vice president and hospital president of Wellstar Kennestone and Wellstar Windy Hill. “To achieve this gold standard, a health system must demonstrate both clinical excellence and rigorous standards for follow-up care. At Wellstar, we provide all of this, along with a warm, people-centered experience. It’s what we call ‘PeopleCare.’”

Previously, Wellstar Kennestone had earned three-star ratings in two categories. This latest achievement marks a significant advancement, solidifying its position as a national leader in cardiothoracic surgery.

“This new accomplishment speaks volumes about the skill, precision, and teamwork of our cardiothoracic team,” said Dr. Richard Myung, medical director of cardiothoracic surgery at Wellstar Kennestone. “We’re proud to deliver exceptional outcomes for patients from across the Southeast who have some of the most complex heart conditions.”

“This amazing recognition is about the great lengths we go to care for our patients, and why people travel from across the region to receive their care at Kennestone,” added Karrie Davis, Director of Wellstar Cardiothoracic Surgery Services and the Structural Heart and Valve Program. “We care for every patient like they’re a family member or close friend. That’s why we hold ourselves to the highest standards.”

STS ratings reflect not only surgical excellence, but also the quality of care patients receive in the critical 30-day period following surgery. These results highlight the importance of a multidisciplinary approach—one that includes surgeons, anesthesiologists, perfusionists, nurses, cardiologists, respiratory therapists, rehabilitation specialists, critical care specialists, hospitalists, advanced practice providers and many others.

“This achievement is a testament to the entire care continuum,” said Cindy Holcomb, Wellstar executive director of cardiovascular nursing at Wellstar Kennestone. “From the operating room to recovery and rehabilitation, every team member plays a vital role in delivering outstanding outcomes.”

With a team of more than 110 cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons, the Wellstar Center for Cardiovascular Care is home to one of Georgia’s most comprehensive cardiovascular programs. Its flagship, Wellstar Kennestone, was the first hospital in the state to earn the prestigious Comprehensive Cardiac Care Certification—the highest distinction awarded by the Joint Commission and the American Heart Association.

For more information about Heart Care at Wellstar, visit wellstar.org/heartcare.

For Phyllis Burgess, staying on top of her health made all the difference. When lung cancer showed up on a routine screening, she was ready—and so was her Wellstar care team.

Proactive primary care

When Phyllis retired after nearly 50 years as a bookkeeper, she looked forward to a slower pace and more time for herself. A breast cancer survivor and former smoker, she also wanted to be proactive about her health.

Encouraged by her Wellstar primary care physician, Dr. David Gose, Phyllis committed to regular lung cancer screening at Wellstar Paulding Medical Center —staying one step ahead of a disease that usually goes unnoticed until it's too late. Wellstar’s lung cancer screening program is a national leader in early detection, offering low-dose CT scans that help detect early-stage lung cancer before clinical signs or symptoms become evident.

Her first three CT scans came back clear. But on her fourth screening, doctors spotted something suspicious.

Quick answers with the STAT Clinic

Phyllis was quickly referred to the Wellstar Specialty Teams and Treatments (STAT) Clinic for Lung Cancer at Wellstar Paulding. The program quickly moves patients through screening to diagnosis and treatment with a multidisciplinary team of experts. Patients with lung and other chest cancers meet with multiple specialists in one place, often on the same day, to reduce delays and improve outcomes.

"Most of the time you don’t get two or three or four or five people on your case from the get-go,” said Phyllis. "But knowing that I had this group of qualified professionals looking at my tests, discussing what we need to do, how best to do it, when to do it—it’s very comforting."

At the Wellstar STAT Clinic, Phyllis’ care team included a thoracic surgeon, medical and radiation oncologists, pulmonologist and nurse navigators, who bring a highly personalized level of guidance and support to each patient and their family members.

"The support staff was just fabulous,” Phyllis said. "They’re like best friends. They’re there for you."

Behind the scenes, her care team was already working in sync to coordinate fast care.

“We plan patients’ appointments ahead of time, ordering multiple tests that will be necessary for the treatment decision-making. These can include PET scans, CT scans, MRIs and/or a pulmonary function test,” said Dr. Daniel Fortes, Wellstar chief of thoracic surgery. "We’re always gaining time in the patient’s overall treatment because we are anticipating and creating a plan as a team."

