Chad Lefteris is one of Becker’s CEOs to Know
Visionary leader has overseen historic growth of academic health system, expansion of access to care
Orange, Calif. — The transformative leadership of UCI Health President and CEO Chad T. Lefteris has been recognized by Becker’s Hospital Review in its annual Academic Medical Center CEOs to Know list.
The writeup about Lefteris, who leads one of the state’s largest academic health systems, reads in part:
“He has overseen transformative projects, including the $1.3 billion UCI Health — Irvine medical campus, the first all-electric acute care hospital in the nation. Under his leadership, the system expanded through the acquisition of four hospitals in Orange and Los Angeles counties, significantly increasing regional access to academic medicine. Mr. Lefteris has prioritized sustainability, making UCI Health a national model in climate leadership, while also advancing telehealth and home-based preventive care. UCI Health – Orange now ranks among Vizient’s top 10 academic medical centers for quality and has earned five Magnet nursing designations.”
A growing system
UCI Health plays a unique and critical role providing healthcare in the region. It furthers that commitment to improve health in communities by expanding unrestricted healthcare access for more people in Southern California by opening UCI Health – Irvine in December.
The UCI Health academic health system also includes UCI Health — Fountain Valley, UCI Health — Los Alamitos, UCI Health — Lakewood and UCI Health — Placentia Linda.
In summer 2026, the UCI Health Rehabilitation Hospital opens its doors. The 68,000-square-foot, two-story, 52-bed full-service facility will feature a specialized acquired brain injury unit, a dialysis suite, an imaging suite for onsite radiology, multidisciplinary therapy gymnasiums outfitted with the latest therapeutic technologies, outdoor courtyards and other spaces designed to help patients return to activities of daily living.
High-quality, safe, accessible care
Under the leadership of Lefteris, UCI Health has furthered its regional and national reputation for a commitment to providing high-quality, safe patient care:
- Last year, UCI Health was one of just five top performers nationally for high-quality ambulatory care in the 2024 Ambulatory Quality and Accountability Study. In addition, UCI Medical Center, now called UCI Health — Orange, and was one of 115 facilities to be recognized as a top performer for inpatient care in the 2024 Bernard A. Birnbaum, MD, Quality Leadership Study.
- In 2023, UCI Health — Orange was cited as a five-star hospital and a top 10 performer nationally in the 2023 Vizient, Inc. rankings. The hospital, the flagship center for UCI Heath, was rated in the top 10 for comprehensive academic medical centers for inpatient care. The UCI Health outpatient care network was also ranked among the top 10 ambulatory systems nationwide.
- UCI Health — Orange was recognized for excellence with Leapfrog 'A' grade in the spring 2025 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade report.
- UCI Health is one of a handful of U.S. health systems to have achieved Magnet Recognition® for nursing excellence five times.
About UCI Health
UCI Health, one of California’s largest academic health systems, is the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine. The 1,317-bed system comprises its main campus UCI Medical Center, its flagship hospital in Orange, Calif., the UCI Health — Irvine medical campus, four hospitals and affiliated physicians of the UCI Health Community Network in Orange and Los Angeles counties and a network of ambulatory care centers across the region. UCI Medical Center provides tertiary and quaternary care and is home to the only Orange County-based National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program and American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center, gold level 1 geriatric emergency department and regional burn center. Powered by UC Irvine, UCI Health serves 5.6 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter).