Biographical Feature: John Matsen, M.D.

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There are mentors, and then there are individuals who catapult the careers of others. There are ideologues, and then there are the rare few who shape their visions into something spectacularly innovative. Finally, there are teachers, researchers, and clinical microbiologists among us, but John Matsen, M.D., is so accomplished as to stand out among his peers on all levels against which we measure excellence.

John Matsen was born on 7 February 1933 in Salt Lake City, UT. During his teenage years, the family moved to Los Angeles, CA, where he attended high school from 1948 to 1951. Following high school, he lived in Norway for 3 years. When he returned to the United States, he attended Brigham Young University in Provo, UT, as well as the University of California in Los Angeles and UC Berkeley as a premed major. He received his doctor of medicine degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1963, and he stayed in Los Angeles for his internship and residency in pediatrics at the UCLA Medical Center and Harbor General Hospital. Following residency, John moved to Minneapolis, MN, where he completed a 2-year postdoctoral fellowship in infectious diseases in the Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota. The fellowship afforded him the opportunity to do a special 4-month fellowship in clinical microbiology at the University of Washington School of Medicine under the mentorship of another remarkable Microbiologist, John C. Sherris, M.D. Dr. Paul Quie, a colleague, mentor, and lifelong friend of John Matsen, writes of their time together in Minnesota, “John had a genius for organization which soon led to leadership for the Division of Diagnostic Microbiology in the Department of Pathology. The division thrived where his work ethic, contributions, and leadership in both pediatrics and pathology led to rapid promotion.” Amazingly, in the span of just 6 years, John not only became the director of the diagnostic microbiology laboratories in the Department of Laboratory Medicine at the University of Minnesota but also was promoted to the academic rank of professor in the Departments of Laboratory Medicine, Pathology, Pediatrics, and Microbiology.

John's long and impactful career in Utah began in 1974, when he was recruited to the University of Utah School of Medicine as a professor of pathology and pediatrics, an appointment that he held through 1999, when he became emeritus professor, his current title. He served as director of the clinical microbiology laboratories until 1993, at which time this author, who was fortunate enough to have been mentored by him for 3 years as his associate director, assumed that role. How fortunate I was to have had the opportunity to stay on following my clinical microbiology fellowship under his guidance and that of Larry Reimer, M.D., the CPEP fellowship program director at that time!

During John's earlier tenure at the University of Utah, he wore many hats. He was director of the clinical laboratories in the Department of Pathology from 1974 to 1978 and the head of the Division of Clinical Pathology from 1976 to 1978. He also served as the associate dean for academic affairs from 1979 to 1981. He was acting chairman and then chairman of the Department of Pathology at the University of Utah School of Medicine from 1982 to 1993. As if not busy enough, John was one of the founders of Associated Regional and University Pathologists, Inc. (ARUP Laboratories, Inc.), in 1984, and he served as its president and chief executive officer until 1993 and as chair of ARUP's board of directors from 1993 to 1999. John's vision of an offsite combined hospital-reference laboratory that would maintain an academic focus yet provide revenue for self-sustenance was visionary and revolutionary and not without strong critics. Larry Reimer, M.D., writes, “I became a faculty member at the University of Utah about 9 months before ARUP opened, and was present during many discussions about whether or not it should happen. John was by far the most important individual in making it a reality. Without his perseverance, it probably wouldn't have happened. Most important to his vision of ARUP was that it would not just be a reference lab, but that it would be a resource utilizing the expertise of excellent clinicians and scientists to not only provide lab results, but the highest possible interpretive expertise to accompany those results.” Today, this clinical reference laboratory serves clients in 50 states and has over 2,700 employees. It continues to provide funding for the University of Utah and to mentor the next generations of pathology residents and fellows.

During his tenure as chairman of the Department of Pathology and as clinical laboratory director, John shaped many careers, instilling not only a love of clinical microbiology but also a passion for research in those whom he trained. Dave Welch, Ph.D., comments, “When I arrived as a new clinical microbiology fellow at the University of Utah in 1979, little did I know that I was about to become the recipient of much more than training in diagnostic microbiology. Not only did I come away with a treasure of knowledge and practical experience, but the depth and quality of experiences were features uniquely attributable to the leadership of Dr. Matsen. At that time, the pipeline of extended spectrum cephalosporins was flowing strong, and as an established investigator with pharmaceutical companies, John received numerous requests to perform preclinical in vitro studies. I remember participating in research on, among others, the agent that eventually became cefotaxime, with work on all of which was usually done under the pressure of meeting an ICAAC abstract deadline. Over the subsequent years as I have made new professional acquaintances, I have come to expect that many who know John professionally are likely to express a highly positive thought. Some that I have heard include ‘So you were a protégé of John Matsen' and ‘John Matsen is larger than life.'” In agreement with these comments are a long list of fellows and colleagues. Judy Daly, Ph.D., and Larry Reimer, M.D., both note that John continued to mentor them in their junior faculty positions even when his administrative responsibilities grew. He always had time to share his counsel, and he inspired all of his mentees to advance the field of clinical microbiology. John delighted in the successes of his fellows and junior faculty; he promoted them and encouraged their participation on professional society committees both by example and through his network of colleagues. John ensured the continued success of ARUP by mentoring many of its future leaders, such as Ron Weiss, M.D. Ron writes, “His encouragement and coaching led me down a path I had not envisioned when I began my residency. He supported me as a young faculty member in the department, including the 2 years I spent, while a full-time faculty member, gaining an MBA degree from the university's executive MBA program. He then afforded me numerous management and leadership opportunities within ARUP Laboratories. These have enriched my personal development, my perspective, and my career immeasurably. I would not have accomplished this without his mentorship.”