Dr. Fortes emphasized that timing matters when treating lung cancer. "We have data to show that if we delay treatment, even in early-stage cancers, we do decrease the chance of a cure,” he said. “The goal of the STAT Clinic is to get them the quickest we can into their final treatment plan."

Expert diagnosis and advanced surgery

To diagnose her cancer, Phyllis underwent a robotic bronchoscopy at Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center. The advanced procedure allowed the pulmonary team to examine her lungs and collect tissue samples.

The biopsy confirmed lung cancer. Having already caught one cancer early, Phyllis was grateful she had remained vigilant—keeping up with annual screenings and following through on care every step of the way.

"I am sort of a walking advertisement for early detection," she said. "My mammogram showed up with stage zero breast cancer. And I think they described the lung cancer as 1.1—very early, no metastasis. I’ve been very fortunate. These processes that are there for people to take advantage of saved my life.”

Phyllis returned to the STAT Clinic, where the same team who had evaluated her case before came together again to review her results and finalize her treatment plan.

"Every single patient who comes through our clinic is discussed collaboratively by a group of lung cancer specialists so we can make a fast, informed decision as a team," Dr. Fortes explained. "Because Phyllis had good overall health and an early-stage diagnosis, she was an excellent candidate for surgery.”

Soon after, Phyllis had a lobectomy at Wellstar Kennestone. Dr. Fortes performed the robotic-assisted surgery using the  da Vinci Surgical System to remove the affected part of her lung.

"They told me what they would do, what kind of incisions they’d be making and what I could expect in the way of healing," Phyllis said. “So, I went in feeling like this is not some strange, scary process.”

Dr. Fortes noted that complex cancer surgeries are best performed at major centers like Wellstar Kennestone. "Complex cancer care demands a comprehensive structure of care around the patient that includes more than just physicians and technology," he explained. "At the same time, we are continuing to expand our STAT Clinics to bring them closer to people's homes and with the aim of improving access for patients.”

Ongoing care, close to home

Phyllis’ lung cancer surgery took place the day before a snowstorm was forecasted to hit the metro Atlanta area. However, thanks to Dr. Fortes’ minimally invasive techniques—which resulted in less pain, less scarring and less blood loss—she was able to be discharged from the hospital that evening and avoid being stuck at the hospital for several days due to poor road conditions.

Phyllis described her recovery as “easy” and now feels great. She continues her follow-up care for both lung and breast cancer at the Wellstar Women’s Imaging Services at Wellstar Paulding, close to home.

“Wellstar Paulding feels like home, even when I’m dealing with someone who I haven’t met before,” she shared. “Whether it’s the receptionist or the admissions nurse—they’re always very, very friendly and helpful. There’s a family feel to it."

Hope, health and staying vigilant

As she settles into retirement, Phyllis is sharing her story to encourage others to set aside any fear or guilt and talk to their healthcare provider about lung cancer screening.

"Cancers are so insidious. You’re not going to just go, 'Gee, I don’t feel good; it must be cancer,'" she said. "There’s no big warning signs until it’s serious. Early detection is absolutely our best weapon. It’s our best defense.”

Dr. Fortes echoed the importance of early detection. "We can only cure lung cancers if we pick them up in an early stage. That’s why lung cancer is the No. 1 cancer killer in the world,” he said. “The only way we can change that is by diagnosing early. And then they are truly curable.”

Phyllis is thankful for Wellstar’s STAT Clinics that are designed to move quickly when it matters most.

Her advice to others considering treatment at a STAT Clinic? "Please do it. It’s the difference between life and death,” she urged. “At the same time, it’s in an environment where you don’t feel like you’re a sample in a petri dish. These are people, and they’re warm, and they care."

Learn more about who is eligible for lung cancer screening, find a location near you or schedule your lung cancer screening at Wellstar.

Learn more about STAT Clinics at Wellstar.

To say Cindy Mejia is “busy” is an understatement. 

She’s constantly crunching numbers as an accounting manager for a large research institute, trying out new recipes in her kitchen at her Roswell home, or trying to keep up with her little granddaughter (who just discovered how much fun it is to run).

