St. Mary's employs more certified neuroscience registered nurses than any hospital in our region.

St. Mary’s Health Care System is dedicated to meeting the total health care needs of our community by providing a specialized center for the treatment of patients with diseases of the nervous system and spine.

St. Mary’s created its Neuroscience Center after more than two years of planning and research, which revealed a strong need for this high level of neurological services in Athens and the surrounding community. The neuroscience team is led by Kimberly Walpert, M.D., neurosurgeon and Medical Director of Neurosciences, and H. McCord Smith, M.D., certified vascular neurologist and neurohospitalist. Also, St. Mary's Neurological Specialists, an outpatient medical office in Watkinsville directed by Angela McSwain, M.D., enhances community neurological care and continuity of care after discharge from the hospital.

St. Mary’s Neuroscience Center features a 5-bed Neuroscience Critical Care Unit and a 24-bed general neuroscience nursing unit. Both units are dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of diseases and disorders affecting the brain and spinal cord.

St. Mary’s Neuroscience Center provides patients and their families with high quality health care through the experience and expertise of skilled physicians, nurses and therapists. The center is supported by St. Mary’s commitment to providing innovative technologies and excellent, compassionate care to the people of Northeast Georgia.

State-of-the-art facilities and neurological services are featured in the Neuroscience Center, including:

• Dedicated neuroscience personnel, including neurosurgeons, neurologists and certified neuroscience nurses.
• A Neuroscience Critical Care Unit (NCCU), providing specialized care to acutely ill neurological and neurosurgical patients.
• A dedicated neurosurgical operating room, including the region’s only StealthStation Neurosurgical Platform.
• Continuing education seminars held on a regular basis for physicians, nurses and other healthcare providers to further their education about neurological diseases and disorders. Continuing Medical Education credits are available for physicians.
• An annual community education forum at which stroke survivors, caregivers, healthcare providers and the general public can get valuable information on prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of stroke.

In 2006 St. Mary’s was named a Neuroscience Center of Excellence by Neurosource, the nation's leading independent evaluator of neuroscience programs.

In 2010, St. Mary's received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Get With The Guidelines® Stroke Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award