ATLANTA — An insider told us these are dark days at Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center.

A nurse at AMC spoke about the impact this will have on patients, the community and hospital staff.

She asked that her identity remain undisclosed.

“Devastated, devastated,” she said of the closure. “It’s like my whole life changed in a split second.”

She told us the announcement that AMC will close Nov. 1 came as a shock even to employees.

“It was a lot of people hurt, a lot of people crying,” she said. “You saw tears from very strong people.”

She says many employees will go to new jobs at other Wellstar hospitals – in her case, likely Kennestone in Marietta – at least an hour’s drive from her home.

But she says she’s even more concerned about the patients.

As one of only two level one trauma centers in Atlanta, AMC sees roughly 65,000 emergency room visits each year.

“The reason I’ve worked at downtown for so long is because I care about my community. I care about the people that I care for,” she said.

In a statement, Wellstar’s CEO said:

“We realize this news impacts the lives of our team members and the patients we serve in very personal and significant ways. We are deeply grateful to the dedicated team at AMC who have long served our communities with compassion and excellence.”

But the nurse is also concerned about what this means for Grady Hospital, which will become Atlanta’s last remaining level one trauma center.

She believes Grady might become overwhelmed with patients. It’s a concern that Grady shares, with the hospital telling Channel 2 that AMC’s closure will further strain Grady, especially the emergency room.

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