Tri-Cities Community Health has a new CEO after conducting a nationwide search.

Jim Davis,

Jim Davis will join the federally-qualified health care organization based in Pasco as chief executive officer in January.

He currently serves as CEO of Pines Health Services in Caribou, Maine.

Davis replaces Jennifer Robinson, who was named CEO last October after working as director of nursing since 2013. The Tri-Cities Community Health board terminated her contract in May.

Board Chairman Mike Tuohy declined to provide a reason why. He said Robinson no longer works for the health system.

The board hired Oregon-based UHC Solutions to conduct a nationwide search for her replacement, Tuohy said. The company specializes in finding executives for federally-qualified health centers like Tri-Cities Community Health.

“We’re very anxious to have Jim arrive and think he’ll be an asset to the organization,” Tuohy said.

The board offered Davis a three-year contract, said Tuohy, who has served on the board since 2012.

Former CEO Al Cordova retired from the clinic last October after five years and is credited with helping turn around an agency that was struggling financially and operationally.

During Davis’ 10-year tenure in Maine, Pines Health Services’ budget grew from $17 million to $28 million, funding increased from $800,000 to $2.1 million, and it achieved the Health Resources & Services Administration’s national quality leader designation for three consecutive years.

The new CEO’s background includes work in Washington state. Among the positions he’s held are senior director of operations and support at Washington Hospital Healthcare System in Fremont, California; client relations manager at LifeMasters Supported SelfCare in Vancouver, Washington; chief operating officer at Wendel Family Dental Centre in Vancouver, Washington; and site administrator and system vice president at Good Samaritan Health System in San Jose, California.

Davis received his bachelor of science in biological sciences from Stanford University, a master’s of public health with a focus on community health education from San Jose State University, and a master’s in business administration from the University of California, Irvine.

Ralph Hill of Community Link Consulting in Spokane will serve as Tri-Cities Community Health’s interim CEO until Davis arrives in early January.

Tri-Cities Community Health serves more than 24,000 patients a year and employs about 300 people.

The health system primarily serves a low-income population, receiving state and federal money to provide health care to low-income people with limited resources.

Tri-Cities Community Health is a private, nonprofit with offices in Pasco, Kennewick and Richland. It was incorporated in 1981.