Winfred Parnell, MD, elected chair of Parkland Board
Officer elections held during annual meeting
At its February 19 annual meeting the Parkland Health & Hospital System Board of Managers unanimously elected Winfred Parnell, MD to serve as its chairman. Michael D. Williams, FACHE, will serve as vice chair, and Paula Dobbs-Wiggins, MD, secretary.
Dr. Parnell replaces Debbie D. Branson who twice was named chair by her peers. Branson, who was appointed to the Board in 2011, has announced her resignation. Her successor has not yet been named.
Dr. Parnell was appointed to the Board in 2012. He is a founding partner and physician with his private medical practice Carlos and Parnell, MD, PA, where he has practiced obstetrics and gynecology since 1982. He is also a member of the medical staff at Medical City Dallas Hospital where he served in many leadership positions including Department of Surgery Chair, Chief of Staff and a Board of Trustees member for 15 years.
Dr. Parnell received his bachelor’s degree from Florida A&M University in 1974 and completed his medical education at the University of Florida College of Medicine in 1977. He is a previous board member of United Way and the Dallas County Medical Society and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Texas Healthcare Trustees. Dr. Parnell represented Texas at the White House White Coat Ceremony on Health Care Reform and has also been named “One of the Best Doctors in Dallas” by D Magazine.
Williams, who was appointed to the Board in August 2015, is President and Chief Executive Officer of Plano-based Community Hospital Corporation. He is responsible for the operation and development efforts of the 509a(3) organization, which was established to benefit community-based healthcare providers in the preservation of their community service mission.
Through the provision of various forms of support including acquisition, lease and/or management and consulting, Williams has provided support to hundreds of hospitals in 35 states. Prior to joining Community Hospital Corporation, he served as senior vice president/chief operating officer as well as president and chief operating officer at Baptist Hospital of East Tennessee. Prior to that, he was vice president, Professional Services at Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, and executive vice president and chief operating officer, Children’s Medical Center of Dallas. He was named the recipient of the 2014 Earl M. Collier Award for Distinguished Health Care Administration, the Texas Hospital Association’s highest honor.
Dr. Dobbs-Wiggins was named to the Board in November 2013. She is a Board Certified Psychiatrist and Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and is in private practice in Dallas. She is also an ordained minister and Adjunct Professor of the Practice of Pastoral Care at Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University. Dr. Dobbs-Wiggins received her bachelor’s degree in Biology (cum laude) from Harvard College in Cambridge, MA and her medical degree from Harvard Medical School in Boston. She completed her residency in Psychiatry at Timberlawn Psychiatric Hospital in Dallas.
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