Bruce Buehler, M.D., the man whose leadership helped elevate the Munroe-Meyer Institute into one of the top programs in the country for genetics work and treating people with developmental disabilities, plans to step down from his dual role as MMI director and chairman of the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Department of Pediatrics on Oct. 1.
Dr. Buehler, who turns 64 next month, has served as director of MMI for 24 years and as chairman of pediatrics for 16 years. He will continue to serve on the full-time faculty.
During this time, he has helped orchestrate a remarkable period of growth for MMI, as employment has gone from 70 employees in 1983 to 250 today and the MMI budget has soared to $21 million today compared to $3 million in 1983.
“Bruce has been instrumental in bringing MMI to its current level of high regard nationally,” said Harold M. Maurer, M.D., UNMC chancellor. “He has recruited a number of outstanding faculty for a variety of programs important to Nebraska, including the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders. He also has been a strong proponent of research development, and he travels the state to provide genetic services to all parts of Nebraska.”
Dr. Buehler first arrived at UNMC in 1981 as associate professor of pediatrics and pathology and director of the Hattie B. Munroe Center for Human Genetics. He and another geneticist, Warren Sanger, Ph.D., were basically the genetics program. Their offices were located in an old house on 41st Street.
Dr. Buehler was only the second full-time director at MMI. Paul Pearson, M.D., served as the first director from 1968 to 1982.
As chairman of pediatrics, Dr. Buehler oversaw 76 faculty and 70 staff members. His work was praised by College of Medicine Dean John Gollan, M.D., Ph.D. “Bruce has provided stellar leadership of the department for the last 16 years,” Dr. Gollan said. “Over the years he has built an outstanding department consisting of 18 sections. The relationships he has fostered with Children’s Hospital and Creighton University have created a solid base for the department and will pave the way for the future development of pediatrics in the region.”
Two separate search committees will be formed in the near future to begin the process of identifying a new director for MMI and a new chairman of pediatrics, Dr. Maurer said.
Dr. Buehler developed a blueprint for how to make MMI a better resource for the state. “We wanted to bring genetics over to MMI, and we wanted to make MMI part of the educational model on campus,” he said. “The other thing we wanted to do was to take our programs to the rest of the state. We needed to do some windshield time.”
As more genetics faculty were recruited, the number of clinics in Greater Nebraska began to climb. Today, UNMC pediatricians and MMI geneticists travel weekly to see thousands of special needs patients in four Nebraska cities – Grand Island, Hastings, Kearney and Scottsbluff – as well as two South Dakota cities – Rapid City and Pierre.
Thanks in large part to the financial support of the Hattie B. Munroe Foundation, MMI has been able to realize tremendous growth with Dr. Buehler at the helm. MMI has experienced $21 million in construction of building additions – all without any state funds. Annual clinical revenues now exceed $8.5 million, and with 45,000 patient visits in 2006, MMI has become one of the largest clinical genetics programs in the country.
“Of all the things that have happened, the thing I’m most proud of is that we’ve brought services to Nebraska, so that now there is no reason for any person with special needs to have to leave the state,” he said. “It’s been a team effort involving schools, government, the foundation and UNMC administration. They’ve given me the resources to allow me to go out and recruit superb people, and then I just try to get out of their way.”
For more than 20 years, Dr. Buehler has been a fixture as a health resource for KMTV, Channel 3, in Omaha. Over the years, he has appeared on a regular basis each week on mid-day and evening newscasts providing his expertise on a wide variety of health topics. Currently, Dr. Buehler can be seen on Tuesdays and Fridays on KMTV. His segment airs around 12:20 p.m. He squeezes in six phone calls from viewers over the course of five minutes.
Dr. Buehler earned his undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Florida. He did his pediatric internship at the University of Chicago School of Medicine and his fellowship in pediatrics and genetics at the University of Florida. From 1971 to 1974, he was a senior flight surgeon in the U.S. Air Force. Prior to coming to UNMC in 1981, he served four years on the faculty of the University of Utah College of Medicine.
His research and educational activities include nearly 100 articles, chapters or abstracts in scientific journals and more than 170 presentations at scientific meetings. He served as president of the American Association of University Affiliated Programs in 1995. He has earned multiple teaching awards at UNMC as well as the Outstanding Achievement Award from the College of Medicine in 1996. He continues to serve as editor of the journal, Pediatric Annals.
Dr. Buehler will continue to teach and see patients. “My health is the best it has been in 15 years,” he said. “I love to teach. I try to communicate in words that people understand, and I try to teach all our medical students to do this. Sometimes I think physicians can talk to people and come across like we’re from outer space.
“Now, I just need to go get some gas in my car, so I can keep driving out state.”
UNMC is the only public health science center in the state. Its educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution. Through its commitment to education, research, patient care and outreach, UNMC has established itself as one of the country’s leading centers in cancer, transplantation biology, bioterrorism preparedness, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, genetics, biomedical technology and ophthalmology. UNMC’s research funding from external sources is now nearly $80 million annually and has resulted in the creation of more than 2,400 highly skilled jobs in the state. UNMC’s physician practice group, UNMC Physicians, includes more than 460 physicians in 50 specialties and subspecialties. They practice primarily in The Nebraska Medical Center, UNMC’s teaching hospital. For more information, go to UNMC’s Web site at www.unmc.edu.