Armond Esmaili, MD
Associate Professor
Armond M. Esmaili, MD is an Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine (DHM). He is the Director of Quality and Safety for the Department of Neurological Surgery. He is board-certified in Internal Medicine and divides his time between patient care, hospital operations leadership, quality improvement work, and medical education.
As an internist, Armond directly cares for patients in the hospital and preoperative clinic settings. He also cares for patients at UCSF Health's affiliated skilled nursing facility (the San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living) for the Division of Geriatrics. As the Director of Quality and Safety for Neurological Surgery, he leads and oversees the Department's enterprise that continuously improves the quality, safety, and value of care for patients with neurosurgical disorders. He also serves on the system-wide Quality, Safety and Experience Committee (QSEC), reporting directly to UCSF Health's governing board. He has scholarly interests and experience in patient safety, care transitions, care delivery innovation, patient communication, and health systems leadership.
He founded and continues to lead the Neurosurgery Preoperative Medical Optimization ("PreMO") Clinic that cares for patients with high medical complexity before neurological surgery. He previously completed UCSF Health's Learning Health System Coach Certification Program (a three-year didactic and experiential program in quality improvement, delivery system redesign, and Lean A3 thinking). In prior roles at UCSF Health, he served as the Assistant Medical Director of the Goldman Medical Service (UCSF Health's direct care hospitalist service), Medical Director of the Hospital Medicine Unit-Based Leadership Team (overseeing quality and safety for three inpatient medical units), and Medical Director of the Code CARE Team (a novel hospital-based behavioral de-escalation response team).
In 2025, Armond was selected as a fellow in the 25th cohort of the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) Leadership Program. The two-year, part-time fellowship with CHCF and UCSF's Healthforce Center trains 32 clinician leaders with leadership and management skills to advance the state's health care system, strengthen California's safety-net institutions, and advocate for more equitable and effective care.
Armond received his undergraduate degree from Georgetown University where he majored in Human Science, graduated as Valedictorian, and was a Rhodes Scholarship national finalist. He earned his medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine where he was a Health Justice Scholar. He completed his medical internship and residency in Internal Medicine at UCSF with additional training in quality improvement and health policy in the residency’s Health Systems and Leadership pathway. He then served as UCSF Chief Resident at the San Francisco VA Medical Center. Armond joined UCSF’s Division of Hospital Medicine as faculty in 2019.
As an internist, Armond directly cares for patients in the hospital and preoperative clinic settings. He also cares for patients at UCSF Health's affiliated skilled nursing facility (the San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living) for the Division of Geriatrics. As the Director of Quality and Safety for Neurological Surgery, he leads and oversees the Department's enterprise that continuously improves the quality, safety, and value of care for patients with neurosurgical disorders. He also serves on the system-wide Quality, Safety and Experience Committee (QSEC), reporting directly to UCSF Health's governing board. He has scholarly interests and experience in patient safety, care transitions, care delivery innovation, patient communication, and health systems leadership.
He founded and continues to lead the Neurosurgery Preoperative Medical Optimization ("PreMO") Clinic that cares for patients with high medical complexity before neurological surgery. He previously completed UCSF Health's Learning Health System Coach Certification Program (a three-year didactic and experiential program in quality improvement, delivery system redesign, and Lean A3 thinking). In prior roles at UCSF Health, he served as the Assistant Medical Director of the Goldman Medical Service (UCSF Health's direct care hospitalist service), Medical Director of the Hospital Medicine Unit-Based Leadership Team (overseeing quality and safety for three inpatient medical units), and Medical Director of the Code CARE Team (a novel hospital-based behavioral de-escalation response team).
In 2025, Armond was selected as a fellow in the 25th cohort of the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) Leadership Program. The two-year, part-time fellowship with CHCF and UCSF's Healthforce Center trains 32 clinician leaders with leadership and management skills to advance the state's health care system, strengthen California's safety-net institutions, and advocate for more equitable and effective care.
Armond received his undergraduate degree from Georgetown University where he majored in Human Science, graduated as Valedictorian, and was a Rhodes Scholarship national finalist. He earned his medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine where he was a Health Justice Scholar. He completed his medical internship and residency in Internal Medicine at UCSF with additional training in quality improvement and health policy in the residency’s Health Systems and Leadership pathway. He then served as UCSF Chief Resident at the San Francisco VA Medical Center. Armond joined UCSF’s Division of Hospital Medicine as faculty in 2019.