In all living things, it is DNA that spells out the instructions to create a particular organism with its own unique traits. Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D., said UNMC’s DNA spells out a grand vision of what the state’s only public health center eventually will become.
“We must realize that people are the organization and everything else is an asset,” Dr. Maurer said Thursday during the Annual Faculty Meeting. “It’s critically important to the success of the institution. Employee loyalty and satisfaction is what makes this place hum.”
Following Dr. Maurer’s presentation on “The DNA of Excellence in the New Economy,” 47 faculty members were recognized for their outstanding teaching, research and service contributions.
Vision is the guiding principle, Dr. Maurer said, that will sustain UNMC’s performance in an economy shaped by a multi-generational workforce, technological advances and economic slowdown.
Since being named chancellor in December 1998, Dr. Maurer’s goal has been to build UNMC into a world-class academic health sciences center. “Our greatest risk is choosing not to do so,” he said to a standing room only crowd in the Eppley Science Hall Amphitheater. “We become irrelevant if we choose not to become world-class.”
What does it mean to be world-class? “It is having the concept of being world-class, a commitment to being world-class, the capacity to be world-class and having the ability to communicate that to the world,” Dr. Maurer said.
UNMC’s vision is to become a world-renowned health sciences center that
- Delivers state-of-the-art health care;
- Prepares the best educated health professionals and scientists;
- Ranks among the leading research centers;
- Advances our historic commitment to community health; and
- Embraces the richness of diversity.
“UNMC is a high performing organization and we are fast becoming the investment of choice,” Dr. Maurer said. “Outstanding patient care with outstanding research provides outstanding education.”
On Thursday, Dr. Maurer cited dozens of recent accomplishments in the areas of research, education, business and finance, clinical and community service, diversity and employee programs. “There have been phenomenal achievements on this campus,” he said. “Meanwhile, we are building for the future.”
Dr. Maurer envisions new opportunities in the areas of bioterrorism preparedness, bioengineering, preventive medicine and global health care and education. At the same time, there will be challenges to increase the amount of state funding for capital construction projects, develop intellectual property as a stronger revenue source, further increase diversity on campus and keep pace with the high cost of technological advances.
“Our momentum is strong,” Dr. Maurer said. “Increasing our visibility as a powerful economic engine for Omaha and Nebraska, combined with our vision of the possible, will guarantee a bright future.”
After all, said Dr. Maurer quoting Peter Cohen of Shearson Lehman: “There is no one grand stroke that does it. It’s a lot of little steps.”