Prospective Nurses

The nurses who work on this 32-bed inpatient unit provide care to a wide variety of patients. Family-centered care is provided with an interdisciplinary team approach.  Nurses and physicians enjoy collaborating with colleagues from Child Life, Social Work, Case Management, Rehabilitation Services, Chaplains and others to coordinate individualized care for each patient. This unit provides variable acuity care from intensive to chronically ill patients in varying stages of recuperation from diagnostic, therapeutic, or surgical interventions and across all ages - from the neonatal period until transition to adult services. The most common diagnoses treated include: spina bifida, head trauma, seizures, hydrocephalus, encephalitis, brain and spinal cord tumors, diabetes, hypoglycemia, scoliosis, and other orthopedic surgical procedures.

• Orientation length: RN Residency 12-14 weeks; Experienced RN 8-10 weeks depending on experience. 
• Orientation classes: Floor 19 Specialties (Neurology, Endocrine, Neurosurgery, Orthopedic Surgery), Department Orientation Class, EPIC Training, Welle Training, PALS, and BLS. 
• Unit resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Nursing Professional Development Practitioner Associate, Nursing Preceptors, Advanced Practice Nurses, Clinical Managers, Clinical Quality Coordinator RN, and Nursing Director 

The nurses in this 48-bed acute medical and surgical unit utilize a patient and family-centered, interprofessional approach to provide compassionate and high quality care for children of all ages with a range of complex illnesses and diseases. 20th Floor nurses treat medical patients with gastrointestinal, liver, and kidney diagnoses and surgical patients requiring pediatric general surgery, specialty surgery, and transplantations. The most common diagnoses treated include: appendicitis, nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, short gut syndrome, biliary atresia, and pectus excavatum.  

• Orientation length: RN Residency 14 weeks; Experienced RN 10 weeks 
• Orientation classes: Floor 20 Specialties (GI, Kidney, Pediatric Surgery, and Transplant) Classes, Department Orientation Class, Skills Day on the Unit 
• Unit resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Nursing Professional Development Practitioner Associate, Nursing Preceptors, Advanced Practice Nurses, Clinical Managers, Clinical Quality Coordinator RN, and Nursing Director 

The nurses in this 48-bed acute medical unit provide compassionate and high-quality care for patients of all ages from birth to young adulthood with pulmonary/respiratory and general medical needs. Most common respiratory diagnoses include asthma, bronchiolitis, pneumonia, and cystic fibrosis. Some common general medical diagnoses include fever in the neonate or of unknown origin, cellulitis, and medically complex patients with chronic conditions. This Magnet designated nursing team collaborates with an extensive multidisciplinary team to provide a family centered approach to identifying and serving the unique needs of the unit’s patient population.

• Orientation length: RN Residency 14 weeks; Experienced RNs 8 to 10 weeks 
• Orientation classes: Skills Day, Assessment Classes, General Medicine Class Day, Welle Training, PALS, BLS 
• Unit resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Night Shift Nursing Professional Development Practitioner Associate, Nursing Preceptors, Asthma Educators, Clinical Managers, Clinical Quality Coordinator RN, and Nursing Director 
• Multidisciplinary Team: Nursing, Medical Providers, Respiratory Therapy, Child Life, Social Work, Case Management, Clinical Pharmacy, Rehabilitation Services, and Pastoral Care 

The nurses in this 60-bed unit provide care for critically ill infants and children who require close monitoring and life support systems. Our Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) provides top-quality care using the most recent advancements in equipment and techniques with specialized attention to critical care and other specialty needs. PICU nurses participate in an interprofessional approach to the quality treatment of patients and their families with medically complex diseases, organ transplantation, multiple traumas, various respiratory illnesses, and many other pediatric critical conditions.

The latest interventions and treatments are available in the PICU, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy (CRRT), specialty ventilation techniques, and transplant services​. The PICU provides family-centered care​ through bringing family members into care plan meetings and daily rounds which are led by PICU nurses. Additionally, PICU nurses care for patients in the robust Pulmonary Habilitation Program which supports families as they train to care for their child who will be discharged home on a ventilator.

