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📍 Today in Health IT, we're discussing navigating the relationship between CMIOs and CIOs. This episode is brought to you by Omnissa, the first AI-driven platform enabling seamless, secure, personalized work experiences. Discover more at thisweekhealth.com backslash omnissa.

Okay, so today we're discussing CMIOs and CIOs working together. And I'm joined by Sarah Richardson, president of This Week Health 229 Executive Development Community. Sarah, welcome to the show. Thank you, Kate. Great to be here. So this article focuses on the organizational structure and relationships between the CMIO group and the CIO group within health systems. It explores whether these groups should work together collaboratively, as a unified team, or operate as distinct entities, highlighting the implications for health IT strategy and governance in fostering effective communication and integration of clinical and technological initiatives. So let's start by talking about why it's so important for these groups to be in lockstep and some of the benefits of that collaboration.

Sure. And here's what I love about the timing of our conversation is that in DC, we had the CMIO summit next door to the AI and data governance conversation with several CIOs and data officers. And then even while we were in Atlanta, we did a city tour where we had again, CMIOs and CIOs together at these tables. So I got to watch the dynamic between individual conversations in DC where they came together at breaks and other intervals. And then I got to see them in the room at the same time, one of our evenings. And so what I will tell you that is so interesting is that it truly does enhance collaboration between the departments. Those joint efforts are going to drive some of the digital transformation we need, and they have to be strategically aligned. What I love, though, about watching both dynamics is that they're hypothesizing and thinking about things within their own teams, and then the power of what the generation of that conversation brings forward is truly remarkable.

Yeah, for me, I've always enjoyed interviewing CIOs who are nurses or physicians because they're so conscientious about making sure those on the frontline have a voice and that technology isn’t something that happens to them. And it's great to get that perspective. I think the question sometimes is around how to establish that open communication, build that trust. And, you mentioned these discussions that we recently hosted. Based on that, what are some of the things that you think leaders should consider around how to drive that collaboration?

Yes, what was interesting about, especially the dinner in Atlanta, was the understanding of, hey, if we do this together, we're going to have a better project success rate because everybody is still dealing with that influx of work and influx of projects that has come post-pandemic. During the pandemic, we had to agree on a few items that were most important to have the best outcomes across the board, but we had fewer objectives at that point because a great idea that wasn't going to drive our ability to serve that point in time either got postponed or just got shelved completely, and now everything's back on the table. So when you've got people understanding that, yes, we both want this and it was successful for both of us, that's going to improve the project's success rate. The integration of the strategy is really key. Having better patient care, number one, and a streamlined workflow. And so last night, some of the physicians shared with us, hey, guess what? When we're having these conversations, there may be amazing outcomes attached to these. If it doesn't make sense in the workflow, we still have to figure out a way that allows us to reach the patient most effectively. When they're able to be really thoughtful about that discussion, you're either going to adopt certain technologies faster, or you're going to go back to what I shared before, shelve certain technologies faster, and really understand how it's reaching the desired outcomes across the continuum of the organization. Those two cannot exist without each other. CMIOs and CIOs have to be in lockstep, but they also need to bring their own perspectives to the table. And for organizations that don't have a true CMIO, whomever that physician executive is, have that balance in the relationship.

Yeah, and I would guess this is really where governance comes into play too, and just figuring out how often and how that communication takes place so that it's beneficial for all parties.

It is because governance is something I've had to establish everywhere I've been. It's something that people talk about at every summit and every roundtable and every dinner that we have. And when you think about, okay, I've got to create alignment with all these executive peers, what needs to be true in my organization? When you think about those shared visions and goals, obviously you're going to agree on what needs to happen next for success. When you're talking about it transparently, we’re talking clear, frequent, transparent communication, and one of the physicians recently said to me, there's also going to be a lot of emotion that comes into this because I'm caring for my patients. So allow emotion to be part of the conversation, even if it's not necessarily one of the criteria by which governance is really adopted, but letting that come through. Be respectful. At the end of the day, if you don't have trust for productive collaboration and alignment on your decision making, you're not going to be successful across the board. The organization, and then knowing whose responsibility it is in each role so there's not overlapping confusion. And in some of those dynamics with your CMIO and your CIO, there's going to be overlap, and then sometimes you decide who takes which baton at which interval in that race. And then I really think about bringing that forward to either the larger C-suite or to the board. That joint approach is really going to give leverage from both sides of the equation. So be willing to be exploratory in what this means organizationally, so that everybody still feels like they can do their best job. And for many CMIOs, that role is only a portion of what they do. Many of them are still practicing a day or more a week. So how do you allow them to do that well and also further the objectives of the organization from a technology perspective?

Yeah, it all comes down to patient care. Everything comes back to that. And that's the common goal everyone’s working toward. And not every patient care initiative is going to have a huge ROI. Sometimes it's about doing the right thing. And that's where that voice of that physician becomes so powerful in the organization.

Yeah, I really appreciate you joining me, giving your insights. 📍 Don't forget to share this podcast with a friend or colleague. Thanks for listening. And that's a wrap.