Physician · Scholar · Engineer · Theologian
About Dr. Bradley
One calling expressed across clinical care, systems improvement, scholarship, and service.
Why this work
Care begins with the whole person.
My work is guided by a simple conviction: good care for older adults and people facing serious illness must attend to the whole person. Clinical medicine helps us understand disease. Systems engineering helps us improve how care is delivered. Counseling and theology help us listen carefully to suffering, meaning, values, and hope. The healing of persons requires attention to body, mind, and soul.
I have followed that conviction across civil engineering, Navy medicine, family medicine, geriatrics, hospice and palliative medicine, counseling, and theological study. Today, I bring those disciplines together in service of veterans and the teams who care for them.
A principle I return to
“The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.”— Albert Schweitzer, MD, Nobel Laureate
Formal biography
Clinical leadership across disciplines
Dr. Jerry Bradley is a board-certified Family Medicine physician and board-eligible in Geriatric Medicine and Hospice & Palliative Medicine. He serves as Section Chief of Palliative Medicine at the C.W. Bill Young Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Bay Pines, Florida.
His research includes geriatric syndromes, delirium, frailty, Long COVID, and the application of artificial intelligence and predictive modeling to geriatric and palliative care. He previously served as Chief of Geriatrics at the University of South Alabama and USA Health and completed nearly seven years of active service as a United States Navy Medical Officer.
His completed degrees include the MD, EdD, MDiv, MS, MTS, and BS, spanning medicine, counseling, theology, healthcare systems engineering, and civil engineering.
Read the full formal biography
Dr. Jerry Bradley is a board-certified Family Medicine physician and board-eligible in both Geriatric Medicine and Hospice & Palliative Medicine, currently serving as Section Chief of Palliative Medicine at the C.W. Bill Young Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Bay Pines, Florida. He previously served as Chief of Geriatrics in the Division of Internal Medicine at the University of South Alabama and USA Health, where he held faculty appointments as Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine and Assistant Professor of Family Medicine.
A graduate of the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, Dr. Bradley completed his Internal Medicine internship at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth during nearly seven years of active service as a Medical Officer in the United States Navy. During his naval career, he became a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt, earned a Diploma from the College of Naval Command & Staff at the U.S. Naval War College, and led numerous continuous process improvement initiatives across multiple naval medical facilities, earning recognition at the regional and national level. He received an Honorable Discharge in 2020.
Dr. Bradley completed his residency in Family Medicine at the University of Louisville–Owensboro Health program and his fellowship in Geriatrics, Hospice, and Palliative Medicine at the University of Miami and Jackson Memorial Hospital.
His academic portfolio spans engineering, medicine, counseling, theology, and business. He holds a Master of Science in Healthcare Systems Engineering (with Honors) from the Johns Hopkins University Whiting School of Engineering, an EdD in Community Care and Counseling–Traumatology (with Distinction) from Liberty University, and a Master of Divinity from Regent University. He completed a Master of Theological Studies in Applied Orthodox Theology at the Antiochian House of Studies and holds a Certificate in Orthodox Christian Studies from the Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies at the Cambridge Theological Federation. He also holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (Summa Cum Laude, Departmental Honors) from the University of South Alabama.
Dr. Bradley is currently completing a PhD in Industrial Engineering at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, an MBA at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Gies School of Business, an MS in Healthcare Management at the Johns Hopkins University Carey School of Business, and a PhD in Applied Apologetics (ABD) at the Liberty University Rawlings School of Divinity.
His research focuses on geriatric syndromes, delirium, frailty, the long-term sequelae of COVID-19 in older adults, and the application of artificial intelligence and predictive modeling to geriatric and palliative care. He has authored and co-authored peer-reviewed publications in PLoS One, COVID, The Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging, and The Journal of Biological Chemistry, and has presented at national and international conferences including the Gerontological Society of America and the American Delirium Society.
Beyond the clinical and academic, Dr. Bradley holds a deep commitment to theological inquiry and the integration of faith with the practice of medicine and the ethics of human care—a conviction that the healing of persons requires attention to body, mind, and soul.
The journey
A life across five disciplines
From civil engineering to the bedside of the dying—one continuous calling.
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2009
Engineering
BS, Civil Engineering
University of South Alabama — Summa Cum Laude, Departmental Honors. Registered Engineering Intern, State of Alabama.
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2013
Medicine
Doctor of Medicine
University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine.
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2013–2020
Military Service
Medical Officer, United States Navy
Internal Medicine internship at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth. Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt (2017); Diploma, College of Naval Command & Staff, U.S. Naval War College (2018). Led continuous process improvement initiatives across multiple naval medical facilities, earning recognition at the regional and national level. Honorable Discharge, 2020.
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2020–2023
Medicine
Family Medicine Residency
University of Louisville — Owensboro Health.
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2022
Counseling & Theology
EdD & Master of Divinity
EdD in Community Care & Counseling–Traumatology, with Distinction (Liberty University); MDiv (Regent University).
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2023–2025
Medicine
Fellowship — Geriatrics, Hospice & Palliative Medicine
University of Miami / Jackson Memorial Hospital.
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2024
Engineering & Theology
MS & MTS
MS in Healthcare Systems Engineering, with Honors (Johns Hopkins University); MTS in Applied Orthodox Theology (Antiochian House of Studies).
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2025–2026
Leadership
Chief of Geriatrics
University of South Alabama · USA Health — Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine and Family Medicine.
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2026 – Present
Leadership
Section Chief of Palliative Medicine
C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center · Department of Veterans Affairs · Bay Pines, Florida.
Research · Speaking · Academic inquiries
Continue the conversation
For research collaboration, speaking engagements, or academic inquiries, connect with Dr. Bradley on LinkedIn.
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