• Orientation length: New Graduate RN Internship: 20 weeks precepted; Non-PICU RN experienced: 10-15 weeks
• Orientation classes: 6 classes covering respiratory, transplant, resiliency, liver and kidney disease, post operative care, emergency management and neuro

The Center for Cancer & Blood Disorders offers a family-centered, interprofessional approach to providing the highest quality diagnostic and treatment services for children and adolescents with cancer, hematologic and immunologic disorders and bone marrow transplant. A specialty inpatient unit consists of 48 beds.

The hematology/oncology outpatient center and the Chicago White Sox Ambulatory Infusion Center provide a setting for comprehensive outpatient care for children with acute and chronic illness. Services include medical examinations, blood tests and diagnostic procedures, chemotherapy and blood transfusions, intravenous hydration, and administration of medications in a comfortable atmosphere designed to receive assessment and treatment by the team in one location. Social workers, child life specialists, art therapists, music therapists and chaplains are involved on a daily basis to provide patients and families with psychological and social support needed. In addition, special events and parent support groups are encouraged.

• Orientation length:  New-graduate RN Internship ~ 16 weeks; Experienced RN ~ 8 to 12 weeks depending on experience
• Orientation classes: General Hem/Onc/SCT Class, Introduction to Hematology/Oncology, APHON & Lurie Chemotherapy/Biotherapy, Stem Cell Transplant 
• Unit resources:  Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Patient and Family Education Practitioner, Clinical Quality Coordinator RN, Advanced Practice Providers, Clinical Managers, Nursing Director 

The Cardiac Care Unit (CCU) is a 44-bed acuity adaptable unit. The CCU serves patients with all types of cardiac disease and illness including congenital heart disease, cardiomyopathy, cardiac arrhythmias, and heart transplant. The CCU nurses care for patients ranging from birth through adolescence and into adulthood in some cases. The acuity adaptable model of care allows the CCU to treat patients who are critically ill, acutely ill, and everywhere in between. All nurses in the CCU are critically-trained with the ability to provide elite care utilizing ventricular assist devices, continuous renal replacement therapy, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and other complex care delivery modalities.

• Orientation length: Nursing Residency 22 weeks; Experienced RN- tailored to previous experience approximately10-14 weeks
• Orientation classes: 5 CCU specific classes, 2 PICU/CCU classes, Developmental class day combined with NICU, STABLE, PALS/BLS, and ACLS – assuring that every nurse on our team is able to provide the most expert level of care to our specific patient population
• Clinical Exchange: one shift observing a cardiothoracic surgical patient- preoperative, perioperative and post operative

The division’s 64 bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is designated by the state of Illinois as a Level IV NICU and provides the highest level of care to the most critically ill newborns in the region. The division cares for more than 2,000 infants each year.

As one of the top programs in the State and region, Lurie Children’s NICU received transfers from 45 hospitals last year and consistently receive the most referrals in Illinois from other Level IV NICU facilities. The Neonatology program is nationally recognized by U.S. News & World Report. Patients in the NICU have immediate onsite access to 70 pediatric medical and surgical subspecialists, which allows this team to treat a patients need, no matter how complex. This team includes highly experienced neonatologists, neonatal nurse practitioners, neonatal nurses, developmental care specialists, respiratory therapists, nutritionists, social workers and child life specialists, and psychologists. This team takes a family-centered approach to care.

• Orientation length: Nursing Residency 22 weeks; Experienced RN 14 weeks
• Orientation classes/experiences: Intro to Preemie Care, Neuro Pathologies, Respiratory Care & Interventions, Critical Skills & Diagnoses, NCAST, Developmental Day, PALS/BLS, NRP, STABLE, NICU Skills Days
• Clinical Exchange: one shift with transport team 

Transport nurses are ready at a moment's notice to transport seriously ill or injured infants and children to Lurie Children's by ground or air transport, 24 hours a day/7 days a week. These nurses are skilled in IV insertion, arterial punctures, intubation, and chest tube insertion. They are certified in pediatric advanced life support, neonatal resuscitation, and advanced cardiac life support. Nurses on the team learn and develop by taking advantage of a wide variety of educational programs and by providing educational programs to referring hospitals.

