Candice L. Saunders leads Wellstar, one of Georgia’s largest and most integrated nonprofit health systems with more than 300 locations, including 11 hospitals and 25,000 team members. Drawing on her background as a critical care nurse, Saunders has become a nationally recognized leader in improving community access to vital healthcare needs and enhancing the patient care experience. She has received leadership recognition from numerous organizations, including being named to Modern Healthcare’s Top 25 Women Leaders, Atlanta Magazine’s 500 Most Powerful Leaders, The Atlantan Magazine’s Top 25 Most Influential Atlantans, and Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Most Admired CEOs.

Leo Reichert provides advice and counsel to Wellstar’s Board of Trustees and senior leadership team. He leads the legal team for the System and its affiliates, and also leads Wellstar’s government relations efforts. His prior experience includes representing hospitals, physicians, and other healthcare providers in a broad range of litigation and regulatory matters. Reichert has been named a Georgia Superlawyer for Healthcare Law and has been listed in Chambers USA, Guide to America’s Leading Lawyers for Business.

Jim Budzinski oversees the finances for Wellstar, ensuring financial stability so that the System can continue to fulfill its role and responsibility as a leading nonprofit provider of community outreach, resources, and education while providing compassionate, medical expert care to Georgians. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and has received numerous professional and leadership awards. Budzinski is active in the community and serves as a trustee on the boards of various nonprofit organizations, including MUST Ministries and Tommy Nobis Center.

Kem Mullins creates growth strategies and partnerships for Wellstar, and he leads the System’s expansive network of outpatient facilities. He analyzes and explores new business opportunities based on industry forces, emerging competition, and shifts in a variety of local markets. Mullins has been with Wellstar since April 2012 and brings 25 years of healthcare administration experience. He applies his strong business development skills in areas such as physician relations, team building, healthcare management, and managed care. Mullins is a long-standing fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

David Jones supports the advancement of organizational effectiveness, and a positive employee relations environment throughout Wellstar’s workforce of approximately 25,000. Drawing on his nearly 30 years of experience in HR leadership positions in the healthcare, academic, and corporate sectors, Jones provides senior executive leadership and oversight for the delivery of Wellstar’s human capital strategy, culture design, workforce planning and development, and diversity and inclusion. Many at Wellstar know him as the Chief Joy Officer. In 2021, Great Place to Work® and Fortune named Wellstar one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For®.

Dr. Mary Chatman oversees operations for five hospitals, five health parks and 40+ outpatient departments, and manages a team of more than 10,000, including finance, human resources, nursing, operations, and medical staff. Having started her career as a nursing assistant, Chatman is committed to providing patient-centered care and addressing vital community needs. She has been recognized locally and nationally as a strong patient advocate, leader and community partner. She is a former Cobb County Citizen of the Year; was chosen as an examiner and Fellow with the National Baldrige Performance Excellence Program and was recently honored in Atlanta Magazine’s 2021 “Women Making A Mark.”

Dr. Hank Capps advances the System’s digital strategy to design the healthcare system of the future while evolving and optimizing operational technology-based platforms, processes, and partnerships. His team identifies gaps and opportunities in healthcare delivery, operational excellence, and consumer engagement to create solutions that enhance and transform the healthcare experience. Capps is the lead architect for Catalyst by Wellstar, the first-of-its-kind global digital health and innovation center created and operated within a health system to holistically address healthcare disruption by harnessing problems, solutions, investments, and partnerships across industries.

Susan Grant fosters Wellstar’s culture of people-centered care and drives service excellence through digital interactions and at our world-class care sites. She is focused on collaborating to promote enterprise-wide care model innovation, including building holistic and curated experiences that advance the continued development and growth of Wellstar’s ecosystem of care powered by a digital operating model. Susan is very active in the nursing community and currently serves as the chair-elect of the Building Health Systems Excellence expert panel with the American Academy of Nursing. She is also a member of the Nurse Executive Council for the Beryl Institute and serves on the Board of Directors for the Daisy Foundation Board.

Jill Case-Wirth advances the System’s strategic direction of nursing, fostering a culture of safety, high reliability, and top decile quality performance, leading 7,300 nurses across Wellstar’s 300 locations. As a nurse who has served at the bedside, she is passionate about advancing the role of nursing to transform patient care and achieve performance excellence. She has been nationally recognized for creating impactful partnerships at the intersection of education and practice to grow the nursing workforce. Throughout her career she has served on state and national councils and was most recently chosen as a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.

Beth Kost oversees Wellstar’s compliance program, including regulatory compliance, privacy, and cybersecurity. She fosters a culture of ethical conduct and business practices among team members and across multiple enterprise operational departments, and provides oversight in the areas of medical coding, health information management, and clinical documentation improvement. Kost has been an active member of professional and community organizations and is currently a member of the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce and the Honorary Commanders Association.

Julie Teer oversees Wellstar’s philanthropic strategy and partnerships with focus on elevating efforts to secure vital resources for Wellstar Health System. As lead strategist, Teer is responsible for building strategies that align community engagement and education with philanthropic efforts; driving strategic investments to fuel and accelerate Wellstar’s nonprofit mission; and developing strong long-term relationships with individuals, foundations, corporate donors, and funders. Teer has more than 20 years of diverse experience and expertise in nonprofit and national political fundraising, communications, and government relations.

Le Joyce Naylor leads the systemwide thought leadership, strategic planning, and implementation of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at Wellstar. Bringing 15 years of experience in the field of healthcare, she is a skilled and dedicated leader who collaborates with others across the System to advance DE&I strategies and programs that positively impact and amplify the voices of the communities that Wellstar serves. Naylor guides Wellstar in the commitment to prioritize, grow and deepen DE&I and cultural competence initiatives.