Meet Steve

When Dr. Steve Nelson ran into Pat Bird at an Intermountain Healthcare "Eggs and Issues" get together in 2008, he expressed interested in substance abuse prevention. Little did he know he'd be taking the reins at SMART a few years later. Steve currently serves as our vice chair, and will take over at the end of Don's term.

Steve is happy to enjoy a delicious free lunch once a month, but that's not why he shows up. He has a lot to offer the coalition. He says,“After 33+ years of medical practice as a family physician and now as an occupational medicine physician, I’ve been around the block a few times. I hope to use knowledge gained from experience on the “front lines” of dealing with drug seekers to help other physicians faced with similar patients.”

Steve grew up in Nevada, and moved around quite a bit throughout his medical training. He started out at BYU, then went to medical school at Brown in Rhode Island. His internship took him to California, where he served his residency at Ford Ord. It was in California that he met his wife, Linda. His greatest accomplishment has been talking her into marrying him (but did she know when she said yes that she was only going to get a one-day honeymoon?). They are the parents of five and grandparents of nine, and make their home in Lindon. Steve and Linda's connection goes back from before they met in California, however. His dad worked at Hoover Dam during the '30s, and it turns out Linda's dad did, too.

Among Steve's many interests are spending time with his family (especially out of doors), attending plays and concerts, and reading. He particularly enjoys American history, and recently read Lincoln's Virtues, by William Miller. He recommends it highly as an inspiring read. Steve also enjoys watching movies. A Man For All Seasons is one of his favorites.

What does the future hold for Steve (besides SMART)? He's already traveled to exotic locations (Haleakala Crater in Hawaii is one), and speaks both German and Spanish. Now he'd like to learn more about space exploration and has dreams of becoming the first octogenarian astronaut. That will be a few years from now. In the meantime, he might take up harmonica, or baritone ukulele. Coalition talent show, anyone?