About Us

Our humble beginning started in a nursing lounge. Two colleagues checked on each other’s goals for the new year. The year was 2020. Steven Tooze (Steve), a native Delawarean, wanted to provide scholarships for residents of Delaware.  Knowing that healthcare students needed money for expenses not usually covered by typical scholarships, Steve envisioned scholarships that would cover extra expenses such as gas money to clinical sites, fees for testing and background checks, clinical supplies, or uniforms.

Bet Key Wong (Bet) returned to Delaware after being away for decades and found a rapidly growing aging population in a place that lacked healthcare workers. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Steve provided care for patients hospitalized with COVID and Bet joined the Delaware Medical Reserves Corps to help with COVID testing and vaccination.

Despite the pandemic, the two nurses continued to work (at least 6 feet apart) on their goal to start an organization to advance healthcare education in Delaware. In 2020, Steve and Bet formed the Delaware Institute for Healthcare Education Advancement, Inc (DIHEA). In 2021, DIHEA was recognized by the IRS as a 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation. 

Also in 2021, Abigail (Abi) Alvarez and Deborah Yutzy were elected to the DIHEA Board. Both Abi and Deborah are nurses with deep ties to Delaware communities and have both critical care and community care nursing experiences. By the end of 2021, First State Orthopaedics provided DIHEA support to launch the first round of scholarships for Delawareans going into healthcare.

In 2022, we launched our first round of scholarships.  2023 is the second year we are offering scholarships. 

We are excited that Barb Bradbury joined the DIHEA board in 2023. Barb is a native Delawarean and serves on the board of the Delaware Association of Nurse Anesthetists.