Time out with T.O. – A generational change

In case you haven’t noticed, the face of the medical center is changing.

The retirement of baby boomers — folks born between 1946 and 1964 — is in full swing.

It’s happening so fast that it’s difficult to keep up with them all. Some people opt for a big sendoff and have a retirement tea. Others go the other direction and try to sneak out the back door without anybody noticing.

To each their own — that’s what makes the world such an interesting place.

The bottom line is that we are losing some of our most experienced people. These are individuals who helped make the medical center what it is today — a thriving academic medical center that is truly one of Omaha’s elite institutions.

With the tidal wave of retirements, it’s impossible to give everyone the recognition they deserve. But I would at least like to give a shout out today to four people who will be leaving in the next few days who I think had a special impact on the medical center.

Jeff Hill, M.D.

Jeff Hill, M.D. — Dr. Hill is associate dean for admissions and student affairs for the College of Medicine. He’s one of the key people who decides who gets accepted into medical school. I can only imagine how much “fun” that is. Over the past 23 years, he’s seen more than 2,000 of his medical students graduate. Little known fact: Dr. Hill was a split end for the Cornhuskers on the 1970 and 1971 national championship teams.

Wayne Houston — As community health program manager in the College of Public Health, Wayne has been an anchor in UNMC’s outreach efforts in North Omaha. Through the Center for Reducing Health Disparities, he helped establish the Health Professions Career Day to introduce minorities to careers in the health professions. He also founded the Black Family Health & Wellness Fair and was instrumental in getting the North Omaha Community Care Council off the ground. Fun facts about Wayne — you’ll likely see him wearing some cool shades, and he played college football for one year at Texas Tech University.

Julie McKenzie-Svanda — For more than 30 years, McKenzie-Svanda has held high profile administrative assistant positions in the chancellor’s office and the College of Medicine dean’s office. Somehow she was able to do all this and maintain a low profile. When she was in the chancellor’s office, I used to call Julie “the most powerful person at the medical center.” No doubt she had access to lots of inside information. But, she definitely knew how to keep a secret . . . and to work with her was always a pleasure.

Dan Schafer, M.D.

Dan Schafer, M.D. — Dr. Schafer is a gastroenterologist. He was one of the people who helped build the GI program into one of the best in the world. He is much beloved by his patients. One of them is a personal friend of mine. He liked Dr. Schafer so much that he’s going to deliver a cake to him before he leaves. Another patient knew Dr. Schafer likes birds, so she drew a beautiful oil painting of a toucan. Take a bow, Dr. Dan.

Other retirements at the end of this month include:

• James Faylor, M.D., emergency medicine
• Katherine Jones, Ph.D., physical therapy
• Michele Fontaine, biochemistry and molecular biology
• Anne Kessinger, M.D., internal medicine-oncology and hematology
• George Rozanski, Ph.D., cellular and integrative physiology
• Timothy Moore, M.D., radiology
• Myron Pudwill, D.D.S., dentistry
• Carol Lydiatt, M.D., anesthesiology
• K. Reed Peters, M.D., anesthesiology
• Paul Larsen, M.D., pediatrics-neurology
• Judy Huey, intenal medicine-oncology and hematology
• Charles Krobot, Pharm.D., pharmacy
• Connie Miller, Ph.D., nursing

Editor’s Note: If you want to send a message to any UNMC employee who is retiring, please feel free to salute them in the comment section below.