For Earth Day this year, Wellstar Health System is making a difference for our environment and supporting our neighbors facing food insecurity. The recently launched Organic Recycling Program at the Wellstar Corporate Office (WCO) in Marietta has already diverted almost one ton of food waste from landfills, preventing over 675 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions.
Article Category: Newsroom
Wellstar Celebrates Earth Day with Programs Addressing Food Waste
Published on April 21, 2023
Last updated 12:05 PM April 21, 2023
Wellstar launches organic recycling program
The WCO Bistro prepares food for all of Wellstar’s health parks, hospital bistros and the entire system’s catering.
This recycling program at the WCO is a partnership between Wellstar Community Health, the Wellstar Foundation, Catalyst by Wellstar, Wellstar Strategic Community Development and Goodr, a sustainable food waste management and hunger relief company.
Food scraps like onion and banana peels are recycled and composted at Gainesville Waste and Recycle. Special bins are used to collect the scraps. Food compost helps the soil retain moisture and nutrients, reduces the need for pesticides and fertilizers, and sequesters carbon dioxide (storing it in the soil away from the atmosphere), according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
The benefits to our environment don’t stop there. Every three pounds of waste diverted creates one pound of soil, which means we have created about 650 pounds of healthy soil in one month. In a year, it’s also calculated that the carbon sequestered would be the same as 4.4 acres of forest – the size of over three football fields.
Wellstar also has other programs that reduce our carbon footprint and give back to our communities on a systemwide level.
The surplus food recovery program with Goodr launched in September 2020 at Wellstar Cobb Medical Center. Leftover food is donated to food delivery resources for underserved communities. The program has expanded to Wellstar Windy Hill Hospital and Paulding Medical Center, helping serve over 14,000 meals and preventing over 17,000 pounds of waste and nine thousand pounds of carbon emissions. Another partnership with Second Helpings Atlanta to deliver food from the Wellstar Corporate Office has already served 3,304 meals, diverting nearly two tons of food from landfills. Second Helpings Atlanta is a nonprofit organization working to reduce hunger and food waste in metro Atlanta.
As a nonprofit organization, Wellstar is committed to the health and well-being of our communities, and that commitment extends beyond the walls of our hospitals and health parks. For more information on how the Wellstar Foundation makes these programs possible, visit wellstar.org/foundation.
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CITA Partnership Blossoms for Wellstar with 12 New Employees
This article was originally published by Cobb County Schools April 18, 2025.
The historic and unique $2 million partnership between the Cobb Innovation and Technology Academy (CITA) and Wellstar Health System has flourished with twelve new employees for the healthcare company. A signing day celebrating the dozen students as trailblazers in a bold new initiative was held at CITA earlier this week. The soon-to-be Cobb graduates will quickly transition to being Wellstar employees in June and begin working directly in the healthcare industry.
"They're not just getting a high school diploma, they're getting industry certifications along with it," said Wellstar Director of Talent Acquisition Tuqwan Jordan. "We make sure that they are employed, that they are employable, and that they have the necessary skills. We want them to continue to develop in their education and reach their career goals. We are extremely proud of them."
"If you choose us, we choose you right back," agreed Evelyn Rosenthal, Wellstar assistant vice president of leader and employee development. "If you believe that you can reach the stars, Wellstar will bring the ladder to help you climb and get up there. We're going to support you and make Wellstar a career destination, meaning you start today and just stay with us until you retire."
Rosenthal stressed that this support went all the way to the top at Wellstar, including retiring President and CEO Candice L. Saunders. It is most fitting that the inaugural class of interns—now employees—enter the company as Saunders is exiting. She was behind the CITA partnership from day one, being a role model herself of what's possible at Wellstar. Saunders was a former nurse who worked her way up through leadership positions to become CEO in 2015.
Some students signed job offers for Wellstar Cobb Medical Center, while others signed with Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center. Some are pursuing nursing, some physical therapy, some emergency and triage, but all will benefit from Wellstar's decades of experience as a proven healthcare leader.
"The exposure to the industry that comes from this partnership is second to none," said CITA Director Dr. Tiffany Barney. "Wellstar has been a phenomenal partner for us. These students were so well-prepared that Wellstar said they felt comfortable hiring them on the spot after their interviews. That's a testament to our outstanding healthcare pathway teaching team at CITA.
"That endorsement of the CITA staff didn't stop with Dr. Barney. Joe Muturi, one of the students heading to Wellstar Cobb in June, also praised the technology academy and his experience there."
If I could scream at the top of the tallest mountain that you should join CITA, I would. I've gotten so many opportunities here as well as a bunch of certifications. Because of CITA and Wellstar, I am prepared to be the healthcare professional I always wanted to be!" Joe said with a smile.
Joe's classmate, Maritza Pacheco, will be heading to Wellstar Kennestone after graduation and was equally enthusiastic. "These weren't just experiences for a resume. They were moments that transformed how I see myself and my future," she said thoughtfully.
"One of the most stirring moments in my journey was using my bilingual abilities to translate for patients," Maritza continued. "That moment of connection when fear melts into understanding in a patient's eyes is a feeling I carry in my heart every day. This journey has given me something priceless: the certainty that I belong here."
Other Wellstar patients were equally impressed with the CITA students. Health Science teacher Sheri Drake described a few of the comments she received from both mentors and patients. "They said, 'Your students are so professional. Your students have the ability to communicate better than any other students we've seen. Your students have so much compassion and empathy for our patients." Drake revealed that some patients even went so far as to send thank-you notes to the school for the students' professional demeanor and attitude.
"This past year has been an amazing partnership, and I am so proud of each and every one of them," she concluded with emotion and joy in her voice about the inaugural class of Wellstar signees.
