FMOL Health Names Nicole Telhiard Chief Nursing Officer
February 04, 2026
BATON ROUGE, LA — FMOL Health is proud to announce the appointment of Nicole Telhiard, DNP, CPN, NE-BC, as chief nursing officer (CNO). With more than 30 years of dedicated service to the health system, Nicole brings visionary leadership, a commitment to nursing excellence, and deep compassion for patients and staff to her new role at FMOL Health.
“We are thrilled to formally welcome Nicole Telhiard as our system CNO. Her exceptional leadership, unwavering commitment to excellence and dedication to the mission of FMOL Health make her the ideal leader to guide the practice of nursing into the future.,” said E.J. Kuiper, FMOL Health, president and CEO. “Nicole has a long history with FMOL Health, starting her career with us as a nurse tech. Her deep expertise of our organization and the nursing profession make her uniquely qualified for this role.”
During her career, Nicole has made a lasting impact through transformative initiatives that have advanced workforce development, operational performance and community engagement. Her culture of empowerment enables nurses to bring valuable insights back to FMOL Health, helping to shape standards, procedures and clinical excellence for the entire organization.
“It is an honor to serve as chief nursing officer for FMOL Health. I am deeply committed to empowering our nursing team, advancing patient care, and fostering a culture of collaboration and innovation across our organization,” said Nicole. “I have dedicated my professional life to nursing, and I look forward to shaping the future of nursing at FMOL Health.”
Nicole has served as both interim CNO for FMOL Health and retaining her CNO duties at FMOL Health | Our Lady of the Lake. In her new role she will continue to serve as CNO for both the health system and the Baton Rouge Market.
Over the past ten years as CNO for Our Lady of the Lake, Nicole has successfully led the redesign of nursing compensation. Her strategic focus on recruitment and retention resulted in a dramatic reduction in agency nurse usage and a decrease in nurse turnover from 15% to 10%. She has expanded access to healthcare careers through the RN Sponsorship program with Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University (FranU). Her collaboration with Baton Rouge Community College created sponsorships and new career pathways for CNAs and LPNs, further strengthening the pipeline of nursing talent in the region.
Nicole’s distinguished career has been recognized with numerous awards, including the Southeastern Louisiana University Distinguished Alumnus Award (2023), the ANCC Certified Nurse Executive Award (2020) and the Louisiana State Nurses Association’s Nurse Administrator of the Year (2020).
For more information visit FMOLHS.org. For all other media inquiries please reach out to Alexandra Stubbs, PR Director, FMOL Health at Alexandra.Stubbs@fmolhs.org.
About FMOL Health
FMOL Health is one of the largest healthcare systems based in Louisiana and is the leading healthcare provider for more than half the state’s population. The health system is a non-profit, Catholic organization sponsored by the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady. Headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the ministry serves patients in Louisiana and Mississippi through a network of hospitals, clinics, physicians and integrated health systems. The health system’s unified physician organization is comprised of more than 1,100 adult and pediatric primary care physicians and specialists. The system’s nine main campus hospitals include St. Francis Medical Center in Monroe, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge and Gonzales, Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital in Baton Rouge, Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center, Heart Hospital, and Women's & Children's Hospital in Lafayette, Our Lady of the Angels in Bogalusa, and St. Dominic Hospital in Jackson, Mississippi. For more information, visit fmolhealth.org.