Testimonials & Impacts

We Work Hard To Assure Accurate Information & Provide Valuable Services To Positively Impact Professionals And State Residents...

“Collaboration between the UNMC Health Professions Tracking Center and the state's Health Alert Network  for rapid notification of bioterrorism-related or emergency preparedness information. The system was critical in surveying Nebraska physicians to find unused influenza vaccine doses that could be redirected to vulnerable populations.”  

          ~ Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman

The center has drawn praise from federal officials, including Dr. Ed Thompson, chief of public health practice at the Centers for Disease for Control and Prevention.  "They have near current, not just mailing addresses, but e-mail addresses and fax numbers ... and other means of quickly reaching their health care professionals," Thompson said.  Thompson saw the Nebraska center  shine during the flu vaccine shortage of 2003.  The center, through the HHS broadcast system, was able to alert medical workers around the state about the shortage at a speed that impressed Thompson. State health officials were able to see where in the state vaccine was lacking, where it was in higher supply, and then made arrangements to reallocate it. Thompson said the CDC often recommends the Nebraska center to other states looking to track their health care professionals.

          ~ Ed Thompson MD,Chief of Public Health Practice
             CDC Public Health Programs & Services

The Legislature asked the commission to help them make data-driven decisions related to our healthcare work force,' Roberts said. "This is a snapshot of what we've gathered to respond to that need."  "There has never been a data set like this before", said Dixie Roberts, the Commission  Chair.

          ~ The Associated Press. Published December 12, 2006

“I think that all of the other states that we visit have a very high bar that they’re going to have to reach to compare to the work we’ve seen done here in Nebraska.”

          ~ Joseph Hendersen, Associate Director
             CDC Office of Terrorism Preparedness & Response

“Word came in at 10 on a Saturday night and within one hour of finding out about the SARS outbreak in Canada,” said Dr. Schaefer, “we had sent out an alert  to every physician and medical facility across the state.”  Dr. Schaefer noted the extensive work UNMC officials have done to create the Health Professions Tracking Center and continue to do to keep it up-to-date.  “This important database of phone numbers, e-mail addresses and physical addresses of health professionals across the state would not be possible without the help of UNMC.  This can be comforting to people in the event of a public health threat,”

          ~ Joann Schaefer, MD, Chief Medical Officer
           Division of Public Health, Department of Health and Human Services

"Dental practitioner survey data has been used to identify current & projected workforce shortage areas, which has motivated dental training programs to focus training efforts to serve underserved populations."

          ~ Thomas Rauner , DHHS Office of Rural Health & Primary Care