New Haven, CT (July 22, 2022) – Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) and Senior Vice President Ena Williams, PHD(c), RN, has been named to the Board of Directors of the Joint Commission, the U.S.’ oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in healthcare. Governed by a 21-member Board of Commissioners that includes physicians, administrators, nurses, employers, quality experts, a consumer advocate, and educators, the Joint Commission evaluates and certifies more than 22,000 healthcare organizations and programs in the U.S. to improve healthcare for the public.
Williams has also been named to the Board of Trustees of the American Nurses Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the American Nurses Association, the professional association of the country’s four million registered nurses. The Foundation works to shape the future of nursing and improve health by identifying issues facing nurses and developing solutions to evolve nursing practice.
“Ena is an exemplary and respected leader of over 5,000 nurses and clinical staff of YNHH, and we’re pleased that such influential organizations have recognized her positive impact,” said Keith Churchwell, MD, president, Yale New Haven Hospital. “Her commitment to empowering and developing future nurse leaders and to furthering diversity, equity and inclusion makes our organization stronger and helps us provide better patient care each and every day.”
Williams joined the staff at YNHH in 1992 as a nurse in the Operating Room. She assumed the role of CNO in 2018 and is the first African American CNO appointed at YNHH. As CNO, she led the team through the first American Nurses Credentialing Center, Nurse Residency Accreditation in the State. She also led and continues to lead the team through the COVID-19 pandemic and, most recently, through the third American Nurses Credentialling Center Magnet Designation, the highest honor of nursing excellence a hospital can achieve.
“Nurses are known as valiant advocates for high-quality patient care, and at no time has that advocacy been stronger or more needed than during the recent pandemic,” said Williams. “I’m both honored and humbled to serve in these industry-leading organizations, and I look forward to furthering their work nationwide on behalf of nurses.”
Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH), part of Yale New Haven Health, is a nationally recognized, 1,541-bed, not-for-profit hospital serving as the primary teaching hospital for the Yale School of Medicine (YSM). Founded as the fourth voluntary hospital in the U.S. in 1826, today, YNHH has two New Haven-based campuses, and also includes Yale New Haven Children's Hospital, Yale New Haven Psychiatric Hospital and Smilow Cancer Hospital. YNHH has received Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the nation’s highest honor of nursing excellence. YNHH has a combined medical staff of about 4,500 university and community physicians practicing in more than 100 specialties. www.ynhh.org
