Union General Hospital is a

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

in the mountains of North

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, United States, and it is the public hospital for the city of Blairsville and Union County. Operated by the Union County Hospital Authority, it is located in the northeast section of the city.

History

Union County Clinic was established in 1959 as an outpatient treatment center. After an expansion in 1961 it was renamed Union General Hospital. In 1972 the hospital faced competition from Blairsville General Hospital. Union General struggled to remain open and took a loan from Union County Bank to meet payroll. When Blairsville General closed in 1976 the Union General Hospital Authority obtained the building and reopened it in 1980 as Union General Hospital. In 2006 Union General added a $30-million, expansion with an additional $4 million in new equipment. The addition included new clinical laboratory, critical care, emergency, and diagnostic imaging departments, plus four operating rooms and 45 in-patient rooms. A Cardio-Pulmonary Rehabilitation Unit opened in December 2014. The hospital opened a new orthopedic wing in 2018. In 2023, Union General Hospital completed a , three-story medical office building for orthopedics, sports medicine, and women’s health. A new three-story medical office building opened at Union General Hospital in 2023

A new three-story medical office building opened at Union General Hospital in 2023

Union General Hospital also operates the 150-bed, Union County Nursing Home and a clinic in nearby Young Harris. In 1999, Union General acquired the 13-bed Chatuge Regional Hospital in neighboring

Hiawassee Hiawassee is the county seat of Towns County, Georgia, United States. The population was 981 at the 2020 census. Its name is derived from the Cherokee—or perhaps Creek—word ''Ayuhwasi'', which means meadow, (A variant spelling, "Hiwassee, ...

and its 112-bed nursing home. That hospital opened in 1951 as Lee M. Happ Jr. Memorial Hospital. It became Towns County Hospital in 1960 and received its current name in 1994. Union General opened a $2 million primary care facility in

Hayesville, North Carolina Hayesville is a town in Clay County, North Carolina, Clay County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 311 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census. It is the county seat of Clay County. History Quanassee This was long an ...

in 2020. As of 2023, the hospital had approximately 1,200 employees across all of its facilities. In 2016, Union General’s CEO, John Michael Gowder, Emergency Room Director David Gowder and family practice doctor James Heaton were arrested on federal charges of illegally prescribing thousands of prescription pain medicines between 2011 and 2015. They were found guilty in 2019.

Accolades

Union General Hospital has thrice been named Georgia Rural Hospital of the Year. In 1994 it was named one of the top 10 rural hospitals in the United States. Union General was named the 2016 Hospital of the Year by HomeTown Health. In 2018, Union General ranked among the top 1 percent of facilities in the United States for hospital safety. It was the only hospital in Georgia ranked in the nation’s top 100. Women's Choice Award named Union General one of "America's 100 Best Hospitals for Patient Experience" four years in a row. In 2024, Union General was named one of the top 100 community hospitals in the U.S. by the Chartis Center for Rural Health. In 2025, Union General was named one of the top U.S. hospitals for patient satisfaction by ''Becker's Hospital Review''.

Chief executives

#Leon Davenport (1972-1993) #Rebecca Dyer (c. 2008) #John Michael Gowder (c. 2014-2016) #Lewis Kelley (2016-2019) #Kevin Bierschenk (2019–present)

References

External links

Union General Hospital official homepage
{{authority control Hospital buildings completed in 1959 Hospitals in Georgia (U.S. state) Buildings and structures in Union County, Georgia 1959 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)