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Jacki Kment was destined to be a healer. Having grown up in a broken home, she spent her last two years of high school in foster care. One thing that never wavered was her interest in medicine. At an early age she wanted to be either a veterinarian or a medical doctor, a high school science teacher or a counselor. As she prepared to graduate from Sutton High School, she enrolled in the Surgical Technology program at Southeast Community College to start her career journey in the medical profession.

“Earning a diploma in Surgical Technology from SCC opened my eyes to the vast opportunities in medicine,” Kment said. “It gave me a taste of medicine and stirred my interest to pursue an advanced degree. I would say it was the doorway that led me to pursue my passion for medicine.”

Kment earned her diploma in Surgical Technology in 1988 and worked as a Certified Surgical Technologist at St. Elizabeth Regional Medical Center in Lincoln. She continued her education by earning an Associate of Arts degree from Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa; a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Osteopathic Medicine and Health Sciences in Des Moines, Iowa; and a Master of Science degree in Physician Assistant Studies with a Dermatology Specialization from the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

Spending the last 30 years as a practicing PA, she was awarded a National Health Service Corps Scholarship and served the first three years of her PA career in a health professional shortage area. Kment started her PA practice in 1994 on the Omaha Indian Reservation in Macy, Nebraska.

“Pursuing a career as a physician assistant was exactly what I needed to fulfill my interest in medicine and my desire to educate and counsel patients,” she said. “This career path also allowed me to put myself through school without incurring the enormous debt of becoming a physician.”

In 1997, Kment moved to Lincoln to work at Sutton Ryan Dermatology. She spent 20 years working with Drs. Margaret Sutton and Robyn Ryan when it was made clear to her God had a different plan for her. As a result, she opened Integrity Dermatology in 2018, which is a direct-pay, insurance-free, fee-for-service practice model. A direct-pay clinic requires patients to pay for office visits and procedure fees on the day of the appointment. This fresh, innovative approach is rapidly growing across the U.S., providing more cost-effective and personalized care.

“Not participating with insurance companies enables us to significantly reduce the cost of doing business, passing these savings on to our patients,” Kment explained. “Integrity Dermatology strives to provide exceptional healthcare, quality time with our patients, and lower office visits and procedure fees. We are blessed to have pioneered the direct-pay dermatology practice model in Nebraska.”

As a medical provider owning her own business, Kment loves spending time with her husband and their two teenage sons when she has free time. She is a big fan of their sporting events. If she could give her sons a piece of advice, it would be to dream big.

“Believe in yourself and your ability to overcome adversity to achieve your dreams,” Kment said. “It will not be easy and will take a lot of hard work, but the rewards are priceless. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that coming from a broken home, being a foster child during my last two years of high school and putting myself through college, I would earn a master’s degree, become a PA, and own and operate a dermatology clinic. Dreams do come true!”

Jennifer Snyder
Communications Specialist
402-323-3393
jsnyder@southeast.edu