UNMC Campus Accomplishments for 2005-2006
Last year, through the efforts of faculty and staff, UNMC made tremendous progress toward its goal of becoming a world-class academic health science center. The accomplishments listed on the following pages were selected from a long list of achievements submitted by each unit.
“Each year, during our strategic planning process, we set our goals and priorities for the year and assign accountabilities for those goals,” said Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D. “Then we all work together to accomplish them. Today, we proudly celebrate the fruits of our work. We are on a trajectory to world-class status and I want to thank and commend everyone for their contributions, big and small. As I’ve said before, you make this place hum.”
Education
The Internal Medicine Residency remains one of the top five post graduate training programs nationally as evidenced by performance on the ABIM certification examinations. The program enjoyed the eighth consecutive year of a 100 percent pass rate on the Internal Medicine Boards.
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An artist’s rendering of the Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education.
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Alumni Affairs successfully collaborated with the University of Nebraska Foundation to raise more than $11 million from College of Medicine alumni for the new Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education building.
Seventy-nine students completed the Summer Medical Dental Education Program.
The incoming (2005) dental class had an overall predental grade point average of 3.80, the highest in the history of the college and the highest of the 56 dental schools in the U.S.
The Class of 2006 dental students had a 100 percent passing rate on the National Boards and the Dental Hygiene Class of 2006 had a 100 percent passing rate on the Dental Hygiene National Board Examination.
In conjunction with other colleges/schools of pharmacy, the College of Pharmacy developed and implemented uniform quality assurance assessment instruments to monitor Early and Advanced Experiential Program clerkships and preceptors.
On the National Board of Pharmacy Examination, the College of Pharmacy graduates ranked 11th of the 86 colleges/schools of pharmacy. This was the College’s highest ranking to date. The pass rate on the Nebraska Jurisprudence Examination was 100 percent.
The College of Nursing increased the number of master’s and doctoral students enrolled in areas of critical shortage, including nursing education (60 percent), gerontology (50 percent) and oncology (43 percent).
The College of Nursing’s first class of graduates from the master’s program dual specialty of Family Nurse Practitioner and Advanced Practice Mental Health Nurse entered the workforce.
Admissions to graduate nursing programs increased by 49 students.
The School of Allied Health Professions Physical Therapy Education received the University-Wide Departmental Teaching Award.
100 percent of the graduates in seven of the nine School of Allied Health Professions programs successfully passed their respective national examinations on the first attempt.
The School of Allied Health Professions received maximum accreditation from their respective accrediting agencies.
Nine students entered the Eppley Institute’s Cancer Research Graduate Program that currently has 27 doctoral students, and four students have earned their Ph.D.
Munroe-Meyer Institute’s Interdisciplinary Core Curriculum was revised. Faculty training was held and students are completing the curricular components.
Munroe-Meyer Institute held a spring video-telecast on “Legislative Advocacy” in collaboration with the South Dakota and Iowa LEND programs.
Munroe-Meyer Institute provided supervision for all psychology interns and post-doctoral fellows who participate in the Rural Behavioral Health Clinics through the telehealth network.
Munroe-Meyer Institute initiated the Flatlands Disability Network with the North Dakota University Center on Disabilities at Minot State University.
Information Technology Services created an online grade entry system to allow faster posting of grades.
Information Technology Services expanded electronic media delivery capabilities to include blogging, podcasting, vodcasting and news feed capabilities.
Information Technology Services deployed classroom management technologies in 25 plus additional rooms to remotely assist faculty during a class using monitoring and preventative management tools.
Facilities Management and Planning completed site relocations, foundation construction, building design and started construction on the Sorrell Center for Health Science and Education.
Strategic Planning developed financing plans for the Sorrell Center for Health Science Education and Research Center of Excellence II.
The Library installed 16 new state-of-the art student workstations.
Institutional Research established a Web site and compiled data for the Resource Room for the NCA accreditation site visit.
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Legendary newsman Tom Brokaw speaks at the 2006 Ambassador of Hope Gala. The event raised $1.6 million for research at Eppley Cancer Center. The center received more than $60 million in total grant funding in fiscal year 2006.
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Research
Research reached $80 million in grants and contracts.
The 12-site NIMH-funded treatment for Adolescents with Depression Study was completed. UNMC had the highest enrollment in the trial, contributing 20 percent of the sample. The 12-week manuscript was published in Journal of the American Medical Association, and the nine-month treatment manuscript is currently under review in the Archives of General Psychiatry.
The NIH recently ranked the Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Anatomy number 19 among genetics departments at U.S. medical schools in the amount of annual research funding received from the NIH.
