Dr. Banke BLawrence joins Akron Children’s as new VP of nursing informatics
05-05-2025 (Akron, Mahoning Valley, Ohio)
Banke BLawrence has joined Akron Children’s as the new vice president of nursing informatics. Dr. BLawrence brings a wealth of experience in health care and technology to the organization, most recently serving as the chief health informatics officer at the Department of Veterans Affairs in Illinois. In this role, she led the modernization of the electronic health record (EHR) system, drove digital health initiatives and optimized clinical applications to improve patient care.
With over 17 years of experience in health care leadership, Dr. BLawrence’s career spans a range of areas, including executive leadership, program and project management, clinical operations, artificial intelligence nd analytics.
She earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree from the University of Maryland School of Nursing. She also holds a Master of Science in health systems management from the University of Baltimore, a Bachelor of Health Administration from the University of Maryland Baltimore County and a Bachelor of Science in nursing from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
Dr. BLawrence is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP), Prosci/ADKAR Certified Change Management Practitioner and ANCC Board Certified Nurse Informaticist, among other certifications in LEAN Six Sigma and ITIL®.
In addition to her professional accomplishments, Dr. BLawrence is an active member of several industry organizations, including the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA). She has also co-authored publications and served as faculty at the University of Maryland School of Nursing and Notre Dame University School of Nursing. Throughout her tenure, she championed the integration of technology, innovation, AI, predictive modelling and data analytics to improve patient outcomes.
In her free time, she enjoys traveling, music, comedy and spending time with her husband and daughter. The family will be relocating to Akron in the coming months.
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