But one Wednesday in September, Cindy woke up and reached for her computer, trying to get an early start to her workday. She felt a little groggy and couldn’t remember her password but didn’t immediately realize something was wrong.

Then she stood up. Her right arm and leg weren’t functioning, and that’s when Cindy knew what was happening—she was having a stroke.

“The first thing I thought was, ‘I need to get to Wellstar North Fulton right away,’” Cindy said. “I knew the hospital was nearby and has a good reputation.”

That decision ultimately saved her brain and life.

For Cindy, the critical care she needed was close to home, too—she lives four miles from Wellstar North Fulton Medical Center. There, her care team sprang into action, bringing her the treatment and peace of mind in a moment of crisis.

“From then on, I felt well taken care of,” Cindy said. “I was relieved, and I knew I was going to be OK.”

Cindy's close-to-home 'pit crew'

When a patient has a stroke, every second matters. Each minute that ticks by could be the difference between a permanent stroke and a return to routine. So at North Fulton, Cindy’s care team assembled quickly to save her brainpower.

“We’re like the pit crew on a NASCAR team,” said Dr. Ed Malcom, an emergency medicine physician at Wellstar North Fulton. “We have our emergency stroke care response down to a science. Everyone knows their role and works together to act quickly.”

Cindy was one of the first patients at Wellstar North Fulton to benefit from the hospital’s new addition to its stroke program. While the hospital has been a primary stroke center for years, the introduction of thrombectomies at the hospital gives patients a close-to-home, life-saving option for stroke care—saving them both time and brainpower.

A thrombectomy is a minimally invasive procedure used to unclog an artery, restoring blood flow to the brain and preventing further damage. It does not involve cutting of the brain but instead starts with the insertion of a catheter through the patient’s groin.

“Recently, we’ve developed our own capability right here in the North Fulton area to pull the clot out of the brain. That’s a giant leap forward,” Dr. Malcom explained. “It's good for the whole state because there's only a handful of hospitals that do that, and it's good for the residents that live in that North Fulton area to have a hospital so close. They don't have to take a helicopter ride somewhere to get that procedure done. It saves time.”

For Cindy, having that procedure just a few miles from her home, right when she needed it, helped save her brain function.

“If Cindy would have gone to a different hospital that didn't provide this care, then it would have been a long time before she was able to have blood flow restored to the brain,” Wellstar Neurosurgeon Dr. Benjamin Zussman said, explaining how critical each section was when it came to Cindy’s care. “The delay could have been 30 minutes or even an hour, and it's possible that she would have had permanent stroke, permanent damage to her brain instead of making the recovery she did.”

Offering thrombectomies at Wellstar North Fulton has brought long-needed stroke services to the area north of Atlanta, so patients like Cindy don’t have to travel into the city through busy traffic to get the treatment they need. 

Proximity to care is especially important for critical situations like strokes, said Dr. Rishi Gupta, director of stroke care at Wellstar.

“Any disease that is time-sensitive where patients need to get to the hospital quickly, get treated quickly—the geography is everything, particularly in bad weather when helicopters cannot fly,” he said, explaining how logistics can impact life-saving stroke care. “We need to be able to provide services in the communities the patients reside and the North Fulton program is uniquely positioned to do that.”

Signs of a stroke can include a loss of balance, dizziness, blurry vision or sudden vision loss, drooping in the face, arm or leg weakness, and difficulty speaking. Patients who experience any of those symptoms should call 911 and seek medical care right away. 

Cindy said she is glad she got to the hospital as soon as she could—“I am so thankful that I took quick action and that I had Wellstar so close.” At Wellstar North Fulton, she not only received the highest level of stroke care. Wellstar takes a multidisciplinary approach to stroke care, including specialists such as critical care specialists, neurologists, neurointerventionalists and physical therapists on the care team. 

“When you're feeling pretty healthy, you don't think a stroke can happen to you. It happens so quickly. You don't necessarily get a warning,” Cindy said, sharing the importance of listening to your body’s signals when it comes to health. “You can feel one way one day or one minute, and the next minute, it changes.”