New era of health care as UNK and UNMC partner to train doctors and professionals in Kearney

KEARNEY, NEB. — It's a sobering fact of life in rural Nebraska. Many communities lack doctors and our health is at stake.

"It is very grim. Rural Nebraska is in trouble,” said UNK Chancellor Doug Kristensen.

From a farming community of 200 people, Nikki Carritt has seen the grim reality. Rural communities like her hometown don’t have doctors, the ones she now hopes to train in Kearney.

“To put providers in rural communities where they’re needed to care for our friends and family,” she said.

It’s an effort that spans communities and campuses.

“Out of Omaha to Kearney Nebraska and treat all phases of medical careers,” said Regent Paul Kenney.

The rural health education building is a partnership between UNK and UNMC, training up to 650 professionals a year.

Kristensen said, “This is not going to be a magic bullet. overnight not going to have more providers but I tell you if we don't address it rural Nebraska’s going to look a lot worse.”

And for the first time pharmacists and doctors can go to med school in Kearney.

Dr. Jeff Gold of UMNC said, “The word I’d like to use is historic, not only for the City of Kearney and University but this will be the latest interprofessional health science in the United States, truly game changing.”

Chancellor Gold said it will be the largest rural healthcare education program in the nation.

He said, “If we're at all fortunate eight to nine out of ten will stay in rural so this is a historic day.”

Kristensen says it’s an investment of nearly 100 million dollars and Kenney said 5 million was raised privately.

“That’s part of the unheard part of it with so many dollars raised in Kearney,” said Kenney.

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It’s a new era of healthcare, one these officials say could happen only in Nebraska.

“This changes the landscape,” Carritt said.

Kristensen said the goal is to have the facility complete in a little over two years.