Stephen Smith, a stickler for quality, is Gold U winner

Stunned — that’s how Stephen Smith described his reaction when he found out he won the April Gold U Award.

Smith has been with UNMC for 24 years as an information specialist and help-desk analyst. He since has transitioned to an instructional technologist position, where he’s worked with the HEROES program for the last 15 years.

HEROES — short for Healthcare and Emergency Responder Organization Education through Simulation — is a program that provides emergency preparedness training and education for health care providers and students from Omaha to Scottsbluff and around the globe.

While the ultimate hope of the program is for the trainees never to have to put into practice what they’ve been taught, “if they do encounter such a situation, they have had exposure to best practices and know of a dependable resource for any just-in-time training they may need,” Smith said.

A problem solver and a stickler for quality work, Smith routinely delivers more than he’s asked, colleagues say, whether that’s through instructional resources or assisting with hands-on education. 

Smith has worked with key partners, ranging from the UNMC College of Allied Health Professions to the United States Air Force. His instructional media resources are used by national groups that include the U.S. State Department. 

“Stephen is an essential element of what has made HEROES a national and international asset,” one nominator said.

Smith said the HEROES team is a great group of people with whom to work. The variety of content they work on means he’s never going to run out of projects to develop, he said.

Although Smith said it meant a lot to know his work was valued and to receive the Gold U, “I couldn’t do any of what I do without those other people on the team.”