Congratulations to the following CITA students for signing with Wellstar Health System: Jossie Aguilar, Anahi Blanco, Christian Crane, Jose Guevara, Eden Iyare, Momodou Jallow, Monika Meneses, Joe Muturi, Ximena Paniagua, Aaliyah Reeves, Maritza Rojas and Jacqueline Vazquez.
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Wellstar MCG Health achieves medical first: Procedure offers hope for aneurysm patients
Neurosurgeons at Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center achieved a new surgical approach to treat an aneurysm behind the eye. It’s called endoscopic endonasal clipping of a superior ophthalmic aneurysm. The procedure for an aneurysm in this location is believed to be the first of its kind performed through the nose. This innovative technique offers a promising alternative for patients with complex aneurysms, particularly younger individuals.
Dr. M. Salman Ali, director of Skull Base, Pituitary and Surgical Neuro-oncology and assistant professor of Neurosurgery at Augusta University, led the team in this pioneering procedure performed at Wellstar MCG Health. An aneurysm, as Dr. Ali explains, is a “weak spot in a blood vessel in the brain,” prone to rupture, which can be life-threatening. Located near the eye, the superior ophthalmic aneurysm is a rare and challenging condition.
Image provided by Augusta University Medical College of Georgia Department of Neurosurgery.
“MCG Neurosurgery has been here for many years and we have a long tradition of teaching and research,” said Dr. Fernando L. Vale, neurosurgeon and Department of Neurosurgery chair at Augusta University. “We bring teams together, use advanced technology and pay close attention to the complex details for the better outcome of our patients. Working as a team can create better science.”
The best thing for the patient
Traditionally, superior ophthalmic aneurysms were treated with open brain surgery and significant brain tissue manipulation. While endovascular techniques with the use of stents—tubes that support weak artery walls—are now more common, they carry a recurrence risk and require lifelong medication.
This was a concern for Dr. Ali, whose patient was only 36 years old. Thus, he and his team proposed clipping the aneurysm through the nasal cavity instead. This minimally invasive technique offered a treatment with no incisions or brain tissue manipulation, a significantly lower recurrence rate and no need for long-term medication.
"I thought it was the best thing for the patient," Dr. Ali emphasized, explaining his decision to pursue this approach.
The procedure required a multidisciplinary team including ENT surgeons, interventional vascular surgeons, neuro-anesthesiologists and neuromonitoring specialists—and a carefully executed surgical plan.
“This could not have been possible without this wonderful team,” Dr. Ali said.
The patient, who found out about her aneurysm from routine imaging after a car accident, was discharged only two days after the surgery and is recovering well. Dr. Ali stressed the importance of offering patients options and empowering them to make informed decisions.
"This prioritizes the patient and surgical excellence,” he continued.
Dr. Ali hopes this procedure will become a treatment option for people with hard-to-reach aneurysms in the future, offering them a better quality of life.
Academic hospital paves way for doctors of the future
This achievement not only benefits patients but also serves as a valuable learning experience for medical residents and fellows who were in the operating room that day.
“Seeing is believing,” Dr. Ali said, highlighting the importance of academic medicine in advancing surgical techniques. “When students see someone else do it, why can’t they do it? It’s our duty to be better than the surgeons before us. The students now have more technology and better anatomical understanding—their outcomes will be even better than ours.”
Learn more about neurosurgery at Wellstar MCG Health Medical Center.
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Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center Renews Accreditation for Rectal Cancer Program
Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center has earned another three-year accreditation from the National Accreditation Program for Rectal Cancer (NAPRC), a quality program of the American College of Surgeons. This accreditation demonstrates our commitment to providing personalized, high-quality cancer care close to home for patients in Georgia.
To achieve voluntary NAPRC accreditation, a rectal center must demonstrate compliance with the NAPRC standards addressing program management, clinical services and quality improvement for patients. Centers are required to establish a multidisciplinary rectal cancer team that includes clinical representatives from surgery, pathology, radiology, radiation oncology and medical oncology.
At Wellstar, rectal cancer patients have a multidisciplinary team on their side through every step of treatment. Each patient works with a nurse navigator to schedule appointments with specialists. Patients meet with a medical oncologist, as well as a surgical oncologist or colorectal surgeon. Imaging and lab tests are reviewed by a multidisciplinary board of rectal cancer physicians, efficiently providing patients with input from several experts in cancer care. During the course of treatment, that multidisciplinary board will continue to follow the patient and discuss the best next steps, tailoring care to fit each patient’s individual needs.
Additionally, the program at Wellstar Kennestone met standards addressing the clinical services that the rectal cancer program provides, including Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA testing), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Computerized Tomography (CT) imaging for cancer staging, which allow patients to start treatment within a defined timeframe. Rectal cancer programs accredited by the NAPRC undergo a site visit every three years and are also accredited by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer.
“Our patients are surrounded by a team of experienced rectal cancer experts who provide the highest level of personalized care,” said Wellstar Surgical Oncologist Dr. Sahir Shroff, who serves as the rectal cancer program chair. “We are proud to be the first medical center in metro Atlanta to receive this important accreditation. Our pioneering efforts to adhere to the most rigorous standards and combine the latest technologies and techniques help us achieve excellence in rectal cancer care for our patients.”
Accreditation by the NAPRC is granted only to those programs that are committed to providing the best possible care to patients with rectal cancer. The NAPRC provides the structure and resources to develop and operate a high-quality rectal center. Accredited programs follow a model for organizing and managing a rectal center to ensure multidisciplinary, integrated, comprehensive rectal cancer services. Wellstar Kennestone earned its first accreditation in 2022.