Steven Hinrichs, M.D., professor and chairman of the University of Nebraska Medical Center Department of Pathology and Microbiology, has received the 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL).
The award recognizes individuals who have established a history of distinguished service to the APHL, advanced public health laboratory science, exhibited leadership in the field and influenced public health policy on a national or global level.
Among the accomplishments Dr. Hinrichs was recognized for were:
- Working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to create a web-based data exchange system to collect data from public health laboratories and transmit results to the CDC.
- Creating and piloting a model at the Nebraska Public Health Lab for dealing with cases of possible anthrax exposure post-9/11. The model was implemented across the country by other labs and transformed how information is collected and shared, replacing an antiquated system of recording data with pen and paper.
- Working with the CDC to create the first Food and Drug Administration-approved package insert for a CDC-developed influenza testing assay distributed to all public health labs, further streamlining how states report cases of flu across the country by providing uniformity in language and reporting codes.
- Since 2002, Dr. Hinrichs and his team have worked with the Department of Defense to develop a variety of testing assays for emerging infectious diseases for use by public health officials and troops in the field.
"It is always an honor to be recognized by your peers," Dr. Hinrichs said. "But I also recognize it was awarded for the body of work done by many others working on projects that I was fortunate to be a part of.
"I'm honored to have been part of these projects and owe whatever success I had to the support of my colleagues here at UNMC, the Department of Defense and the APHL."
Dr. Hinrichs joined UNMC in 1991 as associate professor in pathology and microbiology and director of the microbiology and virology laboratory. In 1997, he was named the founding director of the Nebraska Public Health Laboratory, which is headquartered at UNMC. He continued in that role until 2013.
He was named the Stokes-Shackleford Professor in 2002 and was appointed that same year as director of the University of Nebraska Center for Biosecurity. In 2007, he was named senior associate dean for research development in the UNMC College of Medicine and became chair of the pathology and microbiology department in 2009.
A native of South Dakota, Dr. Hinrichs was raised and educated in North Dakota. He earned his undergraduate (1976) and medical (1980) degrees from the University of North Dakota. He completed his residency training at the University of California, Davis, and served on the faculty at the University of California, Davis Medical Center, for seven years including a two-year leave for a fellowship at the National Institutes of Health, Laboratory of Molecular Virology.
The UNMC Department of Pathology and Microbiology includes approximately 55 faculty who interact with a wide range of programs including basic science research and education, clinical activities with UNMC’s primary clinical partner, Nebraska Medicine, and collaborations with the UNMC Eppley Cancer Center and Munroe-Meyer Institute.
The department is one of the leading research programs on campus, bringing in about $7 million in research funding during the past year. The department also manages the Tissue Science facility and the tumor and tissue banks that support basic science research.
Dr. Hinrichs is past member of the CDC Biosurveillance Advisory Subcommittee and chaired the laboratory working group. Under his direction, the Nebraska Public Health Laboratory was one of the first public health laboratories in the country to develop Internet-based test ordering and reporting capabilities with the ultimate goal of real-time identification of emerging epidemics.
Among his numerous honors, Dr. Hinrichs received the inaugural University of Nebraska Innovation, Development and Entrepreneurship (IDEA) Award in 2006. In 2007, Dr. Hinrichs was one of 24 researchers named to the inaugural class of UNMC Distinguished Scientists. In addition, he has been selected multiple times for The Best Doctors in America listing.
He has been active on numerous national organizations and committees, including the National Governors Association (NGA) Health Information Communication and Data Exchange Taskforce, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Stakeholder Panel on Agent Detection Assays (SPADA) and the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board.
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