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James Edney, M.D., Bill Lydiatt, M.D., with College of Medicine Dean John Gollan, M.D. Drs Edney and Lydiatt — along with James Medder, M.D. (not pictured)– were honored with the dean’s clinical excellence awards last week during the annual AOA/Faculty Awards Convocation. |
The awards — announced during the AOA/Faculty Honors Convocation — were presented to a tireless educator, a nationally-renowned surgeon and a clinician with “outside the box” ideas.
The dean’s clinical excellence awards were introduced in 2007 to honor outstanding clinical faculty members who are dedicated to the education and training of medical students, provide compassionate and quality care to patients, and further advances in scientific knowledge through research.
The awards were established thanks to the generosity of Wayne Ryan, Ph.D., founder, chairman and CEO of Streck, an Omaha-based developer and manufacturer of hematology, chemistry and immunology products for the clinical laboratory.
To further recognize and inspire this year’s award recipients, Dr. Ryan also provided each of them with a copy of a book titled “Vaccinated: One Man’s Quest to Defeat the World’s Deadliest Diseases” by Paul Offit, M.D.
The book details the life of the late Maurice Hilleman, Ph.D., who formulated nine vaccines that helped make diseases such as mumps, rubella and the measles nearly obsolete.
The winners, and their award categories, are as follows:
Excellence in Clinical Education — Jim Medder, M.D., family medicine
Dr. Medder is the definition of an education advocate. From countless hours spent supervising medical students at UNMC’s SHARING Clinics, to pioneering a Web-based program that allows students to hone their skills while treating a virtual family, to spearheading the development of an education program on the health needs of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender population, Dr. Medder always thinks about making education better.
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He has served as director of the integrated clinical experience (ICE) for second-year medical students, precepts first- and second-year medical students for the Longitudinal Clinical Experience and currently is working with the graduate medical education office to establish a combined four-year family medicine/preventative medicine residency program.
Excellence in Clinical Practice — James Edney, M.D., surgery
In his 27 years in practice at UNMC, Dr. Edney has become a recognized national figure in the treatment of breast, melanoma and endocrine disease.
He regularly is listed on a variety of “best doctors” lists and was the state’s only doctor to be recognized by his peers in Redbook magazine as one of the nation’s top breast cancer specialists.
“Jim has maintained a state-of-the-art practice in the treatment of his patients,” his nominator said. “Jim is widely recognized both regionally and nationally as an outstanding clinical surgical oncologist.”
Dr. Edney stays on top of and regularly provides his patients with the most cutting-edge treatment and care methods. He was the first surgeon in Nebraska to perform sentinel node biopsies, which are considered the most significant surgical advance in the management of breast cancer in the past two decades.
Recently, he played a leading role in the establishment of a new breast care facility in the Olson Center for Women’s Health.
Innovation in Clinical Medicine — Bill Lydiatt, M.D., otolaryngology – head and neck surgery
Dr. Lydiatt has taken a special interest in the affects of depression on head and neck cancer patients.
He has stressed the importance of interpersonal skills among his students and discussed how they can contribute to and/or reduce a patient’s depression.
Head and neck cancer patients suffer from depression at a higher rate than those with many other types of cancer and researchers found depression often hinders completion of treatment for cancer patients.
To help examine the personal interaction between patients and caregivers, Dr. Lydiatt and others on campus commissioned Scottish artist Mark Gilbert to compose portraits of patients, their caregivers and loved ones.
Dr. Lydiatt also had Gilbert and an FBI agent work with students to help teach them observation skills that can help them be more mindful of patients’ emotions.
“Dr. Lydiatt has been an ethical clinician and teacher who consistently thinks ‘out of the box,'” his nominator said. “His dedication to his patients, both present and future, is reflected in the ways in which he trains and interacts with his students and residents.
“Further, as evidenced by his efforts with Gilbert, his commitment to innovation reaches beyond the science of head and neck surgery to his interest in giving patients personalized care by understanding the emotional struggles that accompany their cancer diagnosis.”