Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) today said it has hired Dr. Austin Chiang as the first chief medical officer of the medical device maker’s gastrointestinal business.

Chiang is an assistant professor of medicine at Sidney Kimmel Medical College and director of the Endoscopic Bariatric Program at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, both in Philadelphia. He holds a master’s degree in public health from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

“I am thrilled to be joining Medtronic at such an innovative time in healthcare and especially in the gastrointestinal space, helping to deliver on what is a promising future for those in need of innovative GI care around the world,” Chiang said in a news release. “I look forward to joining a world-renowned team of brilliant engineers and leading clinical experts that produce life-saving devices. I anticipate collaborating with our Medtronic team across the globe to produce solutions that best serve patients and increase quality of care for all.”

Fridley, Minnesota-based Medtronic said Chiang is one of the few triple board-certified advanced endoscopy-trained physicians in the world, and that he will provide medical expertise and strategic guidance on evidence development, clinical communications and publications, and training and support needs.

Chiang will also provide oversight to ensure patient safety throughout product lifecycle, including the product development processes, risk management, clinical trials, and safety surveillance, Medtronic said.

“Dr. Chiang’s approach to medicine and educating healthcare providers and patients is on the leading edge of healthcare innovation,” Medtronic Gastrointestinal President Giovanni Di Napoli said in the news release. “His forward thinking and desire to personalize medicine for patients and providers will help Medtronic to continue evolving and serving the ever-changing healthcare community.”

Chiang holds the unusual position of chief medical social media officer of Jefferson Health, reflecting his advocacy for using online channels for education and outreach about GI-related conditions and current events in healthcare. He’ll maintain that title and his other positions with Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and its Sidney Kimmel Medical College in what Chiang described as “a rare, hybrid role” with Medtronic.

“Social media has established itself as an important forum to discuss health and medicine, but it has also become an important tool to promote and influence public health,” Chiang said in 2018 when he joined Jefferson Health. “My hope is to encourage and optimize health professionals’ social media engagement. Without the professional voice on social media, untrained individuals can disseminate inaccurate, and at times harmful, health information.”

Chiang is on LinkedIn as austinchiangmd and Twitter as @AustinChiangMD.

Medtronic’s Gastrointestinal business is part of the company’s Medical Surgical Portfolio.