John Christian “Chris” Fox, MD, appointed chair of the UCI School of Medicine Department of Emergency Medicine

Irvine, Calif. – April 23, 2019 – Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine John Christian “Chris” Fox, MD, has been appointed chair of the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, effective immediately.  He served as interim chair since 2017.

“A true leader in every sense of the word, Dr. Fox is committed to the mission of our Department of Emergency Medicine: Serving any person, anytime they are in need of emergency medical care to the very best of his abilities.  We are delighted to have him take this leadership role in such a vital area of the UCI Health enterprise,” said Michael J. Stamos, MD, dean of the UCI School of Medicine. 

A professor of emergency medicine and current director of ultrasound in medical education, Dr. Fox’s clinical research interests lie in emergency ultrasound.  He is dedicated to promulgating the use of ultrasound at the point-of-care through research, teaching, leadership and clinical expertise. 

Through two consecutive grants from the UniHealth Foundation totaling $1.38M, Dr. Fox developed and published a unique four-year integrated point-of-care ultrasound curriculum for UCI medical students, making UCI the second medical school in the United States to integrate ultrasound into medical education. The curriculum he developed has been emulated and repurposed at over thirty medical schools throughout the nation.

In addition, Dr. Fox has published nearly 100 peer-reviewed papers and contributed to three textbooks, two of them as sole editor.  He has been invited to lecture more than 450 times in 49 states and 12 countries, including a TEDx UCI talk titled, “The Point of Care Revolution; Ultrasound,” which he gave in 2015.  Among the many honors he has received is recognition as a physician of excellence earlier this year by the Orange County Medical Association. 

Dr. Fox earned his MD from Tufts University School of Medicine.  He did his residency in emergency medicine at UCI.  He also completed a fellowship at the University of Illinois at Chicago in emergency ultrasound. 

Dr. Fox is a fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians, American Academy of Emergency Medicine and the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.  He is also a member of the Society of Academic Emergency Medicine, ACEP Ultrasound Interest Group and SAEM’s Academy of Emergency Ultrasound.  He serves on the board of directors for both the Society of Ultrasound in Medical Education and the Catalina Island Medical Center. 

Dr. Fox joined UCI School of Medicine in 2001.  Prior to his role in the Department of Emergency Medicine, he served as assistant dean for Students Affairs at the UCI School of Medicine, and as director of the ultrasound fellowship in emergency medicine. 

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About the UCI School of Medicine

Each year, the UCI School of Medicine educates more than 400 medical students and nearly 150 PhD and MS students. More than 700 residents and fellows are trained at the UCI Medical Center and affiliated institutions. Multiple MD, PhD and MS degrees are offered. Students are encouraged to pursue an expansive range of interests and options. For medical students, there are numerous concurrent dual degree programs, including an MD/MBA, MD/MPH, or an MD/MS degree through one of three mission-based programs: the Health Education to Advance Leaders in Integrative Medicine (HEAL-IM), the Program in Medical Education for Leadership Education to Advance Diversity-African, Black and Caribbean (PRIME LEAD-ABC), and the Program in Medical Education for the Latino Community (PRIME-LC). The UCI School of Medicine is accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Accreditation and ranks among the top 50 nationwide for research. For more information, visit medschool.uci.edu.