Dr. Deepti Pandita honored with HIMSS Changemaker Award
UCI Health CMIO recognized for work to improve healthcare through information, technology
Orange, Calif. — Dr. Deepti Pandita, chief medical information officer and vice president of clinical informatics at UCI Health, has been recognized by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMMS) for her impact on healthcare through the visionary use of information and technology.
She accepted the HIMSS-AMDIS Physician Executive Leader Award on March 9 in Las Vegas.
Pandita is a national leader in the field of clinical and medical informatics and currently drives artificial intelligence (AI) governance, digital transformation and clinician efficiency initiatives at one of California’s largest academic health systems.
She is an advocate for responsible use of artificial intelligence in the healthcare space, balancing growing excitement for the tools with thoughtful implementation strategies.
“Because AI tools directly impact patient care, safety and clinical decision-making, it’s important that physicians ask questions to ensure that the AI solution is clinically relevant, evidence-based, transparent, compliant and usable,” she said in an interview last year.
“By asking the right questions, physicians can maintain their role as stewards of patients.”
In 2024, she co-authored a position paper by the American College of Physicians, clarifying the organization’s position on AI technologies and providing recommendations for their use when giving care. In 2025, she was named one of Becker's Hospital Review CMIOs to Know.
Her digital solutions have improved the health of communities, eased the cognitive burden of clinicians and promoted the wellness of the clinical workforce. Pandita’s work has also reduced the average patient stay in the hospital, saved costs and improved operational efficiencies.
About UCI Health
UCI Health is one of California’s largest academic health systems and the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine. Established on July 1, 1976, UCI Health has grown into a 1,461-bed health system that includes UCI Health — Orange, UCI Health — Irvine, four Community Network hospitals and a growing network of ambulatory care centers across Orange and Los Angeles counties. As Orange County’s only academic health systems, UCI Health is home to the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center based in the county, the region’s only American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center, American College of Emergency Physicians Gold Level 1 Geriatric Emergency Department and a nationally recognized regional burn center verified by the American Burn Association. Powered by UC Irvine, UCI Health serves 5.6 million people across Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County through excellence in patient care, research and medical education. Follow UCI Health on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X.