The arthritis outcomes and clinical trials program has expanded by developing a formal epidemiologic and genetic phenotype study unit and by initiating an $11 million VA funded multinational clinical therapeutic trial in rheumatoid arthritis.
The investigative programs in inflammatory airways disease within the section of pulmonary, critical care, sleep and allergy was enhanced by receiving more than $4.5 million of peer-reviewed funding from the NIH and VA.
Facilities Management and Planning submitted the 10-year Facilities Development Plan to the Board of Regents.
Facilities Management and Planning was awarded a Federal Transportation Earmark to study the relocation of Saddle Creek Road.
Four M1s completed community health-based research projects in Managua, Nicaragua, during July 2005.
Total FY 2006 extramural research funding for the College of Dentistry was $4,499,883, the highest level in the history of the college and a 15 percent increase over FY 2005.
The College of Dentistry had ten NIH grants in FY 2006, the highest number in the college’s history.
The College of Nursing achieved a 59-percent success rate for research grant applications, exceeding last year’s rate of 24 percent .
The College of Nursing increased publications in scientific journal by 33 percent.
The College of Pharmacy ranked 24th of the 62 U.S. schools that received NIH funding based on dollars per Ph.D. FTE faculty and third among UNMC’s nine peer institutions.
The College of Pharmacy has established a strong research partnership with faculty from the Iowa State University Department of Engineering and Ames Laboratory.
Health Services Research won competitive bids for contracts to extend our state-based research assessing rural health care delivery to projects in Oregon and Wyoming.
The UNMC Eppley Cancer Center received more than $60 million in total grant funding – a 10 percent increase from last year.
Munroe-Meyer Institute extramural funding more then doubled in the last six years, increasing from $3,912,244 in 1999-2000 to $8,357,454 in 2005-2006.
Munroe-Meyer Institute funding from NIH, HRSA, NIE and NICHHD increased from $1,627,738 to $2,003,350 during the past year.
Munroe-Meyer Institute staff and faculty presented 65 papers at international, national and regional meetings and published 73 papers in refereed journals and in text books.
Munroe-Meyer Institute’s AmeriCorps program was selected as the State’s Outstanding Program for 2005-06 by the Nebraska Volunteer Service Commission, which manages the 38 AmeriCorps programs in the state.
Munroe-Meyer Institute successfully recruited a director and staff for the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders.
UNMC increased NIH Funding by 10 percent , while the national trend was downward for many academic health centers.
Government Relations obtained $3.175 million in federal funding for research projects through the Congressional earmark process, nearly 60 percent more than last year.
The Health Professions Tracking Center processed more than 46,800 surveys for the state in an effort to accurately provide the foundation for workforce needs analysis throughout the region.
Information Technology Services deployed a Web-based system to submit new IACUC protocols and make changes to existing ones.
Information Technology Services enhanced the Comparative Medicine Management System by adding new billing reporting and ordering functions.
Financial Controls & Compliance and Information Technology Services completed the design and implementation of two new compliance systems, View and Track Combined Salary — a tool to verify salaries for grant and contract budgets — and the Over-the-NIH Cap System — which supports future Federal indirect cost and proposals.
Financial Controls & Compliance established the UNMC Financial Compliance Work plan to monitor compliance with Federal Cost Accounting Standards.
OSEMA hosted three visiting faculty for research experiences from Jackson State University, Hampton University and St. Paul’s College.
Community partnerships
The UNMC Youth Learning Center provided educational outreach programs to middle and high school students, with an emphasis on outreach to underrepresented minorities and other disadvantaged young persons throughout the greater Omaha metropolitan area.
Academic Affairs initiated a Parent-Student Introduction to Health Care Pilot Program with South High School ninth grade Latino students.
The McGoogan Library of Medicine served 470 Nebraskans through CHIRS, the library’s consumer health information resource service.
The McGoogan Library of Medicine obtained a $25,000 grant to fund Go Local Nebraska to create links from the National Library of Medicine MEDLINEPlus database to healthcare agencies and providers in Nebraska.
Two McGoogan library youth volunteers were recognized on the floor of the Nebraska Legislature for their contributions of time and talent.
The College of Dentistry received the 2006 Outstanding Service Provider Award from the Hope Medical Outreach Coalition.
Dental residents placed more than 300 implants in clinical patients, a new College of Dentistry single-year record. This included 29 implants for Sudanese refugees.
The department of dental hygiene continued its partnership with the Hope Medical Outreach Coalition to place sealants and fluoride treatments and provide dental healthcare information to second, third and sixth graders in six Omaha public schools.
The Public Health Association of Nebraska presented The Leadership Award to the College of Nursing’s Community/Public Health faculty.