It was such a delight for John to publish with his fellows and junior faculty. He has published more than 216 scientific articles and book chapters. A powerful and gifted speaker, he did not hesitate to coach or to compliment his protégés. Another remarkable talent was John's ability to remember the names of the spouses of his fellows and faculty and to always go out of his way to make them feel comfortable at departmental events. My husband still remarks upon John's kindness on such occasions. Finally, no story about John would be complete without sharing his talent for “power-napping.” He occasionally would “nod off” during a resident or fellow presentation, only to wake up at the end and, incredibly, ask the most erudite question about the presentation.

John's leadership and the respect that others had for him were, as Larry Reimer states, profound. He contributed immensely to the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) as a lecturer and as an editor of Journal of Clinical Microbiology and, through this visibility, on various committees. For his contributions to the advancement of clinical microbiology research and the field of clinical microbiology as an educator, a scientist, and a laboratorian, he received the Becton, Dickinson Award and the bioMérieux Sonnenwirth Award in 1988 and 1993, respectively. In 2001, John received the prestigious Honorary Member Award from ASM, and in 2007, he was once again honored by ASM for his outstanding contributions to the professional recognition of clinical microbiology/immunology, through the Trek Diagnostic ABMM/ABMLI Professional Recognition Award. He is also a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology.

Although strictly speaking, John was not a pathologist by training, he did serve a 2-year term as president of the Association of Pathology Chairs. He was very active in pathology education and in establishing performance guidelines for the practice of clinical microbiology through committee participation and leadership roles in such organizations as the Academy of Clinical Laboratory Physicians and Scientists (ACLPS), the American Society of Clinical Pathology (ASCP), and the College of American Pathologists (CAP). Each of these organizations likewise bestowed upon him some of their highest honors, including the Gerald T. Evans Award from ACLPS for outstanding contributions to the field of laboratory medicine, the Distinguished Service Award from ASCP for outstanding contributions to education in 1993, and, from the same society, the Ward Burdick Award for distinguished service to Clinical Pathology in 2006.

The professional society committees on which John participated both as a member and as an officer or chairman are too numerous to list in their entirety. In addition to the societies mentioned above, others in which he served include the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards, the Thrasher Research Fund executive committee, the Association of Academic Health Centers, and the National Academy of Sciences/Institute of Medicine Medicare Payment for Clinical Laboratory Services, as highlights.

In 1993, John became the senior vice president for health sciences at the University of Utah, a position he held for 5 years. This position required oversight for the School of Medicine, the Colleges of Health, Nursing, and Pharmacy, and university hospitals and clinics, including ARUP. John's service to the university and his efforts to advance excellence in clinical and laboratory medicine in the state of Utah have been acknowledged in several ways. He received an honorary doctor of science degree from the University of Utah. The Utah Medical Association bestowed its Distinguished Service award upon him on at least two occasions. Most recently, the University of Utah has established the John M. Matsen, M.D., Presidential Endowed Chair of Pathology in his honor. Perhaps the most significant encapsulation of John's remarkable career is the anecdote submitted by Paul Quie, M.D., recounting an interaction with Governor Jon Huntsman, whom he met when the governor visited the University of Minnesota on 22 April 2014 as a guest lecturer. The governor's response when they met was “You are a colleague of John Matsen? Wow! You know that Dr. Matsen is responsible in a major way for the high standard of health care in the entire state of Utah!”

As remarkable as his career has been, John has had an equally rich personal life. Fifty-four years ago, he had the best fortune possible when he married the remarkable Joneen Johnson. Together, they raised 10 children and have 29 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. John especially enjoyed riding dirt bikes and spending time at his Jigsaw ranch in Huntsville, UT, with family and colleagues. In his retirement, he has remained active in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints by serving on missionary medical service-related committees such as the Public Health Committee and the Missionary Security and Safety Committee.

In summary, it is difficult to honor someone whose career spans decades of significant contributions to clinical microbiology and the practice of laboratory medicine in so few pages. Dr. John Matsen's legacy lives on through his many remarkable accomplishments, through the reference laboratory that he pioneered, and most of all through the generations of clinical microbiologists that he mentored and enlightened. So, we honor him, and as he so often warmly saluted us, we would like to say “Hello, my friend.”

The sources of information for this biographical feature were Harry Hill, M.D., Larry Reimer, M.D., Judy Daly, Ph.D., David Welch, Ph.D., Paul Quie, M.D., John Matsen, M.D., and Joneen Matsen.