Legislative candidate George Dungan, who is running for a seat in District 26 in northeast Lincoln, toured UNMC on Oct. 20.
Dungan met with campus leaders, including Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD, and spoke with leaders of the Behavioral Health Education Center of Nebraska about UNMC’s statewide behavioral health efforts.
He also toured the iEXCEL program, viewing educational technology such as the five-sided laser cave, 3D learning technology and high-tech mannikins.
Dungan, who currently serves on the board of Bridge Behavioral Health in Lincoln, said he is aware of the importance of behavioral health treatment, including substance use disorder treatment.
“People talk a lot about community safety and how to support people in our communities who are underrepresented,” he said. “We can do that through implementing better behavioral health services, which starts with retaining work force. You can’t provide more behavioral health services if you don’t have the people to do it.”
Dungan, a former public defender in Lancaster County, said state support for UNMC is important, pointing to UNMC’s leadership in the pandemic response and medical technology.
“The university system is one of the major things in Nebraska that is driving innovation, creating incentive for people to stay here,” he said.