After 46 Years of Caring for Monroe County,
Dr. Craig Caldwell Is Retiring

Internal Medicine Associates of Middle Georgia celebrates the career, compassion and steady presence of its most senior physician

July 2026

After more than four and a half decades of caring for patients in Forsyth and throughout Monroe County and Middle Georgia, Dr. Craig Caldwell, MD, FACP, is retiring from medical practice.

For longtime patients, this announcement may be difficult to believe. Dr. Caldwell has been practicing in Forsyth since 1980—long enough to have treated multiple generations of some families and to remember when medical records were kept entirely on paper, prescriptions were always handwritten and “the cloud” was merely something that might bring rain.

During those 46 years, medicine has changed dramatically. Dr. Caldwell’s commitment to his patients has not.

A Career Built in Middle Georgia

Dr. Caldwell earned his Bachelor of Science degree from Emory University and graduated from the Medical College of Georgia in 1977. He completed his internal medicine residency at the Medical College of Ohio in Toledo, serving as chief resident during his final year. He is board-certified in both internal medicine and geriatrics and was recognized as a Fellow of the American College of Physicians in 2007.

Although his practice has included the full range of adult internal medicine, Dr. Caldwell developed a particular interest in geriatric assessment and care. That specialty suited both his medical skills and his patient, thoughtful approach: listen carefully, consider the whole person and avoid rushing to conclusions—or rushing the patient out the door.

Over the years, he became far more than a physician to many families. He was a trusted adviser, a calm voice during difficult diagnoses and a familiar face who knew not only a patient’s medical history, but often the names and stories of the family members sitting beside them.

Independent, Personal Medicine

Dr. Caldwell practiced during an era of enormous consolidation in healthcare, as many independent medical practices were acquired by hospitals and large corporate systems. Through those changes, he and his colleagues maintained the independence of Internal Medicine Associates of Middle Georgia.

That independence helped preserve the kind of personal, community-based medicine that has defined Dr. Caldwell’s career. Patients were not simply numbers on a schedule, and appointments were not merely transactions. They were relationships—sometimes lasting for decades.

Of course, a 46-year career also means that Dr. Caldwell has answered several million questions, beginning with “While I’m here, Doctor, could you also look at this?”

He usually did.

A Physician, Colleague and Community Fixture

Within the practice, Dr. Caldwell has been a senior colleague, mentor and source of institutional memory. When questions arose about a patient, a medical issue or how something had been handled 30 years earlier, there was a good chance Dr. Caldwell knew the answer—and possibly remembered the precise year.

His retirement marks the end of an important chapter for Internal Medicine Associates and the greater Forsyth community. It is also an opportunity to recognize what an unusually long and meaningful career represents: thousands of office visits, countless telephone calls, many late nights, difficult conversations, reassuring words and lives made healthier through careful medical care.

The Monroe County Reporter recently described him as the “dean of Forsyth doctors,” an appropriate title for a physician who has served the community since 1980.

Retirement Will Be a Family Project

Dr. Caldwell will not be entering retirement alone. His wife of 53 years, Brenda Caldwell, PhD, is also retiring this summer.

After decades of professional achievement for both of them, they are beginning this new chapter together—although not necessarily with equal authority.

Brenda may soon discover that her first major retirement project is educating Dr. Caldwell on the proper command structure of retired life. After 46 years of giving medical advice, he will now have the opportunity to practice receiving instructions, particularly those involving household projects, travel schedules and the correct time to leave for dinner reservations.

With a PhD, 53 years of experience and home-field advantage, Brenda appears exceptionally well qualified for the assignment.

Thank You, Dr. Caldwell

To Dr. Caldwell’s patients, we know that retirement brings mixed emotions. You are grateful for his many years of care, but you will miss seeing him in the office. Our practice is committed to helping every patient make a smooth transition and continue receiving attentive, high-quality medical care.

To Dr. Caldwell, we offer our deepest appreciation.

Thank you for the knowledge you shared, the example you set and the countless ways you cared for this community. Thank you for helping build a medical practice where professional excellence and personal relationships could coexist.

We hope retirement brings more time for family, friends, travel, rest and whatever activities Dr. Caldwell has postponed while caring for everyone else.

After 46 years of reminding patients to slow down, reduce stress and get more rest, he may finally have to take his own advice—subject, of course, to Brenda’s approval.

Congratulations on an extraordinary career, Dr. Caldwell.

You have earned a very happy—and very healthy—retirement.