A champion for statewide public health, a scientist researching the use of asthma medication in schools and a student who transcended a traumatic experience to become a proponent for the disabled received this year’s College of Public Health awards for the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
The awards were handed out at the college’s inaugural spring awards dinner last month at the W.H. Thompson Alumni Center at the University of Nebraska Omaha campus.
The award recipients were:
• Magda Peck, Sc.D. who received the Robert D. Sparks, M.D., Award in Public Health and Preventive Medicine;
• Valeriya Kettelhut, M.D., who received the Robert D. Sparks, M.D., Student Research Award; and
• Jason Kerkman, who received the Carruth J. Wagner, M.D., Scholarship for Outstanding Public Health Graduate Student.
“These three winners exemplify the spirit of their respective awards and set high standards for future recipients,” said Jay Noren, M.D., founding dean of the College of Public Health.
Dr. Peck is a professor and associate chair of the UNMC Department of Pediatrics and director of health policy and planning at the Munroe-Meyer Institute.
In addition, Dr. Peck is the founding CEO for CityMatCH, a national organization based in Omaha that is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of women, children and families in America’s cities.
For her numerous efforts to improve public health in Nebraska and beyond she received the Sparks Award in Public Health and Preventative Medicine, which recognizes outstanding innovation and impact on preventing disease and promoting health through public health education, research and practice.
“Dr. Peck’s dedication to improving health for all is unquestioned,” Dr. Noren said. “She is the ideal choice to be the recipient of this award.”
Dr. Kettelhut received the Sparks Student Research Award for her investigation of how asthma medication is being used in Omaha elementary schools.
By receiving the award, Dr. Kettelhut will get $1,500 to support her research. The award is designed to support an excellent research project that demonstrates disease prevention and health promotion through public health education, research and/or practice, with particular attention to the needs of Nebraska and its residents.
Dr. Kettelhut is examining the readiness of area schools to implement a legislative measure regulating how asthma medicine is distributed and used.
“Dr. Kettelhut has demonstrated the positive impact on the community that can result from contributions of a public health graduate student,” Dr. Noren said.
Kerkman is an Illinois native who was left in a wheelchair after sustaining a traumatic spinal cord injury in a car accident. The injury left Kerkman with the desire to educate people about issues related to spinal cord injury and he eventually decided to pursue a master’s degree in public health with an emphasis in community health education.
He now works for the state department of labor as a disability program navigator who addresses employment issues for people with disabilities. He enjoys wheelchair racing, completing 12 marathons over the past eight years. After receiving his master’s degree, Kerkman hopes to earn a Ph.D. with an emphasis in public health issues for those with disabilities.
Dr. Noren said Kerkman’s dedication and concern for the well-being of others make him a perfect fit for the Wagner Scholarship, which is given to a student who demonstrates career goals and personal/professional potential to make significant contributions to the overall state of world health.
“Jason has managed to take an incredibly difficult experience and use it to help others,” Dr. Noren said. “His is a truly remarkable story and countless people stand to benefit from his experience, courage and dedication.”
UNMC is the only public health science center in the state. Its educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution. Through their commitment to education, research, patient care and outreach, UNMC and its hospital partner, The Nebraska Medical Center, have established themselves as one of the country’s leading centers in cancer, transplantation biology, bioterrorism preparedness, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, genetics, biomedical technology and ophthalmology. UNMC’s research funding from external sources is now nearly $80 million annually and has resulted in the creation of more than 2,400 highly skilled jobs in the state. UNMC’s physician practice group, UNMC Physicians, includes more than 460 physicians in 50 specialties and subspecialties who practice primarily in The Nebraska Medical Center. For more information, go to UNMC’s Web site at www.unmc.edu.