Michael Bleich, Ph.D., has been named interim assistant dean of the Kearney Division of the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Nursing effective July 16. Dr. Bleich is currently president and chief executive officer of NursDynamics Consultation and Development, in Wildwood, Mo. The announcement was made by Juliann Sebastian, Ph.D., dean of the UNMC College of Nursing, who said a search for a new assistant dean is underway.
Dr. Bleich served as dean of the Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College, St. Louis, from 2012-2016 and prior to that served as dean of the School of Nursing at the Oregon Health Sciences University.
Earlier he was on faculty at the University of Kansas, Kansas University Medical Center from 1999-2008. At Kansas he was associate dean and professor, School of Nursing and chair and professor, Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine.
He also served as chief operating officer and chief executive officer of KU Health Partners, a nursing and allied health practice group. Dr. Bleich has had experience in Nebraska, having served as chief nursing officer at Bryan LGH Hospital in Lincoln from 1990-1996, and as an adjunct faculty member at the UNMC College of Nursing from 1992-1996.
“Dr. Bleich is an internationally known nursing leader whose vision and expertise will be a real asset to the College of Nursing Kearney Division while we complete the search for a permanent leader for that campus,” Dr. Sebastian said. “He has tremendous expertise in interprofessional collaboration and innovation in nursing that will help advance our strategic priorities. His work has been published widely in manuscripts and book chapters.”
“It will be an honor for me to support the vision of Dean Sebastian and work with the motivated faculty on the Kearney campus,” Dr. Bleich said. “Encouraging faculty and students to excel is precisely why I started my own business. So this interim appointment gives me that opportunity. I will enjoy renewing my Nebraska friendships during this engagement.”
Dr. Bleich has extensive teaching, consulting, and speaking experience at all levels of nursing education and is a nationally recognized speaker on nursing trends and issues. He also holds numerous awards and honors, including the 2011 Luther Christman Award from the American Assembly for Men in Nursing for his efforts in advancing the role of men in nursing. He was the only dean of nursing to serve on the Institute of Medicine Committee that issued its 2010 report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health.
Dr. Bleich earned a Ph.D. in human resource development from the University of Nebraska in 1998 and a master’s in public health in patient care administration/nursing from the University of Minnesota in 1987. In 1979, he earned his bachelor’s degree in nursing at Milton College in Milton, Wis.
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