The University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) is a public center of health sciences research, patient care, and education located in Omaha, Nebraska, United States.
Founded as a private medical college in 1880, UNMC became part of the University of Nebraska System in 1902. Rapidly expanding in the early 20th century, the university founded a hospital, dental college, pharmacy college, and graduate college of medicine. One of Omaha's top employers, UNMC has an endowment valued at $641 million and an economic impact of $4.2 billion.
In 2016, UNMC was ranked 5th in the nation by U.S. News & World Report in the "Best Medical Schools: Primary Care" category.
History
A private medical college was established in Omaha in 1880. Renamed the Omaha Medical College the following year, it became part of the University of Nebraska system in 1902. A university hospital opened in 1917. In 1968, the University of Nebraska decided to bring all of the health sciences under one umbrella and formed the University of Nebraska Medical Center campus. In 1991, a technology transfer office was created, known as UNeMed. In 1997, the UNMC hospital merged with the nearby Clarkson Hospital to become what was later renamed Nebraska Medicine.
Academics and rankings
In 2015, UNMC's primary care program was ranked fourth of 153 medical schools, and its physician assistant program was ranked ninth by U.S. News & World Report. Other programs that also received a national ranking include the College of Public Health (39th); the College of Pharmacy (25th); and the physical therapy program (34th).
UNMC's commitment to research has resulted in the addition of the twin state-of-the-art Durham Research Towers and the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, opened in June of 2017. Currently extramural support is above the $89 million mark.
UNMC opened the $52.7 million Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education in 2008, thrusting the college of medicine to the forefront of medical education in the United States. The Sorrell Center replaced obsolete facilities with technologically equipped classrooms and class laboratories, including clinical simulation rooms, interaction rooms, amphitheaters and a campus events center. Construction of the Sorrell Center was funded completely through private donations.
In January 2007, UNMC added a College of Public Health to its academic enterprise. This college addresses a variety of issues facing Nebraska, including health promotion and disease prevention, environmental health and safety, health care delivery, and biosecurity and biopreparedness. In 2011, the Harold M. and Beverly Maurer Center for Public Health opened. This 52,500-square-foot (4,880Â m2) facility houses the college.
Also completed in recent years are:
- The Home Instead Center for Successful Aging. This two-level center increased clinical and translational research by establishing an appropriate environment for conducting clinical trials for Alzheimer's disease and other geriatric-specific disorders.
- The Center for Nursing Science. The 43,000-square-foot (4,000Â m2) building has enabled the college to enroll more nursing students, and prepare more nurse faculty.
- The Stanley M. Truhlsen Eye Institute, which opened in June 2013.
Colleges
- College of Medicine
- College of Dentistry - The dental college is located in Lincoln, Nebraska, on the East Campus of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
- College of Nursing
- College of Pharmacy
- College of Public Health
- College of Allied Health Professions
Global Center for Health Security
The University of Nebraska Medical Center created the Global Center for Health Security in 2017. The goal of the creation of the center is to transform and centralize "infectious disease response and biodefense research." Among the reasons behind the move were concerns about outbreaks of viruses, infectious diseases, and an environment where a biological terrorist attack is a possibility.
Among the specialties at the Medical Center are infectious diseases and biodefense research. The Board of Regents decided to coordinate those expertise under one center, and thereby created center. One example of the execution of these expertise was how the Medical Center's biocontainment unit treated patients who had the Ebola virus in 2014.
In 2016, "the university received a $19.8 million award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to develop a training and simulation center while also opening a monitoring facility for those exposed to infectious diseases," according to Homeland Preparedness News. The center is scheduled for completion in December 2018.
See also
- Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases
References
External links
- Official website
