Remembering Dr. Myron Magen

February 15, 2008

The founding dean of the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (MSUCOM), Myron S. Magen, died at his home in East Lansing, Michigan, on February 13, 2008.  An innovative and distinguished educator, he led the privately funded Michigan College of Osteopathic Medicine in Pontiac to the campus of MSU, where it become the first osteopathic school to receive public support and the first to be part of a major university. For 25 years he nurtured and prodded the young school until it became a flagship college of the profession. He achieved global recognition, particularly for his strong emphasis on research, educational excellence, international health, and leadership development. After his retirement as dean in 1991, he served as dean emeritus and Walter F. Patenge Endowed Professor, and was known for his decisiveness, courage and eloquence.

“MSU and the osteopathic profession have lost a true visionary in Mike Magen,” said MSU President Lou Anna Simon. “As the founding dean of the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, Mike provided the strong leadership necessary to build a world-class medical education program. Throughout his life, he was a tireless advocate not only for osteopathic medicine, but for all of health care.”

“If not for Dr. Magen, MSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine, and the osteopathic profession as a whole, would not be held in the esteem it is today,” said MSU Provost Kim Wilcox. “It was through his leadership and courage that the college came into existence, and health care is the better for it.”

For the osteopathic profession, Dr. Magen broke down many barriers, particularly in establishing relationships with governmental agencies, the scientific community, and organizations abroad. He was a leader within the profession, serving as the chairman of the Bureau of Professional Education of the American Osteopathic Association, twice president of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, and fellow and president of the American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians.

He was the first osteopathic physician to become a member of the prestigious Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, and was appointed to numerous committees advisory to state and national government, including those for the governor of Michigan, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Human Resources Administration of the U.S. Public Health Service, the Veterans Administration, the Graduate Medical Education National Advisory Committee, and the Pew Health Professions Committee.

Dr. Magen received numerous awards and several honorary doctorates, including an honorary doctorate of science from MSU in 2004.  He was the author of many peer-reviewed publications and has made hundreds of presentations. Dr. Magen also has served on the board of directors of the Michigan Cancer Foundation, on working groups of the Michigan Heart Association, as a member of the National Fund for Medical Education.

Internationally, he formed working relationships for MSU and the osteopathic profession in Germany, Sweden, Czechoslovakia, Israel, Wales, Costa Rica, Nigeria, Ghana, Niger, Burkina Faso, Tanzania, Sudan, Kenya, Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Sierra Leone.

Dr. Magen, who had been in the private practice of pediatrics in Dallas, Texas,  Des Moines, Iowa,  and Wyandotte, Michigan, began his career as an educator as associate professor and chairman of pediatrics at the Still College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery in Des Moines (1958-62). From 1966-70, he served as the dean of the Michigan College of Osteopathic Medicine, the private college that would become MSUCOM, and moved with it to the MSU campus during 1970.

He received the D.O. degree from Still College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery in 1951, taking both his internship and pediatrics residency in Des Moines. He was board-certified in pediatrics in 1958. Dr. Magen also served in the U.S. Navy from 1944-45.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, the former Ruth Sherman, his three sons and their spouses, Jed Magen and Carol Barrett of Okemos, Michigan; Ned and Charlissa Magen of Soldotna, Alaska; and Randy Magen and Christine Chandler of Anchorage, Alaska, and eight grandchildren – Ben, Zach, Molly, Eli, Maurissa, Darryl, Hannah, and Noah.

Memorial services will be held at 3 p.m., Tuesday, February 19, at the University Club, 3435 Forest Road, Lansing. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the The Myron S. Magen Medical Education Fund (AS0018) in the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, A310 East Fee Hall, MSU, East Lansing, MI 48824-1316.

His family will miss his wit, charm, dedication, and fine wine.