Society of American Archivists and UNMC celebrate 250!

The Society of American Archivists (SAA) is leading a nationwide project to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. They asked archives across the country to submit one digital item that shows an important or meaningful moment in U.S. history. 

SAA invited archival repositories across the United States to submit one digital/digitized document that “showcases the nation’s rich, diverse, and challenging history through the materials we care for in our repositories. All submissions will be brought together on a single publicly accessible and searchable platform.” 

The McGoogan Health Sciences Library staff reviewed several historical images representing two key moments in UNMC history: 

• the early use of closed-circuit television (CCTV) for psychiatric care, and 

• UNMC and Nebraska Medicine’s response to COVID-19. 

After discussion and a staff vote, one image was selected for submission. 

Both events fit within SAA’s theme, Power of Place, which “focuses on items that bring the national story to life by capturing the essence of a consequential moment, issue, movement, or person from the nation’s past.” 

In April 1956, decades before telehealth, UNMC installed the first closed-circuit television (CCTV) system used in medical education. This system allowed doctors in Omaha to provide psychiatric care and consult with staff more than 100 miles away at Norfolk State Hospital. It improved access to care and helped some patients transition out of institutional settings. 

UNMC and Nebraska Medicine also played a major national role during the COVID-19 pandemic. They operated one of the country’s most advanced biocontainment units and were among the first to care for U.S. COVID-19 patients. Their teams treated evacuees from Wuhan, China, and passengers from the Diamond Princess cruise ship. 

Building on earlier work with Ebola and other high-risk diseases, they also helped launch early treatment trials and shared their expertise with hospitals across the country. 

The selected submission was a photograph of Dr. Cecil Wittson and a staff member adjusting early CCTV equipment at the Nebraska Psychiatric Institute. This image highlights UNMC’s long history of innovation and its impact on expanding access to care, an example of how local work can shape the broader national story. 

Other items considered included a brochure inviting patients to use the new 2-way CCTV between the Norfolk State Hospital and the Nebraska Psychiatric Institute, an early COVID-19 leadership email, a diagnostic testing kit, and innovations to reuse N-95 masks during shortages.