Adtalem, Google Cloud to launch AI credential program for healthcare professionals

(Reuters) -Adtalem Global Education said on Wednesday it will partner with Alphabet's Google Cloud to launch an artificial intelligence credential program aimed at students and healthcare professionals to use AI tools in clinical practice. The program, set to debut in 2026, will provide students and practicing clinicians across Adtalem's network, including Chamberlain University and Walden University, with hands-on experience using Google Cloud's AI tools, such as Gemini models and Vertex AI services. Adtalem said participants will complete coursework covering AI applications in clinical practice, ethical considerations, patient safety protocols, and hands-on experience with healthcare-specific AI tools commonly used across hospital systems and clinical practices. The initiative comes as hospitals invest heavily in AI to ease staffing shortages, but many physicians and nurses remain unprepared to adopt the technology, said the healthcare educator, which serves more than 91,000 students across its institutions, and has around 365,000 alumni. Michael Betz, Adtalem's chief digital officer, said the "partnership with Google Cloud gives our students a competitive edge in their careers — whether they're treating patients, providing mental health counseling, or leading healthcare teams." He added, "our graduates will enter the workforce confident in using AI to enhance their clinical decisions, spend less time on paperwork and more time connecting with patients." Brent Mitchell, vice president of Google Public Sector, said the partnership aims to ensure clinicians can implement AI "safely, responsibly and effectively." A Harris poll from last month showed more than half of U.S. healthcare workers are actively looking to leave their current jobs. The survey also showed 42% of employees worry AI will replace some aspects of their job, with 41% or less than half feeling comfortable using AI tools in their current role. (Reporting by Puyaan Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)

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