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Portraits of Hope

Malcolm T. Foster Jr., MD

Adjunct Professor, Department of Medicine
UF College of Medicine - Jacksonville

Guiding faculty and residents for three decades has been physician's 'dream job'

The physician credited with reviving the department of medicine at the University of Florida College of Medicine-Jacksonville more than three decades ago remains the go-to guy on campus for medical advice. Dr. Malcolm T. Foster Jr. presumes it is his easy-going manner and longevity that cause residents to faculty to chairs to quiz him about diagnoses and diseases. But it's his nearly half-century of experience that pretty much guarantees they'll get the right answers.

Foster, a professor in what is now the division of general internal medicine, was recruited from the University of Nebraska Medical Center, where he was acting chair of the department of internal medicine, to chair Jacksonville's fledgling department of internal medicine in 1976. At this time, Shands was still University Hospital and the UF Health Science Center was called Jacksonville Health Education Program. Under his leadership, the department's faculty grew from four to 61 and its advances in research and patient care rival those of most medical facilities worldwide. By the time he retired from chair in 1994 he had earned the deep respect of the medical community throughout Florida and beyond and decided to stay at UFCOM-Jacksonville to continue the work that is close to his heart.

Dr. Linda Edwards, an associate professor and chief, division of general internal medicine, and associate chair, department of medicine, formerly reported to Foster. Now it's the other way around. She affectionately calls him a doctor's doctor—a highly regarded physician other physicians choose for their own. "Dr. Foster recognizes the strengths that individuals have and encourages them to use them and develop them. He is just a great mentor!" she said. "He is not shy and no one is a stranger to him, from doctors to the parking garage attendants."

Ask anyone to describe Foster and you're likely to hear friendly, knowledgeable, fair, humble, dedicated, funny, kind, patient, devoted to family and big Gator fan. You're most certain to hear about his exceptional ability to connect with anyone at any level. "I'm an extrovert to start with and I'm interested in people," he said. Foster believes he inherited his empathy from his physician father who he called a great diagnostician. Hooked on caring and curing since he was 11 and his dad let him drive the car on house calls, Foster was determined to be just like him—even though the elder Foster encouraged his son to use his mathematical skills to become a nuclear scientist. In turn, Foster's oldest son, Malcolm III, followed him into the medical profession. The cardiologist often seeks Foster's medical opinion, as Foster did with his father until his death at age 84.

Foster's engaging personality extends to his patients and the more than 300 residents he trained during his 33 years at UFCOM-Jacksonville. He considers their successes the most satisfying part of his career. "I will live on through my trainees," he said. Through example, he taught them that a crucial part of healing involves taking time to ask patients such questions as what they think, do and eat and writing things down so they remember them. In appreciation, about half of his former residents stay in touch with him and a dozen of his previous chief residents attended a dinner early this year at Amelia Island where Foster was honored for his contributions to medicine. A scholarship fund to enhance residents' education has been established in his name by the University of Florida Foundation.

Despite his soft side, Foster has proven to be a tough administrator.

"Dr. Foster was recruited to this institution following a very difficult period. It took great courage and vision to accept," said Dr. Ronald Rhatigan, a professor in the department of pathology and laboratory medicine at UFCOM-Jacksonville who helped recruit him. "He essentially built the department from scratch and has always been noted as an excellent clinician, teacher and academician."

Assuming he would become a "good practicing physician" in his native North Carolina, Foster said he went into internal medicine because of his passion to solve problems and his participation in a physicians' diagnostic group during his second year residency. Trained to treat patients and diagnose diseases, not to manage complex organizations, Foster nevertheless excelled at overseeing multiple divisions with duties that involved developing a self-insurance program and supervising a pharmacy.

No stranger to the University of Florida, Foster completed his internship, residency and fellowship at the Gainesville campus from 1963 to 1967. Over the next decade he headed the infectious disease section of St. Louis City Hospital, served as assistant physician at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis and was vice chair, associate professor and director of graduate education at the University of Nebraska Medical Center before becoming acting chair there. Frequently during that time Dr. William B. Deal, former dean of the UF College of Medicine-Gainesville who has a boardroom on the Jacksonville campus named after him, tried to lure Foster to UF. "Finally he said, 'I have a job you won't turn down—chairman of medicine in Jacksonville," Foster recalled, conceding that Nebraska's cold winters factored in the decision to accept Deal's offer and move back to Florida.

"This has been a dream job for me. We developed good patient care and always had an excellent resident training program. The big thing was recruiting faculty and bringing us into the 21st Century of modern medicine," said Foster, noting that the quality of new faculty members kept getting better through the years.

Foster marvels at the changes to UFCOM-Jacksonville since his arrival in the mid-1970s. "People can go anywhere in the world and they come here," he said. "Jacksonville has seen a tremendous transformation and it's still happening. We've come from a decent city-county hospital to a major medical center. We're still a hospital of last resort for charity patients and we are offering more and more specialty services."

Since stepping down as internal medicine chair, Foster had also served as associate chair and a professor of the division of infectious diseases. As governor of the Florida Chapter of the American College of Physicians, he travels to Washington and Tallahassee to advocate for health care legislation. Treasurer of the Duval County Medical Society, Foster was a 2008 Jacksonville Business Journal Health Care Hero, a program that recognizes top medical professionals in Northeast Florida.

He is married to Patricia H. Foster, Ed.D., RN, an associate professor in the school of nursing at the University of North Florida. In addition to spending time with his wife, three children and seven grandchildren, Foster's favorite things to do include walking on the beach, boating, reading—and working. He is as enthusiastic about medicine today as he was when he graduated from medical school at Wake Forest University in 1963 and he has no plans to retire.

"How could I not be enthused?" he asked. "This is so much fun."

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