VALDOSTA — Everyone calls him Dr. Joe.

“That’s how he introduces himself,” Cheryl Oliver said. “That’s what we all call him.”

Early Wednesday morning, a crowd of about 100 people filled the South Georgia Medical Center hallways to defend Dr. Joe Johnson and Dr. Randall Brown. Some elected officials attended the meeting to support the hospital’s decision.

Tuesday, SGMC announced it terminated both cardiologists’ contracts with the hospital. The hospital would not comment on the specific reasons for the termination.

Oliver said she was horrified when she learned the news Tuesday afternoon, and she was not the only one. Four billboards were posted around the city less than 24 hours after the termination. 

The billboards called city and county residents to attend the SGMC Hospital Authority board meeting Wednesday morning in support of Johnson and Brown, and people did.

The hospital board meets once a month in the SGMC executive boardroom that is only big enough for about 50 to 60 people, so only a small crowd was allowed into the meeting and only a couple of people were permitted to comment on the termination. 

Senior Superior Court Judge Arthur McLane read a statement expressing he was against the hospital breaking with Johnson and Brown.

“Over the last few weeks, I have listened to a fairly large number of people, and I firmly believe that our medical community and ultimately this hospital is now in a true crisis,” McLane said to the board. “We must not, and we certainly should not, lose our outstanding cardiac group.”

McLane pleaded with the board to do its duty and do whatever it can to keep this team that has saved many lives during the last few years. The judge said he is among one of the lives saved.

Shortly after McLane’s remarks, the board went into an executive session and all attendants not including the board and staff were ushered out of the boardroom. During the session, a large crowd waited in the hospital hallways for the meeting to end. Many voiced their frustration with not being able to be heard during the meeting.

Valdosta Mayor John Gayle and Lowndes County Commission Chairman Bill Slaughter attended the public part of the meeting.

Following the meeting, Gayle said he understood why SGMC CEO Ross Berry let the doctors go.

“I think (the hospital) set a policy, and the CEO followed that policy,” Gayle said.

Following the meeting, Slaughter said he believes the CEO had no other option available to him, but was disappointed the board didn’t take the opportunity to meet with the doctors to see if the issue could be resolved another way.

“I’m extremely disappointed in the board and the entire process,” Slaughter said. “With that said, it is the CEO’s responsibility to run this hospital. You can’t have one group of doctors answering to a board, and the rest of the doctors answering to the CEO. The board is going to have to work this issue out.”

While the board worked the issue out in executive session, many of Johnson and Brown’s patients waited and shared their stories. People such as Elizabeth Harper, who Johnson treated last year for lung cancer, and Myra Jordan, who said Johnson saved her life during heart surgery.

Oliver said “Dr. Joe” also saved her husband Jack’s life. She remembers the date and exact time Jack made a strange sound in his sleep and stopped breathing.

“Nov. 26, 4:30 a.m.,” Oliver said, “I couldn’t find a pulse. … When EMTs arrived, they had to use defibrillators to bring him back to life.”

A few weeks later, they found out Jack needed open heart surgery, but were reluctant to have it done at SGMC.

“We said that if Dr. Joe would be his heart surgeon, we would stay here,” she said.

Four heart bypasses later, Jack Oliver is still going strong, she said. Both Olivers credit Johnson and the SGMC staff for saving his life, but are worried about the future of the hospital.

Jack Oliver said he understands that for these types of things the board needs to follow a policy.

“But sometimes you have to follow your heart and just do what’s right,” he said.

NOTE: This story was amended to clarify that Gayle and Slaughter did not make their comments to the Hospital Authority but rather commented to The Times following the public session.