Gold U winner Hansen supports cancer research and patients

As a clinical research associate, Erica Hansen works in support of UNMC’s oncology researchers and research nurses, the data coordinators and the regulatory staff involved with the med center’s clinical cancer trials.

And there’s one other key group Hansen supports – cancer patients.

For all her leadership, resourcefulness and diligence in her work, Hansen has been selected as UNMC’s Kudos winner and Gold U Award recipient for December. She will be honored at today’s meeting of the University of Nebraska Board of Regents.

Although most of the med center’s cancer patients will never meet Hansen, she works hard to support their care, Susan Blumel said in nominating her for the award. Blumel is the lead clinical study nurse coordinator for the clinical trials office at the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center.

“Erica knows that all of her efforts are for the good of our patients and the future of oncology therapeutics,” Blumel wrote, adding that Hansen is engaging with her team, a thorough and respectful communicator, a collaborator, critical thinker and trusted colleague.

“She looks out for others on the team and offers her assistance and helps ensure completion of projects within the entire group. I am proud to have her on our team.”

In the Clinical Trials Office, Hansen works closely with research-related tasks – which Blumel described as research lab specimen coordination and shipping, management of source documents, pathology requests, insurance predetermination requests, completion of billing matrices and other essential tasks related to clinical trial management.

Hansen said she’s grateful for the award. She thanked Blumel for the nomination and thanked UNMC as a whole, calling it a great place to work. In her time at the Clinical Trials Office, Hansen said, everyone she’s worked with shows that they share “a common goal of wanting to help our patients.”

“I really recognize what we do matters,” Hansen said. “It’s a little bit on the back end and not directly patient-facing. But all of those positions that I’ve come to realize are part of the whole process are just so important.”

After growing up in Elkhorn, Hansen graduated in May 2022 from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a Bachelor of Science degree in biology. She came to UNMC in June 2022 to start a gap year after her undergraduate studies and now has extended that into a second year.

Hansen also has applied to medical school here at UNMC.

“I’m from Nebraska, so naturally, I would love to stay here and work within this community,” she said. “After working here, as well, it’s such a great place.”

Hansen said the award serves as a reminder to her that she’s on the right track, and in the future, she said she might even be interested in working as a physician and research investigator.

“It’s just secured for me that I’m on the right path,” she said, “and just keep going.”