Dr. Holcomb is Vice Chair and Professor of Surgery and Chief of the Division of Acute Care Surgery at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, where he also serves as the Director of the Center for Translational Injury Research. In 2009 he was named the University of Texas Chancellor's Fellow for Trauma and Injury.

Dr. Holcomb is actively involved in clinical medicine and resident and student education. His research interests include trauma, hemostasis, coagulopathy, brain injury and trauma informatics. He has an established basic science laboratory in the area of vascular biology of trauma and is the PI of a NIGMS P-50 and T-32 training grant. He reviews papers for 15 journals, has published more than 280 peer-reviewed articles, serves on multiple committees and editorial boards, and is a member on the Committee on Tactical Combat Casualty Care.