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Current CHI Health employees or their friends or family members can get up to two years of nursing school paid for by the regional health network.

As part of its "Grow Our Own Nurses" partnership, CHI Health will cover the costs of tuition, books and fees for nursing students pursuing an associate of science in nursing degree at Purdue Global.

While the program is largely online, students will be required to travel to Lincoln for hands-on learning at Purdue Global's new Simulation Center for Innovative Excellence at CHI Health St. Elizabeth.

The new center allows nursing students to work with "high-fidelity" manikins that mimic symptoms such as bleeding or vomiting, and allows those individuals to work under the close supervision of an instructor.

Students enrolled in the "Grow Our Own Nurses" program will also gain experience in clinical rotations at the Lincoln hospital.

Once those students pass the registered nurse licensing exam in their state, they will be required to commit to a full-time nursing position at a CHI Health hospital for three years.

Tim Plante, CHI Health's chief nursing officer, said the "Grow Our Own Nurses" program is an effort to build a nursing pipeline as health care facilities across the country face a workforce shortage.

According to the Status of the Nebraska Health Care Workforce, a study done by the University of Nebraska Medical Center every two years, the Cornhusker state expects a shortage of 5,435 nurses by 2025, driven by retirements and others leaving the workforce.

CHI Health, which is headquartered in Omaha and has 28 hospitals and 200 clinics across the region, said it hopes to help train those interested in nursing to close the gap.

"We know cost is often a barrier to education," Plante said in a news release. "By paying the way for these students, we are giving them the opportunity to start a fulfilling career while also ensuring we have a strong future workforce."

Carriages pull up in front of the first addition to St. Elizabeth Hospital at its original 11th and South street location in this May 1898 photo. The original building is shown in the background. St. Elizabeth, Lincoln's first general hospital, opened its doors Sept. 17, 1889, in a remodeled 15-room residence at 11th and South streets. Construction began on the first new hospital building in 1891 and it opened in 1893. Additional floors and wings were added through the years. The 1893 unit is at the far southwest corner. When the hospital moved in 1969, the old building was bought by Lancaster County to be operated as a county nursing home called Lancaster Manor -- later Lancaster Rehabilitation Center. The hospital's chapel is still preserved.

An aerial shot of St. Elizabeth in 1956 looking east from its location at 11th and South streets. South 13th Street runs across the top of the photo.

St. Elizabeth Hospital seen in this April 1956 photo.

Lincoln Mayor Sam Schwartzkopf (left) watches Sister Frances Ann at the St. Elizabeth Hospital groundbreaking in July 1967 at its 70th and O streets location, which would become the hospital's new home in 1969.

A shot of construction of St. Elizabeth Hospital on an unknown date.

St. Elizabeth Hospital seen in this January 1995 photo. St. Elizabeth moved from its first location at 11th and South streets to its current home at 70th and O streets in 1969.

Firemen Wes Schiermann (from left), Roger Schwindt and St. Elizabeth nurse Nancy Heckert examine the Circ-o-Lectric bed bought with Lincoln Firemen Benefit Association funds in December 1973.

Denice Schroeder, a surgical nurse at St. Elizabeth Hospital, puts an anesthetic mask on Brenda Johnson while the other 'patients' look on.

Richard Waller, director of radiology at St. Elizabeth Hospital, shows X-rays to Arlo McKeeb and Arlo's grandmother, Mrs. Anthony DiPaolo in May 1986.

A child looks on in St. Elizabeth Hospital's children's waiting room in May 1970.

A very tiny baby, Henry Wellensiek, of Syracuse, is seen in his incubator at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Oct. 11, 1953, at the hospital's original location near 11th and South streets. The hospital moved to its current home near 70th and O streets in 1969.

Robin Schaffert (left), a technician at St. Elizabeth Hospital in May 1993, tests Trent Carney's hearing as his mother observes. Shortly after moving to its current location at 70th and O streets, St. Elizabeth opened its Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. In 1973, the hospital's Burn Center opened.

Colorful murals line the walls of one of the eight rooms at the newly completed CHI Health Pediatric Place at St. Elizabeth. The unit — a unique, specialized eight-bed emergency room built just for kids — was opened with a ribbon-cutting Dec. 3, 2019. The project was made possible through the CHI Health St. Elizabeth Foundation and community donors, who together raised more than $750,000. 

A child-size, multi-colored bear lies on the bed of one of the eight rooms at the newly completed CHI Health Pediatric Place at St. Elizabeth in December. The unit — a unique, specialized 8-bed emergency room built just for kids — was opened with a ribbon-cutting on Dec. 3, 2019. The project was made possible through the CHI Health St. Elizabeth Foundation and gracious community donors, who together raised more than $750,000.

Reach the writer at 402-473-7120 or cdunker@journalstar.com.

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