The Scottsbluff Division of the College of Nursing partnered with UNMC Family Practice Residency and Panhandle Community Services for an ambulatory care program that provides home health services, and the Kearney Division partnered with the Central Nebraska Community Action Agency to provide faculty management consultation and on-going nurse practitioner services.
The Certified Nurse Midwife program has established a clinical relationship with Charles Drew Community Health Center to provide on-site obstetrical care for their patients.
Ophthamology and Visual Sciences secured private funding for construction of the Omaha Center for Visual Rehabilitation, which will be built on or near the UNMC campus.
A School of Allied Health Professions faculty member assisted the Winnebago Tribe in writing a successful five-year grant that provides diabetes prevention training and nutritional counseling.
The School of Allied Health Professions developed and conducted a pair of two-week summer camps for underrepresented students to explore Health Care Careers. This was done in partnership with Omaha North High School and the Nebraska Urban AHEC.
In FY 05/06, faculty and students from the Eppley Institute’s Cancer Research Graduate Program conducted scientific seminars for undergraduate students at 14 regional universities and colleges, including three in Nebraska.
The Eppley Cancer Center, in collaboration with the Nebraska Medical Center and the UNMC College of Nursing Mobile Nursing Unit, continued conducting cancer screenings throughout the state.
Munroe-Meyer Institute presented the 2nd Annual Autism Summit, which raised $500,000 for the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorder at Munroe-Meyer Institute.
The interdisciplinary diagnostic clinic for individuals with autism spectrum disorders saw a total of 94 children from Nebraska and Iowa in 41 diagnostic clinics.
The Health Professions Tracking Center surveyed 16,254 professionals regarding crisis-related educational needs.
Public Affairs coordinated the fall 2005 and spring 2006 Mini-Medical School programs and delivered them to a total of 3,396 people in Omaha and greater Nebraska.
The Rural Health Education Network received a Catalyst Award from the Nebraska Academy of Teachers of Science for leadership in science education.
Government Relations developed a key partnership with the 3M Corporation in developing respirators aimed at stopping the spread of diseases such as avian influenza.
The Health Professions Tracking Center added 10,151 practitioners and 2,074 facilities related to behavioral health, emergency service, respiratory care, veterinary, and water systems into the HPTC DataTrac.
Information Technology Services completed voice, video and data infrastructure for the Hixson-Lied Center for Clinical Excellence.
Information Technology Services implemented a GE patient monitoring system
across UNMC’s /TNMC’s enterprise wireless network, the first in the nation to be run across an institution’s own network, thus reducing costs.
UNMC achieved a 27 percent reduction in motor vehicle thefts and an almost 6 percent reduction in larceny reports from the previous year.
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Jennifer Ramirez, a senior from Norfolk Senior High School, was one of 10 students who received a scholarship during a recent Latina/Latino Youth Conference at UNMC.
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Cultural competence
The Library Diversity Team produced and distributed more than 500 copies of “Following the Clues – A Visit to the Doctor and the Library” to help disadvantaged Nebraskans access the health care system.
The Library provided major editorial support for “Multicultural Medicine and Health Disparities,” a benchmark publication on the health status of racial and ethnic minorities in the United States.
The College of Nursing became home to the new Nebraska Chapter of the Hispanic Nurses Association.
Four Chinese students from Shanghai visited the College of Nursing in a new exchange program.
The College of Nursing fulfilled its partnership with Jordan by completing consultations and the delivery of learning modules.
The UNMC Eppley Cancer Center named a new Associate Director for Health Disparities to work toward developing collaborative research projects addressing solutions to cancer health disparities.
A hospital-based patient navigator project for underserved and minority women with breast cancer was established through a grant from the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and support from the UNMC Eppley Cancer Center.
The LEND program cultural competency curriculum was enhanced and made available to all staff and students.
Munroe-Meyer Institute’s AmeriCorps program recruited two minority students and five students with disabilities. Two of the AmeriCorps students were subsequently hired as staff at MMI.
Public Affairs placed 418 stories in media outlets regarding UNMC’s diversity
International Studies reported a nine percent increase in study abroad participation by UNMC students and an eight percent increase in international participants.
OSEMA had a record total of 7 NU-PATHS students complete their undergraduate pre-professional program at UNL and matriculate this fall to UNMC programs.
Three College of Dentistry faculty members presented invited lectures at the 12th International Dental Congress of the Egyptian Dental Association in Cairo, Egypt.
Human Resources developed and implemented supervisory training sessions on topics such as the American with Disabilities Act and the Family Medical Leave Act, Sexual Harassment and Affirmative Action.
