Third-year resident Matthew Kelly, MD, has been named the first Chief Resident since the UNMC Department of Psychiatry restarted its psychiatry residency program in 2020.
Dr. Kelly will begin his term on April 1. Daniel Gih, Department of Psychiatry Education Director, said Dr. Kelly was nominated by his peers, faculty and staff in the department. Dr. Gih was thrilled when Dr. Kelly agreed to take on the new task following a vote among the residents.
“It wasn’t a hard decision because I feel very invested in the program and I’m very grateful to be here,” Dr. Kelly said. “One, it was privilege to be considered for this role, and two, it’s a great opportunity to leave my own mark on the program.”
Dr. Kelly said one of his main goals as Chief Resident is to be a liaison between the 18 residents who will be in the program next year, and department leadership.
“I want to be an advocate,” he said. “I’m hoping to provide the resident perspective as we try and grow the program and get better each year. I think we are fortunate that leadership is so responsive to our needs, but it’s important to have a resident voice at the table. This is something that was missing in previous years as a result of this being a new program.”
One of his new responsibilities will be to represent the program at the Annual Chief Residents Leadership Conference in Armonk, New York, this June. Previously called the “Tarrytown meeting”, it will mark UNMC’s return to the national scene. This is the premier leadership training experience for incoming chief residents in psychiatry, and Dr. Kelly will get to interact with his peers from the United States and Canada.
Dr. Kelly is a Papillion native who graduated from the UNMC College of Medicine in 2015. After serving as an officer in the U.S. Navy, Dr. Kelly matched with UNMC in 2020. In 2021, Dr, Kelly was named Lasting Hope Recovery Center’s BHECN Resident of the Year for 2021.