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UNMC to Honor Rural Physicians in Celebration of 50th Anniversary of Rural Medical Training Program

The University of Nebraska Medical Center Department of Family Medicine

is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its rural preceptorship program

one of the first in the United States. UNMC will honor 134 rural family

medicine physicians from 58 communities in Nebraska at a luncheon March

26 during the Nebraska Academy of Family Physicians annual meeting at the

Doubletree Hotel in Omaha.

Started in 1949 as an elective and then required since 1971, the program

provides medical students experience in a rural medical setting. Rural

preceptorships are now required for third-year medical students to spend

at least eight weeks in communities outside Omaha and Lincoln.

It is important for medical schools to provide a rural, primary care

training experience, said Paul Paulman, M.D., UNMC Department of Family

Medicine and director of the family medicine preceptorship. This is especially

true in Nebraska where many of the people in our state live in rural and

urban areas which are medically underserved.

More than 3,000 medical students and more than 1,000 physicians from

Nebraska communities of 650 to 40,000 have participated in training medical

students, Dr. Paulman said.

Rural physicians involved in the program spend more than 50,000 hours

per year with medical students, he said. UNMCs program is the fourth oldest

in the country and at eight weeks, is the longest required rural rotation.

There are 134 preceptors currently in the program in Nebraska.

Our preceptors give their time voluntarily to promote the education

of future physicians, Dr. Paulman said. In addition, they house and feed

our students.

He said students gain a variety of experiences, from diagnosing and

treating ear infections to delivering babies. They also improve their communication

skills with patients and their families, learn the business side of managing

a healthcare practice and learn about the people of the community.

Medical students see an average of 15 to 20 patients a day during their

preceptorship. Students consistently rate the experience the most valuable

clinical experience of their training, Dr. Paulman said.

In a rural preceptorship, the students dont have to compete to see

patients and do procedures, he said. They experience more breadth and

volume in what they see. They may get the opportunity to be first assistant

on surgery and deliver babies.

The rural preceptorship experience John Wilcox, M.D., had while in Aurora,

Neb., inspired him to join a practice at the Aurora Memorial Health Clinic

after he completed his training. Dr. Wilcox has been on staff at the clinic

for 26 years and also serves as a preceptor training other future health

professionals.

My roommate came here for his preceptorship and thats how I decided,

said Dr. Wilcox. I remember when I came here it was cold. So cold my car

battery froze solid. When I first got here as a medical student, there

were three doctors here. We had a great time.

The experience is also worthwhile for the physicians who help train

the medical students.

The biggest value we get is to see students mature, said K.C. Bagby,

M.D., a physician who for 35 years has been with the Blair Clinic in Blair,

Neb. The students get here and you can see they are questioning themselves,

but by the time they leave then have grown in self-confidence. The experience

also keeps us on our toes because there are a lot of things the students

know more details about than us, such as new procedures.

Robert Hanlon, M.D., of the Chadron Medical Clinic in Chadron, Neb.,

said he and his colleagues enjoy the experience. It is a delightful reward

as a preceptor to be able to help these young students with the enthusiasm

that they demonstrate. We also benefit by their presence in that the students

tend to bring new ideas and information to us and it helps us in our never-ending

quest to keep up with new information as much as possible.

A list of the rural physicians being honored as participants in the

rural preceptorship program is attached.

UNMC Rural Preceptor Directory, 1998-1999

ALBION      Drs. Anthony Kusek, John Mazour,

Brad Hupp & Joel Travis


Boone County Medical Clinic

ALLIANCE  Drs. Bruce Forney & Ed Pierce


Alliance Medical Center

ALMA   Richard Jay, D.O.


Harlan County Medical Clinic

AUBURN  Dr. David McMaster


Auburn Clinic

AURORA  Drs. Mark Jobman, Michael Sullivan, Timothy Widhalm, John

Wilcox, Jeffrey Muilenburg & Scott Johnson


Memorial Health Clinic

BEATRICE  Drs. Alan Langvardt & Robert McLellan


Beatrice Medical Center

BROKEN BOW  Drs. N. Leon Books, Shawn Lawrence & Kenneth Loper


Broken Bow Clinic

BROKEN BOW  Dr. Loren Jacobsen & Dr. David Minnick


Central Nebraska Medical Clinic, P.C.

CAMBRIDGE  Drs. Lennie Deaver, Tamara Johnson & Rachelle Kaspar-Cope

(Brent Keenportz – Arapahoe Clinic)


Cambridge Medical Clinic

CENTRAL CITY Drs. Jerome Gacke & Steven Mahnke


Lone Tree Medical Associates

CHADRON  Drs. Robert Hanlon, Robert Rasmussen, R.M Penor, J.L.

