The Young family is one of the founding families of psychiatry in Omaha. George Alexander Young Sr., MD, and his son, Richard Hart Young, MD, have left a lasting impression on the community with their work in mental health services.
Dr. Young Sr. was born in England in 1876. While he was a child, his family moved to the United States, where they settled in North Loup Valley, Nebraska. He received his medical degree from the University of Chicago.
After completing an internship, Dr. Young returned to Nebraska. He served as the pathologist for the state hospital in Norfolk and then as the assistant superintendent at the state hospital in Lincoln. In 1909, Young traveled to Europe for postgraduate training. He studied neuropsychiatry in Switzerland with the renowned psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Carl Jung, MD, the founder of analytical psychology.
Upon his return to Omaha, Dr. Young opened a private practice. He also joined the Department of Nervous and Mental Diseases at Creighton, serving as the chair until 1916. Dr. Young simultaneously worked as an instructor for the University of Nebraska College of Medicine’s Department of Nervous and Mental Diseases. In 1917, he joined the University of Nebraska College of Medicine full-time, becoming chair in 1919. He held that position for 27 years.
Richard Hart Young was George’s oldest son, born in 1904 in Columbus, Nebraska. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago, his master’s degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and his medical degree from the University of Nebraska College of Medicine in 1930. After completing his internships, Dr. Richard Young became a partner in his father’s private practice in Omaha.
In 1933, Dr. Richard Young joined the faculty of the University of Nebraska College of Medicine. He served as chair of the department of Neurology and Psychiatry from 1948 to 1953. He oversaw the foundation of the Nebraska Psychiatric Institute on the University of Nebraska College of Medicine campus.
The Youngs, both father and son, partnered with Omaha psychiatrists Harrison Alonzo Wigton, MD, Robert Spencer Wigton, MD, and John Aita, MD, PhD, to form the WAY Clinic.
Dr. Richard Young’s impact on mental health services in Omaha and the state is evident in the facilities that bear his name, such as the former Richard Young Center in Omaha and the CHI Health Richard Young Outpatient Clinic in Kearney.
To learn more about the Youngs, Wigtons and Aita, visit the Wigton Heritage Center online exhibit.
The senior Dr. Young (my grandfather) was called Alec, not George.
Rich Young was one of two sons who became renown psychiatrists in Omaha.
The other, George Alexander Young, Jr., was known as Bob (his choice) and some of his writing was published after he died in 1990.
Titled “Never Marry Your Spouse” it was published by The Foundation for Understanding, Inc, an Omaha organization (I believe to be defunct).
One of uncle Bob’s sons was also and Omaha psychiatrist, named George Alexander Young, III.