• Orientation length: Respiratory Therapist- tailored to previous experience, approximately 16 weeks; Registered Nurse- tailored to previous experience, approximately 24 weeks (includes 8 weeks Transfer Center)
• Orientation classes: 6 transport specific classes tailored to previous experience covering safety, airway management, respiratory, cardiac, neurology, endocrinology, trauma, resuscitation, sepsis, EMTALA, and Customer service. Welle training, STABLE, and Cardiac STABLE offered. Resuscitation certifications include NRP, BLS/PALS, ACLS, ENPC, TNCC
• Clinical Exchanges: tailored to previous experience- CCU, NICU, PICU, Emergency Department, OR for airway management, and Roto Wing vendors- LifeStar and UCAN
• Team resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Preceptors, PCO Manager, Clinical Quality Coordinator, Transport Team Director, Medical Director and Assistant Medical Directors 

This 45-bed Emergency Department (ED) is a designated City of Chicago and State of Illinois Level I trauma center which treats approximately 58,000 children annually. The ED consists of four 10-bed Pods, in addition to four trauma rooms and one procedure room. Nurses in this unit care for children with a wide range of diagnoses, including pediatric trauma patients from across the region. ED nurses are certified in Pediatric Advanced Life Support, Adult Cardiac Life Support, Emergency Nursing Pediatric Course and Trauma Nursing Care Course. The interdisciplinary team staffed in the ED that cares for and supports the emergently ill pediatric patients from across the region includes nurses, paramedics, physicians, advanced practice providers, nursing assistants, respiratory therapists, child life specialists, chaplain services and a security team.  

• Orientation length: Nursing Residency 18 weeks; Experienced RN 8 weeks 
• Orientation classes/ experiences: Respiratory care, resuscitation, sepsis, sedation, trauma classes, PALS/BLS, ACLS, TNCC, ENPC, Welle training
• Clinical exchange: acute care floors, PICU, infusion clinic

The Resource Team is a team of highly trained nurses who provide supplemental staffing to a variety of patient care areas, including inpatient acute and intensive care units, the emergency department, inpatient psychiatry, and pre- and post-procedural services, in response to increased acuity, census, and staffing fluctuations. The team provides units the opportunity to maximize staffing and scheduling flexibility, while minimizing overtime, incentive pay and agency usage.

• Orientation length: Internship 5 months in the acute care areas followed by additional orientation to the ICUs at around one year and other areas at a later time; Experienced RN – 4 months that includes a straight through ICU orientation. ICU experience highly encouraged
• Orientation classes: Unit based classes, CCU Classes, PALS and NRP
• Team Resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Preceptors, and Managers 

Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago features 24 state-of-the-art operating rooms designed specifically for pediatric care. These rooms are equipped with advanced technology to ensure the highest standards of safety and efficiency during surgeries. Lurie Children’s operating rooms reflect a commitment to providing exceptional care tailored to the unique needs of all children.

Key Features:

Child-Friendly Environment: The operating rooms are designed to be soothing and colorful, helping to ease anxiety for young patients and their families.

Advanced Equipment: Each room is outfitted with the latest surgical technology, allowing for a wide range of procedures, from routine surgeries to complex operations.

Family-Centered Care: The hospital emphasizes a supportive atmosphere, with facilities that allow

• Orientation length: New Grad RN Internship, 9 months; New To OR, 25 weeks; Experienced RN, competency-based 
• Orientation classes: Preoperative nursing curriculum for new graduates and nurses without OR experience 
• Unit resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioners / Surgical Specialist / Preceptors 

A growing number of children of all ages receive care for a variety of procedures in this department spanning 50 beds over two floors. Nurses provide pre-op teaching and admission instructions to patients and their families that may have their procedures done in the OR, Procedure Suite, Cardiac Catheterization Lab, or Interventional Radiology. The nurse also provides post-anesthetic and post-surgical care after recovery, assists with discharge planning, and provides education for families of patients who have undergone a procedure.