McLain, E.A. Pelton & Sutera


Chadron Medical Clinic

COLUMBUS  Dr. Milton Zadina


Columbus Family Practice Associates

CREIGHTON  Dr. Douglas M. Laflan

DAVID CITY  Dr. Gerald Luckey, Victor Thoendel, Mark Carlson &

Jo Witter


  Butler County Clinic

FAIRBURY  Drs. Richard Blatny & Craig Shumard


Fairbury Clinic

FALLS CITY  Dr. David Borg


Community Medical Center

FORT CALHOUN Dr. Douglas Campbell

FREMONT  Dr. Milo Anderson


FREMONT  Dr. William Eaton


FREMONT  Dr. Thomas McKnight


FREMONT  Dr. Monty Sellon

FRIEND  Dr. Robert McKeeman


Friend Medical Clinic

GERING  Drs. Donald Gentry, Richard Clark & Daniel Harkins


Trails West Family Practice, P.C.

GORDON  Dr. Joel Hutchins


Gordon Clinic

GOTHENBERG Dr. Craig Bartruff


Gothenburg Medical Arts

GRAND ISLAND Drs. Steven Husen, Gary Settje, Donald Wirth,


Richard Freuhling & Ken Vettel


Family Practice of Grand Island

GRANT  Dr. Paul Bottom


Grant Medical Clinic

GRETNA  Dr. William Weeks


SW Family Physicians

HASTINGS  Drs. Fred Catlett, Harry Salyards, Phyllis Salyards &

Michael Johnson


Hastings Family Practice

HASTINGS  Dr. Michael Skoch


Physician’s Building Family Practice

HOLDREGE  Drs. Stuart Embury, Charlotte Wirges & Scott Ehresman


Family Medicine Specialties

HOLDREGE  Dr. Richard Reiner


High Plains Family Medicine

IMPERIAL  Drs. Paul Grow, David Johnson & Kristen Johnson


Frenchman Valley Family Practice

KEARNEY  Drs. Michael Hanich, Lawrence Helmick & Brad Rodgers


Kearney Clinic (no students currently)

KEARNEY  Drs. Rusty Hilliard & Robert Messbarger


Family Practice Associates

KIMBALL  Dr. James Plate


The Family Clinic

LEXINGTON  Drs. John Ford, Mark Jones, Joe Miller, Greg Kloch,

Pat Unterseher


& Francisca Acosta-Carlson

MCCOOK  Drs. Richard Klug, Mark Serbousek, John Grove,


Richard Carleton, Corinne Phillips-Ward & Donald Sampson


McCook Clinic

NEBRASKA CITY Drs. Paul Madison, Gary Rademacher Dean Thomson &

Jonathan Stelling


Physicians Clinic

NORFOLK  Drs. Timothy Davy, John Huscher & Richard Dane Robinson


Norfolk Family Medicine

NORFOLK  Drs. Tom Surber & David Lux


Sunset Plaza Clinic

OGALLALA   Dr. Berl Spencer & Kurt Johnson


Ogallala Medical Group, P.C.

OGALLALA  Dr. Bart Kolste


Family Medicine Center

O’NEILL  Dr. Richard Fitch


O’Neill Family Practice, P.C.

O’NEILL  Drs. Mark Ptacek & Peter Lueninghoener

PAWNEE CITY  Drs. Richard Jackson & G.R. Voigtlander


Pawnee County Rural Health Clinic

PENDER  Drs. Ben O. Martin & David Hoelting


Pender Medical Clinic

SCOTTSBLUFF  Drs. Milton Johnson, Pat Brown,   Drs. Kent

Lacey & Kent Smith


Bob Barnwell,         

Physician’s Family Clinic

SCHUYLER  Dr. James Martin

SEWARD  Dr. Van Vahle

SIDNEY  Drs. Calvin Cutright, J.D. Akerson, Clinton Dorwart &

Michael Mathews

TECUMSEH  Dr. Keith Shuey


Johnson County Medical Center

TECUMSEH  Dr. Stacy Goodrich


Tecumseh Family Health


 


VALENTINE  Drs. Steven Senseney, Allen Hunt, & Annette Miller


Cherry County Physicians Clinic


 


WAHOO  Dr. John E. Hansen


Wahoo Clinic


 


WAHOO   Drs. Leo Meduna & Naila Haroon


 


WEEPING WATER Dr. Allan Wilsey


Weeping Water Family Practice


 


YORK   Drs. David Demuth, Patrick Hotovy, Greg Woods &

Steve Thomas


York Medical Clinic

UNMC is the only public academic health science center in the state. 

Through its commitment to research, education and patient care, UNMC has

established itself as one of the country’s leading centers for cancer research

and treatment and solid organ transplantation.  More than $34 million

in research grants and contracts are awarded to UNMC scientists annually. 

In addition, UNMC’s educational programs are responsible for training more

health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution.