Toni Cotton is the new chief nursing officer (CNO) for Harris Health System’s Ambulatory Care Services, the primary and outpatient care arm of the safety-net healthcare system providing more than 2 million patient visits annually to residents of Harris County through its network health centers, school-based clinics, homeless shelters, and specialty facilities.
Cotton, MHA, RN, BSN, a long-time resident of Katy, Texas, began her new role in January. She has more than 30 years of nursing experience and is tasked to lead the organization through the transformation of its healthcare delivery system.
Cotton will lead the service’s effort to achieve Pathway to Excellence, a nationally recognized nursing designation and work with physician partners from Baylor College of Medicine and The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston to increase specialty care at health center/clinic locations.
Prior to joining Harris Health, Cotton served as chief nursing officer at West Houston Medical Center, a 302-patient bed facility in Houston. During her time as CNO, the hospital achieved several national recognitions including Pathway to Excellence, bariatric center of excellence, primary stroke certification and the American Heart and Stroke Association’s Gold Mission Lifeline Award.