Nuance Communications has been announced as the second sponsor of the Health CIO Network.
The network, which was launched at EHI Live last year, is chaired by University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust’s director of informatics Daniel Ray.
Its aim is to give health CIOs greater professional recognition, to build a shared identity and be an influential voice over health informatics policies from the centre.
Nuance joins Cisco as a sponsor of the network.
Jon Hoeksma, co-founder and EHI editor, said: “The commitment of Nuance as a foundation sponsor of the new Health CIO Network marks an important step in the development of new models of collaboration and partnership in NHS IT.
“The new best practice network is being developed through regional and national events, including the first Health CIO Summer School at Oxford University, backed by online resources and community and collaboration tools.
“By bringing together NHS information leaders in a network of networks, the Health CIO Network will help support information leaders across the NHS and accelerate best practice exchange and adoption.”
As sponsors, Nuance will be present at events hosted regionally and nationally, and the company will also have a prominent role on the Health CIO Network advisory panel.
Nuance hopes to be able to share its best practices and guidance with the network.
Commenting on the decision to sponsor the network, Frederik Brabant, chief medical officer at Nuance, said the sponsorship will help the company better understand and overcome challenges faced by health CIOs.
“Many of the challenges faced by the NHS – whether they are financial, technical or quality of treatment-related – can be addressed more effectively when information leaders across the NHS leverage the insights of those most directly engaged and impacted by health regulations,” he said.
“This network enables them to share their practical experiences and ideas with one another and learn more about the latest healthcare IT solutions.”
The Health CIO Summer School will take place in Oxford in July.