• Orientation Length: 6-8 weeks
• Orientation Classes: Unit-based classes, Airway Day, PALS, Welle Training

Lurie Children's 26-bay PACU covers three procedural floors. The PACU RN provides critical evaluation and stabilization of post-procedural patients in a Phase 1 recovery setting. The PACU nurses are proficient in managing post-anesthetic and post-surgical care for patients from the main Operating Room, Interventional Radiology, Cardiac Catheterization Lab, Procedure Suite, and Medical Imaging.

• Orientation length: 6 weeks
• Orientation Classes: Unit-based classes, Airway Day, PALS, Welle Training

This is a team of nurses who help care for patients who need to be sedated for a special test or exam, including MRI, CT, Nuclear Medicine, PET/CT and other ambulatory areas. Nurses go through extensive training to assess patients and collaborate with the physician sedation team to develop a safe sedation plan. They also collaborate with the anesthesia department to meet the needs of the patient requiring general anesthesia. The nursing team is capable of managing post-sedation care, discharge planning and post-procedural education for these patients and their families.

• Orientation length: 9-10 weeks
• Orientation Classes: Unit-based classes, Airway Day, PALS, ACLS, Welle Training

The nurses who work on this short term, family-oriented 12-bed unit utilize a patient and family centered, interprofessional approach for patients ages 4 – 17 years. This team treats a variety of diagnoses including depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation/self-injury, autism spectrum disorders, psychosis, aggression, comorbid medical/psychiatric diagnoses, and family relationship problems. In addition to nurses, the multidisciplinary team includes milieu therapists, psychiatrists, social workers, special education teachers, recreation/occupational therapists, psychologists, and speech therapists to provide comprehensive services.

• Orientation length: Residents 10 - 12 weeks; Experienced RNs 8 - 10 weeks
• Orientation classes: Crisis prevention intervention training 
• Unit resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Clinical Educator, Nursing Preceptors, Senior Staff, Clinical Managers and Nursing Director

The Vascular Access Team consists of nurses who specialize in peripheral intravascular (PIV) and central line (CVC) therapy. The team is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to all departments house-wide, both inpatient and outpatient. The team provides expertise in initiating and maintaining vascular access. The team starts PIVs, performs venous and arterial blood draws, is skilled and equipped to start PIVs via ultrasound, and is trained on inserting long PIVs and midlines. In addition, the team provides dressing care for central and peripheral lines, is consulted on various CVC-related issues like performing CVC repairs, accessing HD catheters, accessing venous ports, and discontinuing CVCs. The team also teaches/trains other professionals in vascular access skills.

• Orientation length: Approximately 12 weeks 
• Team Resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Preceptors, and Managers 

Ambulatory services encompass more than 40 pediatric specialties including such services as hematology, oncology, cardiology, orthopedics, endocrinology, gastroenterology, medical, ophthalmology, allergy, and neurology. Nurses in the Ambulatory services treat a variety of patients and are involved in health supervision, family education, and promotion of continuity of care for a culturally and socioeconomically diverse patient population. Ambulatory services nursing staff collaborate with the medical staff and other members of the health care team in coordinating care for both well and chronically ill children.

• Orientation length: 2 to 16 weeks, depending on the outpatient service
• Unit resources: Nursing Professional Development Practitioner, Preceptor(s), Ambulatory Patient Care Operations Manager 

The Center for Advanced Practice Leadership Team at Lurie Children's is dedicated to the advancement of professional practice which supports the delivery of comprehensive high quality health care to children and their families.

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Lurie Children's Student Nurse Program provides an introduction to a pediatric healthcare setting. Student nurses work collaboratively with a dynamic health care team in the management of patient care allowing them to gain experience in communicating and working closely with diverse patient populations and complex family concerns.

