KUMC Convocation, August 17, 2004

Convocation Address Dean Barbara Atkinson, MD

Thank you, Dean Miller, and thank you for the close working relationship we have enjoyed over the past several years. I appreciate your counsel and leadership and I look forward to the many opportunities we will develop for all of the schools of the Medical Center to work together.

And, thank you, Irene, for your service and success at the hospital. I know we both share a belief that the hospital and the medical center will only be successful if we continue to work together as partners in progress. I look forward to doing just that.

First, let me say to Chancellor Hemenway, thank you for your confidence in me and for your continued support of this great institution. I pledge to you my best efforts to merit your trust and faith in me. I very much value your support and friendship.

Let me also say to the people of Kansas and the Kansas City region you deserve a Medical Center that reflects your values and priorities and one in which you can take great pride. I view our collective obligation to the citizens of Kansas as a covenant—one that I will continue to work hard to honor.

And to Dr. Hagen let me say this—there will be plenty of time for the tributes that you have rightfully earned – but for now I hope you can take pride in this: I am confident that we can all agree without dissent—the University of Kansas Medical Center is a better place because you were here. Please know that your legacy will endure, and I am grateful for the opportunity to serve with you. Your optimism is without equal. Your gregarious warmth and compassion inspire loyalty and foster friendships, your commitment to community builds bridges and creates productive relationships, and your commitment to God and country reflect the person and patriot we know and have grown to love. I am a better person for knowing you, and we are grateful for your leadership and service. I look forward to your continuing support for me, the Medical Center and the University of Kansas.

Let me also acknowledge my husband, Dr. Bill Atkinson, whose support and encouragement have made my current and future service possible. Without him, I certainly wouldn’t be here today. I’d also like to acknowledge my kids, George Atkinson and Julie McCollum, who are here today, and Nancy and Charles Perkins who are not here but who may be joining us soon. Thank you all for providing the joy in my life.

Medicine’s Corps of Discovery Puts Down Roots in Kansas
Two hundred years ago Lewis and Clark came to a site not far from where we are assembled today. With their Corps of Discovery they set out to explore and discover new horizons. In doing so, they literally put us on the map. One hundred years later a new Corps of Discovery would come to a place not far from here to put down roots for a new endeavor in exploration, innovation and discovery. The people of Kansas and their leaders created a Medical School and in doing so they put health care, education and research on the map in Kansas.

Now, one hundred years later as we begin our centennial celebration, we have the obligation to continue in this tradition to seek new frontiers in knowledge and to set our sights on new horizons of discovery and innovation. Lewis and Clark set out into a world unknown and were amazed by the opportunity they chronicled on their journey. It is now our duty to venture into the unknown—with an obligation to make new discoveries and convert those discoveries into knowledge for the benefit of the people of our state, nation and world.

Opportunities to Explore New Frontiers in Medicine Burn Bright
The development of new understandings of the human genome and the emergence of gene-based medicine create bold new frontiers not even contemplated when I entered medical school. The opportunity to use this new knowledge to expand our understanding of medicine burns bright before us. It is now for us to muster our own Corps of Discovery and head into the wilderness. We owe our best efforts in this endeavor to the citizens who fund our work, to the patients who will benefit from it and to the doctors, nurses and allied health professionals who will apply this new knowledge to serve others.

This convergence of education and opportunity will be transformative—to the University and its laboratories, classrooms and curriculum—and to our communities and their economies. Our state and region’s success in navigating the new frontiers of medicine will depend on the extent to which we are successful in capturing the imagination of the citizens we serve. We must be accessible and connected to those who sponsor our journey because it is their shared passion for our work which will fuel the resolve needed to provide the resources necessary for us to achieve great things.

The compass points that will guide our journey going forward are the same ones that have pointed us in the right direction in the past. We will navigate by the values of integrity, accountability, perseverance and innovation. I consider myself privileged to have the opportunity to help lead this Medical Center during this time of transformation. I ask for your help and counsel as together we set out for these new horizons. With your best efforts and in partnership with many other friends, as well as the leadership team already in place, I am confident that one hundred years from now our successors will look back during the bicentennial of the Medical Center and with pride acknowledge that all of us worked together to keep this place on the map. I look forward to sharing the journey with you.