Dr. Richard Kelly is a member of the medical faculty at the University of California in Irvine. As an undergraduate at Harvard University, Dr. Kelly studied theology and biochemistry. After graduation, he was awarded a full scholarship to study public health at the University of California in Berkeley. He then moved to Stanford University where he pursued dual professional degrees in Law and Medicine. 

He completed his anesthesiology medical training (internship, residency, fellowship) at the University of California in San Francisco (UCSF) and after several years in private practice Dr. Kelly returned to academics. He teaches cardiothoracic anesthesiology at the university medical center and teaches a course in public policy for graduate students at the Health Policy Research Institute. His clinical interests focus on the anesthetic management of surgical patients with complex cardiothoracic diseases and his public policy research interests include the societal consequences of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare"); the ethical and legal implications of physician fatigue; medical professionalism; opioid tolerance and addiction; and national trends in medical malpractice awards. He actively participates in the American College of Legal Medicine, the American Board of Legal Medicine, and the World Association for Medical Law.