Five faculty members receive annual awards at UNMC

Five faculty members at the University of Nebraska Medical Center recently were honored for their teaching, mentoring and community service. The faculty members received their awards during the Annual Faculty Meeting in the Durham Research Center’s Scott Auditorium at UNMC. Faculty members who have served 30, 20 and 10 years at UNMC also were recognized. Those who received the annual awards are:

M. Patricia Leuschen, Ph.D., an associate professor in four UNMC departments and a fellow in the Graduate College, who received the inaugural UNMC Outstanding Mentor of Graduate Students Award.

Jim Medder, M.D., associate professor in the Department of Family Medicine, who received the second annual Spirit of Community Service Award.

Ann Berger, Ph.D., Florence Niedfelt Professor in the College of Nursing, who received an Outstanding Teaching Award.

Joel Bessmer, M.D., assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, who received an Outstanding Teaching Award.

Barbara Heywood, M.D., associate professor in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, who received an Outstanding Teaching Award.

Dr. Leuschen is a veteran researcher who has directed of the Medical Sciences Interdepartmental Area (MSIA) Graduate Program for more than 15 years. During her tenure as chair of the MSIA program, it has graduated 86 Ph.D. and 92 M.S. students from l7 different departments. Those numbers represent more than 25 percent and 45 percent, respectively, of UNMC’s Ph.D. and M.S. graduates. Over that same time, Dr. Leuschen has personally supervised 15 of the graduate students and has served on the committees for more than 40 others.

Dr. Medder’s accomplishments in the community center on his involvement with the SHARING (Student Health Alliance Reaching Indigent Needy Groups) movement. Begun in 1997 with the formation of the weekly SHARING Clinic in south Omaha, the SHARING movement has grown to three clinics serving the underserved. Other clinics include the weekly RESPECT Clinic in south Omaha for patients with sexually transmitted diseases, and the once-a-month GOODLIFE Clinic in north Omaha for patients with diabetes. At the clinics, underserved patients receive care for a nominal fee, while supervised students gain real-world experience in treating patients.

Dr. Berger, a UNMC faculty member since 1984, has taught nursing students about care for cancer patients. For many years, she coordinated the third-semester nursing course dealing with the care of the chronically ill. Within the last year, she began to teach a course on advanced oncology nursing to master’s level nursing students. In the fall, she’ll begin to educate doctoral level students on concept development, or the selection and development of concepts in which they’ll specialize during doctoral study and their dissertation. Dr. Berger’s research involves cancer-related fatigue.

As associate director for the Internal Medicine Residency Program, Dr. Bessmer has daily contact with colleagues, resident physicians and students. His faculty colleagues and resident physicians cite Dr. Bessmer’s passion for continually improving the residency program and his skill, caring and compassion for patients. Unfailingly, they mention his positive demeanor and his energy in approaching his duties. “Joel’s trademark is the unfailing energy and enthusiasm that he brings to every task that he undertakes,” said James O’Dell, M.D., director of the residency program. “If you know Joel, you know that he rarely has merely good days. If you ask Joel how he’s doing, he almost always responds with his trademark ‘fantastic’ and means it.”

Dr. Heywood finds the teaching process gratifying, and her rapport with students and ability to communicate with them elicit rave reviews from her faculty colleagues and the students themselves. In clinic, Dr. Heywood receives many referrals to address patients with voice problems, swallowing issues, dizziness and ear disease, among other ENT issues. Particularly enjoyable to her, Dr. Heywood said, is teaching in the clinical setting. As director of the ENT residency program, Dr. Heywood spends a great deal of time with ENT residents, as well as students.

Five faculty members receive annual awards at UNMC

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