Specialist Overview: The Standard of Peer-Reviewed Excellence
The Physician of Excellence (POE) award is a highly selective honor bestowed by the Orange County Medical Association (OCMA) and featured in Orange Coast Magazine. Unlike “pay-to-play” accolades, the POE selection process is a rigorous, multi-step peer-review involving board certification, hospital leadership, professional teaching, and a track record of ethical, high-quality patient care. To be selected, a physician must be nominated by their peers and meet the stringent criteria that place them in the top tier of their specialty in Southern California.
- Selection Criteria: Requires a current California Medical License, active board certification, and a professional history of leadership and clinical innovation.
- Specialty Distinction: In the field of General Surgery, POE status is awarded only to those who demonstrate exceptional outcomes in complex cases and high-volume procedural mastery.
- Clinical Impact: This recognition serves as a benchmark for surgical safety and reliability within the Orange County medical community.
A Decades-Long Commitment to Quality
Dr. Todd Harris has been honored as a Physician of Excellence for 11 consecutive years (2015–2026). This streak of peer-recognized mastery is a reflection of his leadership in the ACHQC and his role as the Principal Investigator for the NOPIOIDS clinical trial (NCT05929937). By integrating the latest findings from his published research (PMID: 39724506) into daily practice, Dr. Harris maintains the high clinical standards required for this prestigious award.
“I am very honored to have been chosen to receive this award. Being nominated by my patients, and being chosen by our Orange County Medical Association is truly one of the highlights of the year. To be recognized by my peers and patients makes all of the hard work and dedication to our patients worth every effort.”
– Dr. Harris, January 2026
About the Physician of Excellence Award
The Orange Coast Magazine publishes its annual health issue and lists Orange County’s Physicians of Excellence. The Physicians of Excellence (POE) program was started by the Orange County Medical Association in 2005. The OCMA Board, when venturing into the POE program, recognized the fact that all physicians meet a standard of excellence simply by the fact that they have completed the training and education necessary to become medical doctors. However, there are some who go above and beyond in serving their profession and patients, and as a result, the OCMA Board believed that by creating the POE program it would be able to recognize and honor those physicians.
Now in its third decade, the POE program has become recognized as a fair and unbiased selection process identifying those physicians in the community who have exhibited the skills, training and commitment to their patients and the community to stand out above their peers as physicians of excellence. 
While the program certainly doesn’t honor all those in the county who would rightfully qualify, OCMA believes the program does an excellent job of selecting the utmost deserving on a year-to-year basis.
Visit the Orange County Medical Association website for more information:
Criteria for Physician of Excellence Award
To be selected for the Physicians of Excellence honor, applicants were required to meet the following baseline criteria:
- Be certified by a member board of the American Board of Medical Specialties, a member board of the American Board of Osteopathic Medical Specialties, or an equivalency board recognized by the Medical Board of California or Osteopathic Medical Board of California
- Be in good standing with the Medical Board of California or Osteopathic Medical Board of California
- Maintain his/her primary practice in Orange County for the last five years
- Be in practice within his/her specialty field for the last five years
Applicant nominees also were required to meet at least two of the following four criteria. The Selection Committee determined whether the applicant met the criteria, and in some instances, discretion was used.
- Physician Leadership
- Teaching/mentoring
- Humanitarian service
- Unique contributions not included above
Dr. Harris, Thank you for saving Justin’s life. You saw how much he suffered. When no pediatric surg/gi would touch him, you saved him!
