Cynthia Talley MD Named Vice Chair of Education

Cynthia Talley, MDCynthia Talley, M.D., was named the new vice chair of Education in the Department of Surgery, a role previously held by Douglas Norcross, M.D., who was appointed associate dean of Admissions in the College of Medicine. Talley joined the department as an associate professor in Acute Care Surgery in December 2018.

Prior to joining MUSC, Talley was an associate professor for the Section of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery at the University of Kentucky, program director for the Surgical Critical Care Fellowship, director of the ATLS Program, and faculty advisor for the Ward O. Griffin Student Surgical Society.  During her tenure at the University of Kentucky, Dr. Talley participated in numerous hospital committees and university activities including the Graduate Medical Education (GME) Compliance and Program Review Committees. 

In her role as vice chair of Education, she will oversee the educational programs at the departmental level:  the students, residents, fellows, faculty, APPs, and CME courses as needed. 

According to Talley, during her recruitment, she spoke with Dr. Baliga on several occasions learning that their philosophy on teaching is very similar. They strongly believe the legacy of MUSC lies in the hearts and minds of its graduates. 

MUSC is a diverse and highly-skilled faculty group delivering care at a tertiary referral center.  “While patient care and education are two pillars of academic medicine, they are not mutually exclusive,” said Talley. “Under our guidance, our trainees can learn to provide the highest level of quality surgical care to our patients.”  

Her vision for the department is for each faculty, individually and collectively, to inspire, promote, and encourage the next (and current) generations of surgeons with thoughtful professional development, tools for life-long learning, and skills for success as a surgical leader.

“We are so fortunate to work at an academic center where we can contribute to the success of our future surgical leaders,” said Talley. “All the trainees deserve the respectful attention that we would give our future boss or colleague because that is certainly the path many are plotting. Our task then is to learn how to be the most effective teacher and mentor.”