Join us for the 21st Annual CCTS Spring Conference, Kentucky's premier event for clinical and translational research. Come to learn, connect, and showcase your own research with hundreds of researchers, trainees, and community members. The conference will take place on Tuesday, March 31 at the Central Bank Center.
This year's theme, "AI: Bridging Clinical Care, Innovation, Research, and Technology", brings together leaders, experts, innovators and pioneers to explore ways in which AI impacts health.
Highlights of the conference include:
- Two keynote addresses on AI in healthcare and research
- A panel discussion on “Advancing Health in Kentucky through Precision Public Health in Practice,” featuring the Chief Medical and Innovation Officer of UK King’s Daughters Medical Center and the President/CEO of UK St. Claire Medical Center
- The annual One-Minute Poster Pitch Competition, which awards cash prizes
- Presentation of the 2026 Research Mentor Awards
- Research poster presentations by students from the Frederick Douglass High School Biomedical Sciences Pathway program
- Over 400 poster presentations and 60 podium presentations on topics across the clinical and translational science spectrum
- Research Days for the Colleges of Dentistry, Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, Public Health, Education, Institute for Biomedical Informatics, Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Department of Internal Medicine.
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As always, attendance is free. Lunch will be provided for attendees who register by March 24.
Download the conference app!
Get quick access to the conference agenda, poster abstracts, wi-fi info, map, and more details about the day.
To install the conference app on your iPhone:
- Open the app in Safari using the agenda link or QR code.
- Select the Share icon, then Add to Home Screen.
To install the conference app on your Android device:
- Open the app using the agenda link or QR code.
- Select the 3-dot menu in your browser window, then Add to Home Screen.
Keynote Speakers
Kevin W. Sexton, MD
Professor of Surgery and Biomedical Informatics
Helen and Nicholas Abumrad Directorship
Vice Chair for Innovation, VUMC Section of Surgical Sciences
Vanderbilt University
Keynote Address: The Experimenter's Mindset: Putting AI to Work Across Research, Education, and Clinical Care
Jesus Caban, PhD
Chief Data and Analytics Officer
Defense Health Agency
Keynote Address: Why Most Healthcare AI Fails: Lessons From the Real World
Conference Co-Chairs
Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Assistant Dean for Artificial Intelligence and Data Science, UK College of Medicine
Division Chief, Pathology Informatics
Director, Institute for Biomedical Informatics Center for Applied AI
Professor of Medicine
Chief Medical Information Officer
UK Healthcare
Transportation
Parking
Complimentary parking is available for all attendees. You must enter the conference center parking lot at Gate 2. Gate 2 is located on High Street directly across from the Central Bank Center. All other parking areas will charge a fee for parking.
Shuttle
A bus will transport conference attendees to and from UK's campus and the Central Bank Center from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The shuttle will pick up/drop off at the main entrance of Chandler Hospital, just past the loop near the statue, and pick up/drop off at the Main Street entrance of the Central Bank Center.
General questions about the event?
Contact April Bridenbecker at april.bridenbecker@uky.edu.
Media inquiries?
Contact Mallory Profeta at 615.828.0000 or mallory.profeta@uky.edu.
