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- Dr. Fernando Collado-Mesa has been named the Miller School’s associate vice president for research and ethical use of AI.
- His work for the Department of Radiology recognizes that integrating AI into radiology requires human oversight and well-defined workflows to improve patient care while maintaining clinical standards.
- In his new role, Dr. Collado-Mesa will be responsible for ensuring that AI solutions deployed locally are bias-free and involve data sets that reflect patient populations.
The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning in today’s healthcare landscape has created a growing need for professionals who understand technology tools and benefits.
THE Department of Radiology at the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami responds to this request by appointing Fernando Collado-Mesa, MD, as associate vice president for AI research and ethical use.
“Dr. Collado-Mesa’s contributions over the past several years have been extraordinary and have significantly advanced the university’s position in AI research nationally and internationally,” said Alexander McKinney, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Radiology at the Miller School and chief of radiology at UHealth – University of Miami Health System and Jackson Health System. “His dedication and leadership in this area has propelled our initiatives, fostering a culture of innovation and ethical practice within our university community.”
Dr. Collado-Mesa will continue to serve as professor of clinical radiology in the department. His research focuses on AI in diagnostic radiology and breast imaging.
“This appointment is a great honor,” said Dr. Collado-Mesa. “This reinforces my commitment to conducting AI research in accordance with the highest scientific, safety and ethical standards. »
Guidelines on the use of AI
Although this role is new for Dr. Collado-Mesa, he has expertise in researching and implementing AI solutions, both in clinical and educational settings. His department’s AI team is following a phased approach, starting with pilot research projects approved by the Institutional Review Board to evaluate the effectiveness of AI tools. Once validated, the tools are reviewed by the AI Governance Committee and implemented on a larger scale.
This process includes a point-of-care AI deployment workflow that recognizes that integrating AI into radiology requires human oversight and well-defined workflows. This approach ensures that every finding is addressed with urgency and precision, improving patient care while maintaining clinical standards.
“Our dedicated teamwork and attention to detail in AI has proven to be effective,” said Dr. Collado-Mesa. “As a result of these efforts, the University of Miami Health System is one of only a handful of U.S. institutions named Recognized Center for Healthcare-AI by the American College of Radiology (ARCH-AI). This achievement underscores our commitment to the safety, efficiency and excellence of AI for healthcare.
AI and radiology
As Associate Vice President, Dr. Collado-Mesa will help organize, disseminate and moderate discussions on the latest scientific evidence and technological advances in AI for radiology. It will also support faculty members in their AI projects and encourage team-based scientific collaborations between departments across the health system and the university.
“In the future, our team aims to develop patient-oriented AI that can explain images and reports to patients and providers,” said Dr. Collado-Mesa. “I will collaborate with our leadership team to implement an AI research platform that seamlessly integrates with our radiology systems, including PACS and the report dictation system.”
Dr. Collado-Mesa’s efforts support department leadership’s vision for strategic AI implementation. He has helped implement best practices, including evaluating commercial AI solutions for local use and fostering collaborations to develop internal AI systems while maintaining rigorous quality and security standards. AI education is another key priority.
“In 2017, we became one of the first radiology residency programs in the United States to integrate AI education into our curriculum,” said Dr. Collado-Mesa. “We have since expanded AI learning materials for medical students and plan to explore the potential of agentic AI to help students learn from imaging. »
The importance of ethical use of AI
While AI holds great promise for healthcare, it also carries risks, such as bias. Poor ethics can lead to flawed data sets and discrimination against underrepresented populations that reinforce rather than alleviate racial and demographic disparities.
To help alleviate AI bias on locally implemented AI solutions, Dr. Collado-Mesa led the creation of the Department of Radiology’s first AI Governance Committee. The committee adheres to ethical guidelines and ensures that AI systems are trained on data that accurately reflects the local patient population, taking into account race, ethnicity, gender and age. The committee also collaborates with the American College of Radiology to monitor the performance of locally implemented AI tools.
“Radiology has always been at the forefront of healthcare innovation, and AI is no exception,” said Dr. Collado-Mesa. “Our goal is to develop a multidisciplinary approach that merges image-based AI with EHR data, including demographics, pathology, genetics and laboratory medicine, bringing us closer to precision AI contextual, patient-centered.
Tags: AI, artificial intelligence, Department of Radiology, Dr. Fernando Collado-Mesa, machine learning, medical ethics, technology
