Summer success – Program pipeline in action

A popular best-selling book captivated the latest class of UNMC Summer Medical and Dental Education Program students.

A book club — featuring “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” — became part of the SMDEP curriculum. In seminars taught by UNMC faculty, students learned about the infamous HeLa cells and their impact on medical ethics, research and biostatistics.

SMDEP students work in the dental lab. Since UNMC started to participate in the program in 2006, nine program alumni have gone on to receive degrees at the medical center.

“It helped me learn about the history of medical ethics and how people weren’t all treated equally,” said Zach Pederson, a pre-dental student. “The discussions were good because we were able to ask modern ethical questions and see what other people’s views were on them.”

Something new

“This is the first time our program has used the book club concept and we plan to share its success at the national SMDEP meeting in December,” said Stephen Toller, coordinator of the SMDEP program.

The SMDEP program is designed to support, mentor and encourage students who are interested in addressing the healthcare needs of underserved populations — a core part of UNMC’s mission.

A door-opener

For UNMC, the program has become a pipeline for student success.

UNMC began involvement with SMDEP in 2006. So far, five alumni have graduated from the College of Dentistry and four from the College of Medicine.

An aspiring member

Pederson hopes to become another member of that club.

After his SMDEP experience, he plans to transfer to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to continue his studies and hopefully return to UNMC for his professional dental degree.

“This program made me realize what I need to do in order to get into dental school,” he said. “I received great advice from Dr. Merlyn Vogt, which I never would have if it wasn’t for this program.”