The University of Nebraska System today announced a new podcast series, hosted by President Jeffrey Gold, in which he holds conversations with researchers, students and educators across NU’s four campuses who are changing lives and making an impact.
The “Heart to Heart” podcast—which nods to Gold’s background as a heart surgeon—kicks off with an , the David B. and Nancy K. Lederer Professor of Engineering at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.
Farritor discusses innovation, creativity and Virtual Incision, a company that he co-founded. He is working to transform abdominal surgeries with a miniaturized, first-of-its-kind surgical robot, MIRA—which was tested on the International Space Station earlier this year, where it completed its first surgery demo in zero gravity.
Not only could MIRA impact surgical care in space, it could be applied in places that don’t have surgical specialists—such as on the battlefield or in hospitals located in rural areas.
“In Nebraska, some local hospitals have a general surgeon, but the difficult cases get sent to Lincoln or Omaha to work with a specialist,” Farritor says in the interview.
“What if instead, you could have that specialist dial into a community hospital or critical access hospital and perform the surgery in partnership with a local surgeon? That could have huge benefits for people in rural Nebraska.”
Gold noted that university faculty like Farritor are at the forefront in critical fields, including agriculture, engineering, early childhood education, national defense, and cancer research and care. Farritor and others like him are changing the conversation in their areas of expertise. The "Heart to Heart" podcast will provide Nebraskans a chance to hear directly from these faculty members, as well as from staff and students.
"The teaching and research efforts at the University of Nebraska are transformative," Gold said. "We are proud to share the stories of our colleagues who are educating the next generation, strengthening our communities, and addressing the significant challenges of our era."
New episodes of “Heart to Heart” will be released monthly and will feature faculty, staff and students from the University of Nebraska at Kearney, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Nebraska Medical Center and University of Nebraska at Omaha. Topics will include athletics, counterterrorism, agriculture, student success, healthcare, K-12 education and many others.
Listeners may follow the “Heart to Heart” podcast .