Rome Health names new chief nursing officer

ROME, N.Y. — Rome Health announced it has appointed Ashley Edwards as its new chief nursing officer (CNO).

As CNO, the Westernville native, Edwards, provides clinical and administrative leadership for planning, organizing, directing, monitoring, and evaluating safe, high-quality patient care to advance the mission of Rome Health.

“Ashley is a trusted and approachable leader, who possesses both the passion and clinical competencies to support a dedicated workforce and foster continuous quality improvement through multi-disciplinary collaboration,” Rome Health President and CEO AnneMarie W. Czyz said in a news release. Under Edwards’ leadership, Rome Health was recognized nationally for exceptional patient care in the emergency and maternity departments.

“My goal was never to be just a CNO anywhere, it was to be the CNO here at Rome,” Edwards said, explaining that Rome Health was the only place she applied to work after graduating nursing school. “It truly feels like a family here, where people care about each other and work as a team.

Edwards joined Rome Health as a graduate nurse in the intensive-care unit (ICU) after graduating from St. Elizabeth College of Nursing in 2012. She earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing in 2013 and her master’s degree in nursing/nursing management and executive leadership in 2020.

She became nurse manager of the Rome Health nursing department in 2017 and assumed increasing levels of responsibility, gaining critical clinical and operational experience in the ICU, maternity, and surgical services.

Edwards earned multiple credentials and special certifications to maintain her clinical competencies, and she earned her board certification as a nurse executive in 2022.

Multiple stakeholders, including the medical and nursing staffs at Rome Health, participated in the process to define the essential qualities for the organization’s next CNO and shared detailed feedback during the interview and selection process.

“Ashley will be an outstanding addition to our executive leadership team as we work together to deliver the best care out there. Here,” Czyz said.