Episode 53 : From Bedside to Bytes: Tech That Works for Nurses with Dr. Nancy Beale

Episode #53. From Bedside to Bytes: Tech That Works for Nurses

How can technology transform nursing without losing the human touch that defines patient care?

In this episode of the Smart Care Team Spotlight, Dr. Nancy Beale, Vice President of Clinical Informatics and Chief Nursing Informatics Officer at Catholic Health Services, stresses the importance of involving clinicians in technology design, bridging technical capabilities with clinical needs, and fostering critical thinking skills, especially as AI and digital tools reshape nursing. At Catholic Health, her priorities include reducing administrative burdens, standardizing practices across facilities, and ensuring AI is built on accurate, consistent data. She highlights the role of change management, collaboration with nursing leaders, and addressing workflow inefficiencies, sharing examples of virtual care tools that saved nurses significant time while teaching valuable lessons in implementation. Her advice to nurses is to remain lifelong learners, stay rooted in patient advocacy, and see technology as a tool to enhance the human elements of care.

Join us as Dr. Nancy Beale shares her years of insight on bridging clinical expertise and cutting-edge innovation, revealing how nurses can thrive in AI.

About Dr. Nancy Beale:
A healthcare professional for more than 39 years, Dr. Beale’s experience spans clinical care, operations, vendor, consulting, and IT operations. Nancy was recognized as the 2019 HIMSS-ANI Nursing Informatics Leader of the Year. In 2024, Nancy joined Catholic Health Services in Long Island, New York, as the vice president of clinical informatics and chief nursing informatics officer. Before joining Catholic Health Services, Nancy served as CNIO and President of Telemetrix and Affiliates. Additional past executive experience includes leading clinical systems and integration for an extensive academic health system, achieving HIMSS-6, HIMSS-7, HIMSS-Davies Award, and several innovation partnerships. Her work has included the development of an offshore collaboration and leadership for the clinical systems implementation of a digital hospital in Manhattan. Nancy holds a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, focused on clinical technology adoption with a minor in human factors and design thinking. She received her master’s degree in nursing from Loyola University of Chicago with an emphasis in Health Systems and Healthcare Informatics, and she is also board-certified in nursing informatics.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Nurses and other frontline clinicians must be actively involved in technology design to ensure solutions support patient care rather than solely focusing on efficiency.
• Critical thinking skills remain essential in nursing and cannot be replaced by AI or automated tools.
• Standardizing practices across facilities improves care quality and strengthens the accuracy and reliability of AI systems.
• Effective change management involves engaging nursing leadership, addressing underlying workflow issues, and supporting staff during transitions.
• Virtual documentation and observation technologies can save nurses up to 45 minutes per patient, allowing more time for direct bedside care and improving patient satisfaction.
• Continuous learning enables nurses to adapt to evolving healthcare technologies while maintaining their commitment to patient advocacy.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Dr. Nancy Beale on LinkedIn.
• Follow Catholic Health Services on LinkedIn and discover their website!