Kelly Kovaric, M.D., FAAP

Kelly Kovaric, M.D., FAAP, is the longitudinal leadership course director at Dell Medical School, focusing on professional identity formation, health systems science and leadership development. She is board-certified both in general and hospital pediatrics and teaches residents and medical students at Dell Children’s Medical Center.

Her research interests and peer-reviewed publications include professional identity formation, health systems science education and implementation science research. She serves on national, regional and local medical education committees, including the Texas Pediatric Society and the Generalists in Medical Education. Kovaric is the chair of the Innovation, Leadership and Discovery Subcommittee at Dell Med.

Prior to coming to Dell Med, Kovaric was a general pediatrician in private practice and a hospitalist in both academic and community settings, where she designed medical education curricula in quality improvement at Texas A&M Health Science Center and led quality improvement efforts to improve patient care, including designing protocols for asthma treatment, neonatal transport and hyperbilirubinemia.

Building on her previous career as a middle school teacher, Kovaric joined Dell Med in 2020 as part of the inaugural medical education fellowship program. She designed quality improvement curricula for both medical students and residents in an ACGME with Distinction program. She has mentored numerous undergraduate, medical students and residents at The University of Texas at Austin both in medical education research and implementation science research.

Kovaric currently serves as the co-lead for research and innovation in health systems in the Department of Pediatrics Advocacy Committee, where her research focuses on improving health outcomes and decreasing health care utilization for hospitalized children.