Meet the team behind the Internal Medicine residency program
The St. Joseph's/Candler Internal Medicine Residency Program is led by a team of experienced, dedicated clinician-educators who have committed themselves to building something exceptional. With decades of combined experience in academic medicine, graduate medical education, and patient care, our leadership brings the knowledge, the vision, and the personal investment in resident success that defines a truly great training program.
SJ/C Residency Program
John Cinicola, MD
Program Director, Internal Medicine Residency Program
Dr. John Cinicola brings more than three decades of experience in clinical medicine, medical education, and graduate medical education leadership to his role as Program Director. A graduate of the West Virginia School of Medicine, he completed his internal medicine residency at the renowned Cleveland Clinic Foundation, where he also served as Chief Medical Resident. Board certified in Internal Medicine, his career has spanned senior leadership positions at major health systems — including Chief Medical Officer, Designated Institutional Officer, Division Director of General Internal Medicine, and Interim Chair of the Department of Medicine — giving him a rare breadth of perspective on what it takes to build a high-quality residency program. A devoted educator, Dr. Cinicola currently holds academic appointments at Penn State College of Medicine and Drexel University College of Medicine and has been recognized with numerous teaching honors, including the Dean's Special Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching and multiple Teacher of the Year and Golden Apple awards. He is actively engaged in clinical scholarship, with recent publications spanning nephrology, infectious disease, hepatology, and complex medical decision-making. As Program Director, Dr. Cinicola is known for his hands-on leadership, his genuine investment in resident growth, and his commitment to creating a training environment that is rigorous, supportive, and built to produce physicians who are ready to lead.
Nina Paletta Schwartz, MD, FACP
Associate Program Director, Internal Medicine Residency Program
Dr. Nina Paletta Schwartz is a clinician-educator with deep roots in both Savannah and the Medical College of Georgia community. A University of Georgia graduate in Cellular Biology and Psychology, she earned her medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia and completed her Internal Medicine residency at Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah. Before joining the residency program, Dr. Paletta served as Assistant Dean of Student Affairs at the MCG Savannah Campus, where she guided medical students through academic challenges, career exploration, and professional development. Experience that gives her a uniquely student-centered perspective as she transitions more fully into residency education. In her role as Associate Program Director, she is focused on thoughtful patient care, strong clinical reasoning, physician wellness, and creating a mentorship culture where residents feel genuinely supported. Outside of medicine, Dr. Paletta is close with her family, enjoys dancing, sewing, teaching Pure Barre, and playing golf. A proud Savannahian for more than two decades, she and her husband are expecting their first child and share their home with two dogs, Minnie and Arya.
Julie Worthington, MD, PhD, MPH, FACP
Associate Program Director, Internal Medicine Residency Program
Dr. Julie Worthington has had a long standing career dedicated to teaching, research, service and leadership in academics. After receiving her MPH in Epidemiology, her academic career began as a Biostatistician with a Gastroenterologist, Dr. Basil Hirschowitz, at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and had multiple publications with him. Then, she returned to school for her PhD in Epidemiology at UAB and began teaching in academics. After completing her PhD, she went to Case Western Reserve University to complete a National Cancer Institute Postdoctoral fellowship. She became an Assistant Professor in Biostatistics and Epidemiology at East Tennessee State University. Dr. Worthington taught graduate level courses in Epidemiology and continued her research. Because she wanted to help people at the individual level at the bedside, she made the decision to return to school for her medical degree at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis. She completed her internal medicine residency at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center at Harrisburg. Dr. Worthington worked as a Hospitalist and continued her teaching career as an attending in the internal medicine resident clinic where she previously worked as a resident. When the COVID pandemic occurred, she realized that her true joy was teaching residents and medical students so she accepted a teaching faculty position in the internal medicine residency program at HCA Healthcare Trident Hospital and was quickly promoted to core faculty. Then, she was promoted to Associate Program Director of the internal medicine residency program. Given her love of teaching and research, Dr. Worthigton developed a research curriculum which resulted in more than doubling the scholarly activity in the department. She has been recognized with the Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award, Fellow of the American College of Physicians, Delta Omega Honorary Society in Public Health and a Predoctoral and postdoctoral fellowships from the National Cancer Institute.
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