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The Lurie Children’s RN Residency Program is an innovative transition to practice program designed to prepare nurses for a rewarding career in the care of children and families. This program provides an individualized precepted orientation, pediatric nursing classes, transition session, clinical exchange opportunities and an evidence-based practice mentorship to support nursing excellence. 

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The Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago RN Fellowship Program is an innovative transitioning approach to support nurses with no or minimal prior pediatric experience.

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Lead for Care is a mentorship program designed to strengthen the leadership skills of bedside nurses with 18 to 24 months experience. This program combines a proven ANCC-accredited curriculum with an evidence-based mentorship model designed specifically for nurses. Lead for Care fosters a positive nursing culture, resulting in more engaged nurses, improved patient outcomes, and an organization that is able to retain nurses. Curriculum includes development of key bedside professional skills like communication, self-awareness, critical thinking, resiliency.

The A.S.C.E.N.D Program is a nursing clinical ladder program and is designed as a methodology to reflect Magnet components of excellence, including transformational leadership, structural empowerment, exemplary professional practice, new knowledge/innovations and improvement. Just as we believe that each child should have the opportunity to reach his or her potential, we are dedicated to providing the professional nurse, in all clinical settings, the opportunity to invest in their potential at Lurie Children’s.

The A.S.C.E.N.D Program at Lurie Children’s also seeks to sustain the clinical practice and professional growth of staff nurses in direct patient care. As in other professions, nursing is practiced at several levels of skill and competence. The program acknowledges and recognizes registered nurses who choose to enrich their professional practice and clinical skills at Lurie Children’s.

The A.S.C.E.N.D Program is designed as a mechanism to support the Employer Promise and assist registered nurses to achieve their professional goals.  Fulfilling this promise will ensure that Lurie Children’s will remain a great place to work and allow for professional growth while caring for our patients and families.

There are four levels incorporated into the clinical ladder

• RN1
• RN2
• RN3
• RN4

There are three promotional levels that Lurie Children's nurses can promote to with monetary compensation upon successful completion of portfolio. The A.S.C.E.N.D Program was created looking at the whole nurse and incorporates inpatient and ambulatory direct patient caregivers.

November 2024 ASCEND Nurses

July 2024 ASCEND Nurses

April 2024 ASCEND Nurses

November 2023 ASCEND Nurses

July 2023 ASCEND Nurses

February 2023 ASCEND Nurses

The Professional Advancement Model (PAM) Committee oversees the PAM program, the Lurie Children’s clinical ladder for advanced practice providers (APP). The PAM Committee is made up of clinical APPs with mentorship from APP leadership.

Spring 2023 Advancements

Summer 2023 Advancements

Summer 2024 Advancements

Going back to school? We’ll help finance your education through our tuition assistance program. The program pays tuition costs up to $5,000 per year for regular employees. College credit classes or certification that is directly related to an employee’s job or hospital-related are covered. Your courses do not need to relate directly to your current position but need to be applicable to a position at the hospital. And, if you are enrolled in a degree program related to a job at the hospital, and the program requires a course that isn’t job related, we still cover the costs.

To participate, you must be employed by Lurie Children's for six months prior to the start of your class, and you need to complete a tuition reimbursement form, available through Human Resources prior to beginning the class. To learn more about tuition assistance, contact human resources.

The Krehbiel Scholarship provides support to full-time registered nurses at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago seeking higher education in the field of nursing, while demonstrating a commitment to the core principles of The Power of All: * Compassionate Service * Discovery and Innovation * Diversity and Inclusion * Excellence * Integrity * Respectful Collaboration * Stewardship

On an annual basis (by fiscal year), the Krehbiel Scholarship will be awarded to six registered nurses in the amount of $30,000 each to complete an advanced nursing degree in a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), Nurse Practitioner (NP), Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Program at an accredited institution distributed over the duration of the program. A call for applications is issued each Fall.