Who's Making the Tough Decisions on Healthcare Technology and Transformation?

An evolving healthcare landscape means the CIO's role is changing. A new HealthLeaders Exchange will take a look at this new hierarchy, where collaboration is the key.

The healthcare C-Suite is evolving, and no position better encapsulates these changes than the CIO. Once considered solely a technology-based role, focusing on EMR adoption and integration, the CIO – be it the chief information or innovation officer (or both) – is assuming more strategic and management duties as the industry embraces new concepts like digital health and transformation.

"Because of those disruptions and because of that focus, now you're a force-multiplier," Aaron Miri, MBA, FCHIME, CHCIO, Baptist Health Jacksonville's EVP and Chief Digital & Information Officer, said during a CHIME CIO panel at VIVE 25 this past spring in Nashville. "It changed the lexicon of CIOs to be talking more like a CFO, or a COO, or a Chief Human Resources Officer."

"I spend part of my day looking at recruitment, part of my day looking at P&L [profit and loss], part of my day looking at futuristic digital transformations and what we can do [to be] disruptive, as well as strategically, where are we going as a health system," he added.

Indeed, while the EMR/EHR still occupies a large chunk of C-Suite time and effort, the onset of new technologies like digital health, virtual care and AI

In a 2024 study supported by surveys of 51 executives from 33 health systems, the National Institutes of Health summarized the newly evolving CIO as having three roles:

• Enabling strategic change and transformation;
• Developing technology and leadership talent; and
• Driving organizational culture.

"As healthcare continues to evolve, the role of the CIO is expected to expand further, requiring a blend of technical and strategic business skills," the article, written by researchers at the Georgetown University Department of Health Management Policy and the University of Alabama at Birmingham', concluded. "This evolution presents opportunities for health systems to enhance their leadership development programs, preparing leaders for the complexities of the contemporary health system sector."

In addition, healthcare leadership is not only redefining the CIO but in some cases reorganizing the C-Suite, either due to budget concerns or the changing face of healthcare transformation. Chief strategy and partnership officers are helping to address disruptors and extend the healthcare organization's traditional footprint, while chief digital health and transformation officers are handling the growing integration of technology in patient care, especially as healthcare moves out of the hospital and into the home. Some organizations are even carving out a leadership role for AI development and management, with the idea that this technology requires full-time stewardship.

At the VIVE panel, Tessa Springman, SVP and chief information / digital health officer at LifeBridge Health, noted she's become more of an educator and facilitator.

"I am the person who is the glue in the organization," she said. "I am constantly educating my peers on what their peers are doing."

"I spend most of my day thinking about, OK, how am I going to improve this business function, how are we going to partner to make this improvement, and will technology help that particular function or not?" she added.

The gist of this evolution is that the CIO is being called upon to work more closely with others in the executive chain, particularly as new programs and strategies require input from a wide variety of sources, including the CFO, the CMO, the CNO, and even the CEO. The top job description of the future may well be "works well with others."

To address this shifting role, HealthLeaders is launching a new Exchange aimed at bringing together top CIOs, chief digital health officers, chief transformation officers and others to network and discuss how technology strategy is changing their roles.

The Chief Digital Executive Exchange (CDEX) will take place December 4-5 at Le Meridien in Washington DC.

Recruitment is underway for this event. Please contact EWicklund@healthleadersmedica.com for details.

Exclusive sponsorship opportunities are also available. For more information, contact Sales@healthleadersmedia.com.