Welcoming our new ID fellows – Focus on Dr. McCreery

Randy McCreery MD, UNMC 1st Year ID fellow.

We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Randy McCreery as a new fellow in our Infectious Diseases program! Read on to learn a little more about him…

Tell us about the position you are starting

I’m starting an Infectious Diseases fellowship at UNMC.  Appropriately, the fellowship is weighted toward general infectious diseases but surprisingly, the second most common rotation we have is research.  There is also ample time spent on transplant infectious diseases and oncology infectious diseases.  We also have the option of a third year to focus on building a portfolio in preparation for a career in academic medicine.

Tell us about your background

I’m the first doctor in my family.  I was born in the California’s San Joaquin Valley and spent most of my life there.  My fondest memories growing up were travelling around the state playing (and winning of course) soccer, going deep into the Sierra Nevadas on camping and fishing trips and spending time at my grandfather’s ranch (now a peach farm that I’m excited to say should produce its first crop this year).

Why UNMC?

UNMC is packed with excellent ID physicians and you’re only as good as who you surround yourself with.  It’s also just a good hospital to work at; maybe that’s the way it is everywhere in the Midwest, but everyone is reasonable and approachable no matter what specialty they are in.  People talk to each other and work as a team to get the job done, and that’s the type of place you want to be at.  Omaha is also a great place to raise kids and I have 3 of them.

What about ID makes you excited?

There is so much about ID that makes me excited.  I think I like curing things and a lot of infections, unlike so many other diseases, can be cured.  Of those that can’t be cured, many of them can be well controlled and it’s very satisfying to help a person control something that is constantly lurching in the background, ready to strike at any time if given the chance.

Tell us something about yourself UNRELATED to medicine

I’ve named a place in the world.  It’s not an official place registered with the US Government, but if you zoom in on Google Maps, and follow the Kings River into the Sierra Nevada’s just east of Fresno, you’ll find a string of fishing holes that I’ve named.  The names for these places were given to me by my father, and given to him by an old man who had been going there since he was a kid.  Some may have different names for these places, but if you go to Google Maps and type in “The Rope Hole, Lakeshore, CA”, you’ll find one of the places where I first learned to fish.  Catching fish on that river as a boy, was where I first experienced the feeling of independence and that I might, one day, be able to make it in this world on my own.  I love that place….. and I think of it often.

Learn more about the UNMC Infectious Diseases Fellowship here.


 

1 comment

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.