About Us: UCI Department of Family Medicine

UCI Family Medicine is proud of our legacy as one of the first 15 residency programs to train family physicians in the nation.  Located in the beautiful and diverse Orange County of southern California, our programs and reputation have evolved over the last 50 years through dedicated efforts of countless faculty, staff and residents.  More than 400 family physicians have completed training at UCI since our first residents joined in 1969.  UCI family physician graduates are outstanding faculty, leaders and practitioners who care for patients, families and communities in California and beyond.

Our department is the academic home to faculty, residents and staff who have a passion for patient care, medical education, scholarship and community health.  Our mission, as a department of the UCI School of Medicine, is to Discover, Teach, Heal and Serve. We are committed to delivering exemplary clinical care, teaching health professionals and conducting scholarship.  Our family physicians value collaboration within the university, the health sciences and the community. 

Our faculty, many of whom are bilingual and bicultural, practice and teach at the following sites: Anaheim and Santa Ana which are federally qualified health centers (FQHC); the Gottschalk Medical Plaza on the UCI campus in Irvine; the Senior Health Center at the UCI Medical Center in Orange; and at the UCI Douglas Hospital on the inpatient family medicine service and attending obstetric deliveries and caring for newborns.  

Our Division of Geriatrics includes Family Medicine and Internal Medicine physicians, nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants.  Geriatricians provide home visits and practice in several local skilled nursing facilities. The Division has been awarded major grants and donor funds to improve the health of seniors, to prevent and address senior neglect and abuse, to provide trauma-informed care, and to provide outreach to isolated seniors during the Covid pandemic.  They offer an outstanding Geriatric Fellowship.  

Our Sports Medicine physicians care for athletes and patients with musculoskeletal conditions.  They work with UCI Athletics, the Anaheim Ducks national hockey team and support local, regional and national sports events.  We launched a Family Medicine-Sports Medicine Fellowship in 2020. 

Our residents, based at the UCI Health Family Health Center in Santa Ana, are committed to providing holistic health care for patients and communities that are disadvantaged.  The residency includes focused education tracks for Integrative Medicine and a Program in Medical Education for Latino Communities (PRIME-LC). Faculty and residents are actively engaged in community health efforts through partnerships with local schools, sports, senior and community-based organizations.

Our core values of Excellence, Professionalism, Salutogenesis, Sustainability, Diversity and Inclusion, and Advocacy are illustrated here:

The vision of UCI Family Medicine is to be a thriving academic department that promotes optimal health for all.  We practice the full-scope of family medicine from womb to tomb or from pre-conception to end of life care. We focus efforts where the needs are greatest and are dedicated to promoting health equity, especially for people and groups that have been historically disadvantaged. 

You are welcome to join us on our never-ending quest to promote health for all as a patient, trainee, staff, faculty, friend, partner or donor.