Physician assistant alumnus promoted to general

A UNMC College of Allied Health Professions alumnus has achieved a historic milestone as the first active-duty physician assistant to become a general in the U.S. Army.

Brig. Gen. Bill Soliz, now the commanding general of Medical Readiness Command, Pacific, and the director of Defense Health Network Indo-Pacific, was awarded his Master of Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS) degree in 1999 from UNMC.

It is a proud moment for the College of Allied Health Professions, noted dean Kyle Meyer, PhD.

“The college and all of UNMC extend our congratulations to Brig. Gen. Soliz,” Dr. Meyer said. “We are honored and proud to recognize him as an alum and grateful for his tremendous service to the military and our country.”

Brig. Gen. Soliz made history with his promotion May 11.

He completed his master’s degree and training through UNMC’s distance education degree advancement program after receiving his bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, through the Interservice Physician Assistant Program (IPAP).

IPAP is a unique partnership between the UNMC College of Allied Health Professions and the U.S. military to provide the uniformed services with competent, compassionate physician assistants. UNMC now is the degree granting institution for both bachelor’s and master’s degrees for military physician assistants.

The partnership will soon mark 30 years, representing UNMC’s longest-running continual federal contract.

At the inception of the IPAP, graduates were awarded a bachelor’s entry-level degree upon graduation. Some went on to earn their master’s degrees, as Brig. Gen. Soliz did.

Now, participants receive both a bachelor’s degree after 16 months of didactic training and a Master of Physician Assistant Studies after 13 additional months of clinical rotations.

UNMC provides faculty and student support, administrative support and operational support to the program, which is a separately accredited program. Because the military is not a degree-granting institution, UNMC awards degrees three times a year to physician assistant program graduates from the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and National Guard.

In an article announcing the promotion, the Department of Defense noted that Brig. Gen. Soliz is a trailblazer in multiple ways: He also is the first Hispanic American non-physician general officer and commanding general in the Army Medical Department.

Lt. Gen. Mary Izaguirre, U.S. Army Surgeon General, praised the UNMC alumnus: “He has excelled in clinical and leadership roles as an officer, and along the way he has stood out as a gifted officer,” Lt. Gen. Izaguirre said. “Bill has been an educator, and he has also sculpted our education system.”

Brig. Gen. Soliz served as a combat medic early in his Army career, before deciding to become a physician assistant, to grow as a soldier and as a person.

The Department of Defense article said his motto has always been, “Put people first, people are our most valuable resource.”

In addition to his role as commanding general of Medical Readiness Command, Pacific, Brig. Gen. Soliz serves as the director of Defense Health Network Indo-Pacific and oversees a joint, integrated health network with Army, Navy and Air Force personnel that provides quality care in medical facilities in Washington, California, Hawaii, Japan and the Republic of Korea.

As director, Brig. Gen. Soliz leads more than 15,000 service members, civilians and contractors that support the United States Indo-Pacific, Northern, Special Operations, Transportation, Cyber and Space Commands.