The latest gem on the UNMC campus — the Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education — opens today with a ceremony featuring top officials from the University of Nebraska, as well as local and state government leaders.
Among those who will speak at the 10 a.m. grand opening ceremony in the Sorrell Center’s event center are Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman, Steven Wartman, M.D., Ph.D., president and CEO, Association of Academic Health Centers; Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey; Chuck Hassebrook, chairman of the University of Nebraska Board of Regents; and University of Nebraska President James B. Milliken.
Situated on the northeast corner of 42nd and Emile streets in Omaha, the four-level $52.7 million home to the UNMC College of Medicine includes 134,183 square feet and was funded entirely by private donations through the University of Nebraska Foundation.
The Sorrell Center will centralize educational programs in a state-of-the-art facility. Features include clinical skills laboratories that resemble hospital and exam rooms, large amphitheaters, small-group interaction rooms, conference space for continuing education and student interaction space that will provide enhanced interdisciplinary educational opportunities.
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The building is named in honor of Michael Sorrell, M.D., a UNMC physician world-renowned in liver disease and transplantation, and gastrointestinal disorders. Dr. Sorrell, who received his medical degree in 1959 at UNMC, has served at the medical center for 37 years.
He was instrumental in helping UNMC become one of the world’s leading liver transplant programs, and is responsible for recruiting some of UNMC’s top physicians and researchers.
The Sorrell Center will be the best medical education facility in the United States, said UNMC Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D.
“We’ll be able to do things we’ve never been able to do before. It will attract more outstanding students and faculty,” Dr. Maurer said. “We’re working toward being world-class, and this is a facility that helps us get there.”
He said UNMC is grateful for the generosity of the donors of the building, in particular, Omaha philanthropists, Ruth and Bill Scott.
“They epitomize the true spirit of giving. We are humbled by their generosity,” Dr. Maurer said. “They are just wonderful people who see a need and are willing to invest their resources so Nebraskans and others can achieve a real benefit. Their generosity is overwhelming. They want to do good things for people, and that’s what they’ve done.”
Some of the features of the Sorrell Center include a 500-seat special events center; two 220-seat auditoriums; four 80-seat classrooms; a clinical skills laboratory with 16 simulated clinic rooms, and an eight-bed hospital area.
On the north side, a student plaza will feature grassy areas for student interaction and study, as well as an area for outdoor activities. In the winter time, the plaza, which was made possible by a donation from the Scotts, will feature an ice rink. An architectural/artistic feature will be added to the plaza at a later time.
Inside, the building will have a variety of paintings, photographs and sculptures by Nebraska artists or artists who have ties to the state.
John Gollan, M.D., Ph.D., dean of the UNMC College of Medicine, said the Sorrell Center will put UNMC at the forefront of medical education.
“It’s a first-class facility that will help recruit top students locally and nationally, lure award-winning faculty to campus and improve patient/physician interactions,” he said. “It also will further enhance the collegial spirit and teamwork between health care providers that is so important in caring for today’s patients.”
Dr. Gollan noted that more than half of the physicians practicing in Nebraska graduated from UNMC. In addition, 70 percent of physicians practicing in rural areas graduated from UNMC. The Scotts, who are among more than 1,200 donors to the Sorrell Center, provided the lead gift. Other principal benefactors are:
- The Nebraska Medical Center;
- Richard D. Holland;
- Dorothy and Stanley M. Truhlsen, M.D.;
- The Lozier Foundation;
- UNMC Physicians;
- Dr. C.C. & Mabel L. Criss Memorial Foundation;
- UNMC College of Medicine Alumni Association; and
- Karen and Jim Linder, M.D.
Twenty-two physicians contributed $100,000 or more through the Edward A. Holyoke, M.D., Ph.D., Society, which is dedicated to the memory and contributions of the late Dr. Holyoke, a legendary professor and mentor at UNMC. Nearly 1,000 College of Medicine alumni contributed to the project.
Even though the Scotts could have had the building named after themselves, they asked that the building be named in honor of their friend, Dr. Sorrell.
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Omaha philanthropists Ruth and Bill Scott are the lead donors in the funding for the Sorrell Center. |
“Dr. Sorrell is a marvelous, compassionate physician. He’s a dynamo. He’s the guy who helped build the medical center and make it what it is today.”
Dr. Sorrell is equally complimentary of the Scotts, who through the William and Ruth Scott Family Foundation have donated millions of dollars to more than 100 different organizations.
“Ruth and Bill have been my patients and friends for many years,” said Dr. Sorrell, the UNMC Robert L. Grissom, M.D., Professor of Medicine. “They are among the most unassuming philanthropic people in the world. It would embarrass them to go into details, but they are always looking for ways to do good.”
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The new home for the College of Medicine is named for legendary UNMC physician Michael Sorrell, M.D., right. Dr. Sorrell, who has been at UNMC for more than 37 years, has been key player in the medical center’s transformation into a powerful health science education institution. |
Dr. Sorrell said he is humbled the Scotts named the building after him.
“It’s absolutely amazing,” Dr. Sorrell said. “I’ve just been so grateful to be here to watch and be part of the growth of this wonderful institution. This place has given me so much.”
Joe Margheim, a fourth-year medical student from Scottsbluff, said he is excited about the Sorrell Center.
“For me, the best thing about the Sorrell Center is it’s going to be home for the College of Medicine,” Margheim said. “The faculty will be in one place instead of spread out, our lectures will be in one place and the technology is going to help us digest an immense amount of material needed to get an education in medicine.”
Medical student, Bridget Wychulis, said she’s looking forward to interacting with medical students outside of her class, and students from the other health disciplines.
“I’m really excited that we’ll have a space where all of us are in the same building,” Wychulis said. “We’ll all get to interact, and I think it’s really important because you learn so much from your colleagues and your peers and it’s just another support network that really adds to the experience.”