Piedmont creates executive-level position dedicated to helping nurses

Piedmont announced this week it has hired Mary Kane, MS, RN, NI-BC, as the health care system’s inaugural chief nursing informatics officer.

The executive-level position will be dedicated to optimizing technology, enhancing efficiency and positively affecting nurses.

“It is great to be at a forward-looking organization like Piedmont,” Kane told the health system. “We exist to serve our patients, and I am excited about ways we can implement technology to provide greater care while also maximizing the talent of our great nurses.”

Nurse informatics specialists serve to connect health care staff with cutting-edge technologies that can enhance their efforts on the job, according to Nurse Journal.

“At Piedmont, one of our values is to embrace the future,” Lacy Knight, M.D., chief health informatics officer at Piedmont, said in a news release. “New technology with the potential to make us more accurate and efficient in health care delivery is here, and we need to be prepared.

“Adding the role of CNIO to our leadership team will ensure we thoughtfully balance the risks and opportunities that come with introducing innovative technology in a health care setting,” she said.

The roles of chief nursing informatics officer and senior nursing informatics officer continue to be on the rise, according to the 2022 HIMSS Nursing Informatics Workforce Survey. About 54% of the survey’s 1,118 respondents said their organization employs at least one of the two positions.

“Mary is passionate about harnessing the power of technology to enhance the nursing and patient experience,” Denise Ray, chief nurse executive at Piedmont, said in the news release. “She is the right person to help Piedmont lead the way in the safe adoption of the latest technology to assist nurses and clinicians.”