Thurston Smith, Ph.D.
Chief Information Officer
Thurston Smith joined Swope Health in March 2021 from Cerner Corp., where he was a Senior Engineer Manager leading an engineering team in code design and development.
Previously, he was CIO at the Samuel U. Rodgers Health Center in Kansas City, and he brings expertise from roles at Truman Medical Centers; Datafile Technologies; and DST Systems Inc., all in Kansas City; and at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, Iowa.
A veteran of the U.S. Army and Army Reserve, Smith has also held positions as an adjunct professor with Johnson County Community College and DeVry University.
Dr. Smith holds a Doctorate of Health Administration from Capella University in Minneapolis; and an MBA from DeVry University, Keller Graduate School of Management, in Naperville, Ill. He received a Master of Arts in Educational Technology from the University of Missouri-Kansas City; Associate degree in Applied Science in Information Technology from Hamilton Business College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Computer Science from Mississippi Valley State University in Itta Bena, Miss.
Active in the Kansas City community, his church and fraternity, Dr. Smith also serves on the boards of Jackson County CASA, a court advocacy group for children, and his non-profit organization, Iron Men Ministry, which mentors young men in positive development and empowerment.