More than 40 members of the staffs of Nebraska state legislators visited UNMC in October.
The staffers toured the campus for an afternoon, receiving updates on the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, the UNMC-University of Nebraska at Kearney Health Sciences Education Complex, telehealth operations and the College of Public Health.
The group spoke with Bob Bartee, vice chancellor of external affairs; Ken Cowan, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center; Kyle Meyer, Ph.D., senior associate dean of the School of Allied Health Professions, and others during their visit.
They closed the tour with a visit to the new Truhlsen Eye Institute, where they were treated to a display of some of the new technology available to physicians and researchers.
“The most memorable portion of the UNMC tour for me was Dr. Renaisa Anthony’s presentation on the need to reduce health disparities in Nebraska, and the work that the College of Public Health is carrying out to meet that need,” said Claudia Lindley, a member of Sen. Kathy Campbell’s staff.
Elizabeth Hertzler, from Sen. Heath Mello’s office, also was impressed by the COPH.
“Working with constituents, I hear firsthand how desperately solutions are needed to fix the broken public health system,” she said. “It is reassuring to hear that the UNMC College of Public Health is working to address the needs of all Nebraskans.”
LaMont Rainey, legal counsel to the state’s education committee, said he enjoyed a chance to hear about the collaboration between philanthropy and education at UNMC.
“That is pretty impressive,” he said. “The level of commitment and fiscal resources that local philanthropists and others have contributed to these programs, and to providing a more full and rich educational experience for students, has been very impressive to see and hear about.”
Seeing how new technology is being integrated into health care — including taking blood-pressure measurements with an iPhone — was “fascinating stuff,” said Tim Freburg from Sen. Dan Watermeier’s office.
“Also, the demonstration of what UNMC is researching in regard to eye care was incredible,” Freburg said. “The device that can be implanted into the eye to help with glaucoma was almost unbelievable. Seeing its size contrasted with a coin was jaw-dropping, to say the least.”
Rainey summed up the tour for the group: “All in all, it’s been a worthwhile and informative day.”