The American Medical Association (AMA) ChangeMedEd® Initiative has awarded a $30,000 grant to study the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) coaching on medical student goal setting, academic achievement, and well-being. Drs. Mairead Moloney (Contact PI) and Adrian Reynolds (MPI) will lead the study in close collaboration with Dr. Latha Chandran, Dean of Medical Education, and Dr. Azizi Seixas, Chair of Informatics and Health Data Science and lead of the grant’s Advisory Committee.

The 9-month pilot project will involve 200 medical students using an AI chatbot named “Coach Vici” for academic coaching. This innovative study aims to address the growing need for sustainable and cost-effective coaching solutions in medical education, potentially revolutionizing student support systems across medical schools nationwide. Congratulations to Drs. Moloney and Reynolds!

About the AMA ChangeMedEd® Initiative
The AMA promotes the art and science of medicine and the betterment of public health. Their ChangeMedEd Initiative works across the continuum with visionary partners to create bold innovations by leading efforts in undergraduate and graduate medical education, transformative resources for learners and educators, and national events that disseminate innovations to better train physicians to meet the needs of patients today and in the future.

About Mairead Moloney, PhD
Dr. Mairead Moloney is an IDSC Core Faculty Member on the Population Health Informatics team working with program Director Dr. Azizi Seixas. She is also an Associate Professor at the Miller School of Medicine Department of Informatics and Health Data Science, where she Lead, Education Vertical, and part of the Media and Innovation Lab team (The MIL). In her research, Dr. Moloney strives to reduce sleep disparities, and was particularly focused on improving outcomes for health disparity and marginalized populations in Appalachian Kentucky and beyond. In addition to her sleep-focused research, Dr. Moloney is interested in the reduction of preterm birth in Appalachian women, medicalization, virtual manhood acts, and the intersection of gender and disability. As part of the IDSC Population Health Informatics team, Dr. Moloney’s research will focus on the use of digital technologies to increase health equity, particularly as it applies to women and individuals living in underserved regions of the U.S.  Read More: “IDSC Welcomes Mairead Moloney”

About Adrian Reynolds, PhD
Dr. Adrian Reynolds is an Assistant Professor of Professional Practice at the Miller School of Medicine in the Department of Medical Education. He is also the Founding Director of the Office of Academic Enrichment, and a Learning Coach. With close to two decades of experience as a professional educator, Dr. Reynolds is on a mission to facilitate the development of self-regulated, adaptive learning skills through deliberate practice and a growth mindset for learners across the medical education continuum. His training in educational linguistics, particularly, multilingual language education and language teacher education, has uniquely positioned him to teach learners in the health sciences evidence-based strategies for learning the language of medicine in a manner that prioritizes their wellbeing. Dr. Reynolds’ mission as a medical educator has driven him to develop and implement medical education curricula centered around the science of learning (i.e., learning how to learn) in addition to academic coaching and peer teaching programs in the health sciences. Read More about Dr. Reynolds.