Position Overview

Understanding the Role

Division Chief, Gastroenterology & Hepatology

Medical College of Georgia | Augusta University Medical Center | Augusta, Georgia

Augusta University is recruiting an academic gastroenterologist to lead the Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology within the Medical College of Georgia, the state's only public academic medical center. The role combines divisional leadership with an active clinical practice.

This is a leadership position, not a program built from the ground up. The incoming Chief inherits an established academic division with experienced faculty, an accredited fellowship, advanced endoscopy capability, dedicated GI hospitalists, and a nationally recognized motility program, and helps direct its next phase of growth alongside Augusta University's partnership with Wellstar Health System.

Why the Position Exists

Leadership is seeking a physician who can balance the academic mission of the Medical College of Georgia with a rapidly expanding clinical enterprise. The Chief will recruit faculty, grow clinical programs, mentor physicians, strengthen research, and guide the division through a period of significant growth, including expansion into the new Wellstar Columbia County Hospital.

Role Snapshot

Category Detail
Setting Academic medical center, hospital and university employed
Clinical Home Digestive Health Center, connected to Augusta University Medical Center
Position Type Division Chief leadership role with active clinical practice
Reporting Chair of Medicine
Administrative Time Protected time set collaboratively with the Chair, based on division and candidate needs
Fellowship Accredited GI fellowship, 9 fellows

Leadership Responsibilities

The Division Chief serves as the primary physician leader for all faculty and APPs within the division. Oversight includes:

  • Faculty recruitment, retention, and mentorship
  • Faculty evaluations and academic promotion support
  • Strategic planning and workforce planning
  • Outpatient clinic operations and clinical scheduling
  • APP utilization
  • Inpatient service coordination and call schedule development
  • Practice growth and community expansion
  • Clinical quality initiatives and patient access
  • Collaboration with Wellstar operational leadership on endoscopy and service line initiatives

Clinical Practice

The Chief remains clinically active. Leadership time is individualized based on prior leadership experience, academic accomplishments, and research involvement, with the clinical and administrative mix tailored to the selected candidate. Clinical activity includes outpatient gastroenterology, endoscopy, advanced procedures depending on expertise, teaching, and faculty mentoring.

Required Qualifications

  • Board Certified in Gastroenterology
  • Eligible for faculty appointment at Augusta University
  • Demonstrated leadership experience
  • Record of excellence in clinical practice
  • Commitment to education and mentorship
  • Ability to work effectively within an academic medical center

Preferred Qualifications

  • Associate Professor or Professor rank, or qualifications to achieve it
  • Experience leading faculty or divisional programs
  • Academic scholarship and publications
  • Experience with faculty recruitment and development
  • Participation in clinical research or quality improvement
  • Familiarity with large health-system operations

Leadership noted a preference for a mid-career physician leader with the maturity, energy, and interpersonal skills to unite faculty around a common vision.

© Copyright 2023 Pacific Companies. All Rights Reserved.