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Jeffery Talbert, PhD, named inaugural chair for the Department of AI & Health

The Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University established the Department of Artificial Intelligence and Health last August to bridge the gap between health care and technology while advancing the education, funding, research, and economic goals of the university.

Who better to lead that charge than someone with over 30 years of experience in biomedical informatics?

Jeffery Talbert, PhD, has spent the last two decades of his career in various leadership positions at the University of Kentucky, including chief of biomedical informatics in the Department of Internal Medicine and director of the Institute for Biomedical Informatics.

His work has been published more than 260 times, he’s led more than 100 funded research projects totaling more than $130 million, and he has a laundry list of projects he’s currently working on. 

And now, he is the inaugural chair of the Department of AI and Health at MCG, with an academic appointment as professor of Artificial Intelligence and Health.

“I never thought I would make a big move like this, but it’s just the right time, right place,” Talbert said.

He will also be joining seven other Augusta University faculty members as a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar, an honor given to high-achieving researchers who attract private and public grants.

“It’s quite an honor. I was really kind of shocked about it, and it’s exciting being able to bring that to AU and MCG,” Talbert said. “It’s great. I’m hoping that it will help provide some resources to make my research go faster and do more things here.”

In his new role, Talbert will grow his team, lead education and research efforts, build cross-disciplinary programs, strengthen partnerships, seek funding, and work with Wellstar leaders to develop a research data warehouse.

More about Dr. Talbert