Originally published on March 04, 2025.
Mathew Rowley grew up never imagining he would work in healthcare. His journey through careers brought him to a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Southern Utah University.
Thinking he would become an architect, Mathew took a drafting class at West Jordan High School, but that failed to hold his interest. The study of international business utilizing his Portuguese language skills also seemed a good fit, but when he met and married Catherine (Adams), a native of Parowan, Utah, Mathew knew traveling internationally wasn’t for him.
Mathew’s cousins and uncle attended SUU, so he knew of the shining reputation of the University’s nursing program. Attending SUU while providing for his family and working full-time was incredibly hard, he says, “But I learned I could dig in and fulfill my dreams because I had the support I needed, not only at home but at school. My professors truly cared about me.”
Mathew highly respected Donna Lister, SUU nursing director, and her staff. “I was very impressed with (the program),” he says. “There was open communication across the board, and the curriculum was professional and applicable. I left SUU feeling confident in my field. My experience helped me gain the skills to think more critically as I care for patients at the hospital.”
The West Jordan native works for Intermountain Health at St. George Regional Hospital in the Cardiac Cath Lab as a member of the Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist Team. “We assist patients that are having heart attacks by finding the vessel that is blocked and opening it up with stents. We also put in pacemakers for patients' hearts that beat irregularly slow,” he says.
“What I love about my job is being able to see the benefits of our work almost immediately,” he adds. “We will have someone come in with excruciating pain because of their heart attack and in a very short time their pain is gone because we have opened the blocked artery. It's incredibly rewarding.”
Mathew says he enjoys serving his local church congregation, sports, the outdoors, and spending time with Catherine and their four children.
Tags: Nursing