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Steven Hinrichs, M.D., director of the University of Nebraska Center for Biosecurity, displays a 3M “N95” mask for U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson. UNMC and 3M are working to create respirators to protect people from many infectious diseases.
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New technologies
The McGoogan Library of Medicine was identified by Nebraska Legislature LR 105 Task Force as an asset supporting rural economic development in the state.
Chemical and Radiation Safety improved efficiency by acquiring new software called NCS Design Expert to create evaluation forms which can be scanned and tallied electronically.
The College of Dentistry’s Pediatric Dentistry Clinic was renovated to provide state-of-the-art patient treatment.
One oral surgical suite was equipped for digital radiography, with similar work on the second suite to begin soon.
Orthodontic students screened and identified patients who would benefit from surgical placement of new micro-screw anchorage.
The College of Nursing enhanced training in obstetrics by the addition of Laerdal Noelle birthing manikins, a VitalSim Baby assessment manikin and a BabySim human patient simulator.
In collaboration with Cardiothoracic Surgery, a comprehensive program of optimal medical therapy, mechanical heart assist devices and cardiac transplantation evolved leading to 13 transplants with a 100 percent survival rate.
Venture capital money from Prommune, Inc., is being used in the development of vaccines to methamphetamine.
The UNMC Eppley Cancer Center is currently participating in Genome-Wide RNAi Global Initiative with 11 other leading cancer research institutions that are located across North America and Europe.
The structural biology research program added a second X-ray detector system that will allow investigators to study large protein-protein or protein-DNA complexes.
Development and validation has been completed for molecular diagnostic tests related to Rett Syndrome, Angleman Syndrome and select subtypes of Autism Spectrum Disorder. The tests are currently in clinical use.
Government Relations implemented the “UNMC Delegates Program”, an electronic grassroots advocacy program. Since August, 115 people have enrolled. All communication will be by electronic means.
Information Technology/Video Services provided the technical protocol to activate the Health Alert Network and interconnect the Nebraska Telehealth Network in response to a declared emergency in collaboration with the Governor’s office and the Department of Health and Human Services.
Information Technology Services increased wireless access points from 63 to 313.
Information Technology Services installed a Codian Multi-way Conference Unit to increase the number of simultaneous video conferences and a Codian IP VCR to provide easy recording, archiving and retrieval of classes and other events.
Facilities Management & Planning designed and purchased two high voltage electric boilers for UNMC’s East Utility Plant.
Mail Services endorsed all outgoing first-class mail saving $8,500 annually.
Security Dispatch replaced 25 small screened monitors used to view Closed Circuit TV surveillance on campus with five, 42-inch flat screen monitors allowing for exceptional viewing by dispatchers and reconfigured the counsel to give dispatchers the ability to perform multi-tasking in a quicker and easier fashion.
Card Access and Photo ID achieved additional reliability, easier viewing and quicker Security Dispatch response by replacing antiquated alarm monitoring systems.
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Stephen Rennard, M.D., UNMC’s first Scientist Laureate, was among 25 investigators named UNMC Distinguished Scientists for 2006.
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Employee loyalty
Academic Affairs created a Web site with downloadable electronic forms to better serve faculty.
The “Distinguished Scientist” program was initiated.
The College of Nursing initiated the General Staff Organization, a forum for staff discussion, decision making and planning for opportunities to build strengths.
The College of Nursing launched a Leadership Program to mentor and support emerging leaders on the administrative team of the college.
For the second year, the Eppley Institute distributed its annual newsletter to update employees about various events and faculty, staff and student accomplishments.
The Eppley Institute held its first annual all-Eppley meeting to kick off the new academic year.
“MMInfo” was published twice this past year to promote communication at Munroe-Meyer Institute; two staff picnics were held and an MMI Guild sponsored appreciation breakfast was provided for staff.
Information Technology Services deployed spyware cleaning and detection for UNMC workstations.
Facilities Management & Planning helped with a traffic calming project for 42nd Street.
The Center for Healthy Living installed six new pieces of weight equipment.
Purchasing implemented Cell Phone Pool Program and associated internal billing process.
Purchasing implemented changes to SAP eliminating social security numbers for employees.
Human Resources implemented “Employee Guidelines,” an online employee handbook providing HR policies and procedures in an easy to locate and navigate Web site.
Human Resources completed implementation of the NUValues Classification and Compensation Program, providing market relevant pay practices and structures for UNMC staff positions.
Human Resources implemented the Job@ Position Description and Compliance module, providing electronic storage, retrieval and modification of all staff position descriptions.
Human Resources initiated and completed the 4th Foundations for Success personal development program for Office/Service staff.