Outstanding faculty: Armando De Alba, MD

Armando De Alba, MD, an assistant professor of family medicine in the UNMC College of Medicine, will receive the Spirit of Community Service Award during the annual faculty meeting to be held virtually today, beginning at 3 p.m.; details are available on the faculty senate page online.

• Name: Armando De Alba, MD
• Title: Assistant dean of diversity, equity and inclusion, student programs, UNMC College of Medicine, and assistant professor 
• Joined UNMC: 2007 
• Hometown: Tuxpan, Veracruz, Mexico

Why is community service important to you? 

Early in my career, I embraced a personal statement as part of my mission in life, “To protect and improve the health of every human who requires my health care services within the office walls and beyond.” Therefore, community service is a means I use to implement this personal statement beyond boundaries or systemic barriers.  

What prompted you to get involved in community service and what do you do? 

My passion for medical and public health studies. This passion is rooted in academic excellence, social justice, respect and collaborative work.  

I have extensive work in advocacy and community engagement in the United States and internationally. I have had the honor to assist in various projects as a lead coordinator, including providing communication resources from UNMC and Nebraska Medicine to the Hispanic community during the public health emergencies of Ebola and, most recently, COVID-19. For example, I was one of the first physicians to inform in Spanish through the national media about SARS-CoV-2 and how to prevent the spread of the virus. Throughout the pandemic, I have engaged in several interviews with radio and television, as well as newspapers, at the local, state, national and international levels. I translated medical protocols into Spanish and culturally adapted several educational materials for COVID-19 for use in hospitals, clinics and the community.  

I collaborated with community members in the design, development and coordination of community events to address vaccine hesitancy, combat misinformation, increase vaccination rates in adults and children and gain trust in the community. Additionally, I created a YouTube channel to post educational videos regarding the pandemic about how to care for individuals with COVID-19 at home. Through these videos, I was privileged to engage with audiences within the U.S., Latin America and Spain. I also assist as a medical and public health advisor for local, national and international governments.  

How do you feel you make a difference? 

By always remembering and carrying with integrity the values and principles that brought me to medicine and public health. I also always remember that health care services are human services, and each human deserves quality care.  

How does community service make the world a better place? 

Because it allows you to protect and improve the health of humans regardless of boundaries.