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LeeRoy Meyer, M.D. |
The formal dedication of a new education center on the fifth floor of the Medical Science Building (formerly the UMA Building) on Friday will serve as a continuation of Dr. Meyer’s legacy at UNMC, said Thomas Tape, M.D., professor and chief in the section of general internal medicine.
“Dr. Meyer always struggled to find dedicated rooms for his small-group teaching,” Dr. Tape said. “His methods are still being used by professors here and around the nation. This new center provides the space necessary to carry out such teaching.”
An open house at the education center will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. on Friday. Dr. Tape and others will make formal comments at 10:15 a.m.
While teaching, Dr. Meyer would take small groups of medical students (five to six people), present them with a real internal medicine problem he had seen in his practice, and let the students try to solve it.
“This required space where students could gather and have access to reference materials,” Dr. Tape said. “That was hard to come by. This new educational center will provide such a space.”
The education center consists of four rooms, each large enough to accommodate about six students. The rooms each have reference materials and a computer with Internet access.
Dr. Meyer, who died in February 2005 from pneumonia at the age of 69, started using his small-group teaching method in the 1960s, long before it became a standard practice among other medical educators, said David O’Dell, associate professor in the department of internal medicine.
Dr. O’Dell is among those at UNMC who use Dr. Meyer’s methods to teach today’s medical students.
“I was his student, his resident, and then his colleague,” Dr. O’Dell said. “He actually helped me get into what I do. He was absolutely dedicated to his students and this center is a fitting tribute to a man who taught generations of physicians.”
Dr. Meyer taught two courses in the College of Medicine every year from 1969 until 2005. The courses are offered year-round and form the backbone of internal medicine education at the College of Medicine.
A 1961 College of Medicine graduate, Dr. Meyer did an internship and internal medicine residency at UNMC. He joined UNMC as an instructor in 1966 and at the end of that academic year, won a Golden Apple teaching award from the American Medical Student Association. The award annually goes to one clinical teacher in the UNMC College of Medicine.
Dr. Meyer would go on to win more than 25 Golden Apples — no other faculty member has won the award more than 11 times.
He would have won more if it weren’t for the creation of the “Golden Apple Hall of Fame” in 1995, of which he was the first inductee. Being inducted made him ineligible to win more Golden Apples.
“In regard to being recognized by students, he was the most-decorated teacher in the College of Medicine’s history,” Dr. O’Dell said. “His impact on generations of UNMC medical students is immeasurable. His class, personality and teaching style are still frequently discussed at medical school class reunions.”