Bringing AI to the Bedside: UR Nursing Welcomes Professor Salah Al-Zaiti

Salah Al-Zaiti, PhD, RN, CRNP, ANP-BC, FAHA, joined the University of Rochester School of Nursing faculty on Sept. 1 as an Endowed Professor of nursing, cardiology, and electrical and computer engineering. The nurse scientist and entrepreneur is a leading expert in cardiovascular disease, informatics, and machine learning.

Al-Zaiti previously served as a professor and vice chair of acute and tertiary care research at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. Most recently, he has been leading a national team of researchers in developing an artificial intelligence-based (AI) clinical decision-making support tool to better classify chest pain among emergency department patients.

Chest pain is a common condition that accounts for more than 6 million emergency room visits in the U.S. each year, but diagnosing its causes can be difficult and lengthy when there aren’t obvious signs of a heart attack, often leading to repeat hospital visits and patient dissatisfaction. The algorithm, trained by data from more than 7,000 patients from multiple U.S. sites and who had chest pain without the obvious ST elevation of a heart attack, has helped researchers better identify who might have heart attacks, and can ultimately help providers make diagnoses more quickly and accurately. This work was recently published in Nature Medicine and was selected as the 2024 Article of the Year by the American Heart Association.

As he joins the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) community, Al-Zaiti now seeks to implement the AI support tool in a hospital setting, with the goal of incorporating it into electrocardiogram (ECG) monitors and electronic health records.

“The University of Rochester stood out as a leader in cardiovascular research with a strong history of implementing clinical trials, and as a hub for start-ups,” Al-Zaiti said. “I knew the University would offer an excellent platform to take my research to the next level and start implementing it at the bedside.”

“If our work is implemented into systems of care, it can dramatically change how we care for patients with chest pain,” Al-Zaiti added.

Al-Zaiti earned his master’s as an adult nurse practitioner and PhD in cardiovascular nursing at the University at Buffalo School of Nursing, and bachelor’s in nursing at the Hashemite University in Jordan. He also holds postgraduate certificates in machine learning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and applied machine learning from the Columbia University Data Science Institute.

During his time at Pitt, he was one of only few individuals in the University’s history to receive the Chancellor’s Award in both Distinguished Teaching and Distinguished Research. He has received nearly $8 million in research funding through the National Institutes of Health, has contributed to nearly 250 scientific papers and abstracts, holds two U.S. patents, and is a recipient of numerous national and international honors and prestigious awards.

A passion for addressing health disparities — sparked by his own firsthand experiences as a son of two Palestinian refugees who was born and raised in Jordan — is at the core of Al-Zaiti’s work. Throughout his childhood, Al-Zaiti and his family faced a lack of access to quality healthcare, shaping his future aspirations to improve patient care.

Among his proudest career milestones is the recent time he spent in Jordan as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar. Through his work there, he sought to give back to the community he was raised in through a project focused on AI-enabled coronary artery disease screenings among refugee populations.

“Incorporating a global health component into everything I do is important to me,” Al-Zaiti said. “I always think of marginalized and underserved communities, and how I can reduce their pain and suffering.”

Outside of his work, Al-Zaiti seeks to maintain a healthy work-life balance and enjoys spending time with his wife and two children.

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