The construction of a state-of-the-art eye institute on the UNMC campus — while a significant development — is not the end-game goal for Stanley Truhlsen, M.D., UNMC’s ophthalmology chairman Thomas Hejkal, M.D., said Monday.
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Ground breaks on the Stanley M. Truhlsen Eye Institute on Monday. |
“Dr. Truhlsen, like our former chairman, the late Carl Camras, M.D., is a maximizer,” Dr. Hejkal said. “Their dreams don’t stop at simply building an eye institute.
“They wanted to cure blindness.”
Dr. Truhlsen is a legendary Omaha ophthalmologist and a longtime faculty member at UNMC as well as a medical center alumnus. He provided the lead gift to construct the new center, which will bring clinicians, researchers and patients together in one state-of-the-art facility.
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Stanley Truhlsen, M.D., center, and his wife, Dorothy, talk with University of Nebraska President James B. Milliken, J.D., after Monday’s groundbreaking ceremony for the Truhlsen Eye Institute. Dr. Truhlsen made the lead gift for the eye institute. |
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Dr. Truhlsen receives a standing ovation during Monday’s groundbreaking ceremony. |
Breaking ground on the new institute, watching it become a hub for advanced care and research and seeing it become a strong educational resource for students “will be fun,” he said.
Construction on the new center, which will sit at 40th and Leavenworth streets, will start next year and should culminate in 2012.
Regent Chuck Hassebrook of Lyons said the construction of the new institute and the generosity of Dr. Truhlsen mean a lot to him in light of the regent’s experience watching his father-in-law struggle with macular degeneration.
“Watching my father-in-law battle to maintain a sense of purpose and meaning as he loses his eyesight gives me a greater appreciation for Dr. Truhlsen’s gift, which will change thousands of lives,” Hassebrook said.