Parkland Health appointed Travis L. Smith as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, adding a healthcare finance executive with more than two decades of experience to the Dallas health system. Smith joined Parkland in September and succeeds Richard Humphrey, who retired after nine years with the organization.
Smith most recently served as Chief Financial Officer of Clinical Operations at University Health in San Antonio.
He previously served as Deputy Chief Financial Officer for the organization.
At University Health, Smith provided financial leadership for an integrated academic health system with more than 13,000 employees.
The organization includes an 873-bed hospital, a health plan covering more than 150,000 lives, and more than $4.2 billion in annual operations.
Smith’s experience includes financial and strategic planning, hospital and physician practice operations, capital financing, supply chain management, productivity improvement, and financial modeling for growth initiatives.
He also helped support financing for two 286-bed community hospitals scheduled to open in 2027.
Smith previously held several financial leadership roles at Baylor Scott & White Health.
Those positions included Vice President of Finance and Entity CFO for McLane Children’s Hospital & Clinics.
Earlier in his career, he worked in financial and patient access positions at Venice Regional Medical Center and Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital.
Smith began his healthcare career as a Medicaid Eligibility Specialist with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission at Brackenridge Hospital in Austin.
He holds both an MBA and a Master of Healthcare Administration from the University of Houston-Clear Lake and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of North Texas.
Smith is also a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and a Fellow of the Healthcare Financial Management Association.
KEY QUOTES:
“Travis brings extensive healthcare finance experience along with a strong understanding of the complexities of an academic health system.”
Fred Cerise, MD, MPH, President and CEO of Parkland Health
“His ability to work collaboratively with clinical and operational leaders while maintaining a strong focus on financial stewardship will be important as Parkland continues to grow and plan for the future healthcare needs of Dallas County.”
Fred Cerise, MD, MPH, President and CEO of Parkland Health
“Sound financial stewardship is essential to ensuring Parkland has the resources to continue providing high-quality care today while investing wisely in the people, facilities and services our community will need in the future.”
Travis L. Smith, Executive Vice President and CFO of Parkland Health
