Union Health gives ISU $300,000 to support nursing skills lab

David Kronke, The Tribune-Star, Terre Haute, Ind.
·2 min read

Mar. 14—In an effort to alleviate the nursing shortage that has affected Wabash Valley and the nation, Union Health has given Indiana State University's Nursing Department a gift of $300,000.

The gift will benefit the ISU campus' Union Health Nursing Skills Lab, where the award was announced Monday afternoon.

"This partnership between Union Health and ISU is an example of what we can do when we pool our resources," Steve Holman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Union Health, told those assembled.

Caroline Mallory, dean of ISU's College of Health and Human Services, said in an interview, "The gift specifically awards nursing students so that they can progress to their degree on time and take" the national licensing exam and pass it on the first try.

That way, Mallory said, "...we can have more qualified registered nurses in the Wabash Valley."

"We have a nursing shortage in the state of Indiana and the United States, and we need more development of them," Holman said.

"Prior to the pandemic, we did not have any outside nurses or traveling nurses," Holman added. "Unfortunately, the pandemic changed that. We're going to be dealing with that for a while, so places like Indiana State are partnering with us to grow the pool and entice more into the nursing field. They graduate 200 nurses a year."

Mallory added, "We have a chronic shortage and it's partly because of the cyclical nature of nursing. There's more demand than we can meet, but it's been exacerbated by COVID and a lower number of students graduating out of nursing programs.

"This gift helps us support students academically so that they can be more assured of getting their degree on time," she said. "Because Union will offer experiential learning in their hospital and clinics, students are going to have a good experience there. They're going to want to stay."

Union Health has more than 900 nurses and had 450,000 out-patient visits in the past year at facilities spread throughout nine counties in Indiana and Illinois.

It began its partnership with ISU in 1950 and strengthened the program with the learning lab and additional resources for faculty members.

David Kronke can be reached at 812-231-4232 or at david.kronke@tribstar.com.