Matthew Messina, Associate Professor-Clinical
Dr. Matthew Messina is an Associate Professor-Clinical and Director of Ohio State's Upper Arlington Dental Clinic and Dental Oncology Clinic. He cares for patients whose needs include restorative and prosthetic dentistry, as well as cancer care. After graduating first in his class from the College of Dentistry in 1987, he completed a General Practice Residency and then established a private practice, serving as a general dentist in the Cleveland area for nearly 30 years.
Get to know Dr. Messina and learn about the path that led him to the dental profession, as well as his other pursuits that include serving as a national spokesperson for the American Dental Association and writing mystery novels!
Matthew Messina, DDS
- Question Where is your hometown, and what was it like growing up there?
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Answer
My hometown is Mentor, Ohio – an eastern suburb of Cleveland that’s near Lake Erie. Our town had the largest school system in Ohio, and my graduating class in 1979 was 953 people. It was a relatively quiet place with a neighborhood feel and people who supported the community.
- Question What was your favorite thing to do when you were a kid?
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Answer
I was an avid reader and loved baseball, but my favorite role was playing the trumpet in the school band and orchestra. In a huge high school like mine, being in the band gave you an identity and a family.
- Question When did you know you wanted to become a dentist?
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Answer
I knew I wanted to be a dentist in junior high school when I saw my orthodontist on a regular basis. He seemed to love his job and the great relationship he had with his staff and patients. Dentistry seemed like a fun job, and it was a way to make a difference and help people smile!
- Question What’s your best memory of being a dental student at Ohio State?
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Answer
I enjoyed being the president of Ohio State’s chapter of the American Student Dental Association (ASDA), and then serving on ASDA’s Board of Trustees. It was a great way to meet other dental students around the country, and it broadened my experiences and started me on a path to leadership in dental professional organizations. Another great memory was meeting Denise – a dental hygiene student in the College of Dentistry who has been my wife for 38 years!
- Question How did you become involved in dental communications? And what’s the most memorable interview you’ve ever done?
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Answer
Early in my career, I served on the American Dental Association (ADA) New Dentist Committee which advocates for dentists who’ve recently joined the profession. I was the committee chair for a year and made many presentations around the country at dental schools and state meetings. When my term as chair ended, the ADA asked me to join a new group of consumer advisors who would speak on behalf of dentistry. In that role I was given intense training from national public relations experts, and I’ve continued as an ADA spokesperson since 1995. As for memorable moments, one happened early in the COVID-19 pandemic. I was interviewed by the NBC Today Show about the safety of providing patient care in the dental setting. I said that “dental offices have excelled with infection control long before it was ‘cool.’ ” That interview got more than 49 million views and my quote was reprinted in a number of other news outlets. It showed the value and impact of proactive communications during the pandemic.
- Question Your mystery novel, “The Curse of Sekhem Ka,” has been described as a “clever, fast-paced thriller about a dentist and his adventures.” What made you write that novel? And do you plan to write more?
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Answer
I wrote that novel because dentists always seem to be portrayed as sadistic torturers or buffoons, so I decided to create a better story. And why can’t a dentist have great adventures? My other novel, “The Black Swan Event,” is in print now and I’m working on a third, “The Blue Star Conspiracy.” Each of the first two books took about 10 months to complete, so I’d better keep typing!
- Question What's a small gesture someone did for you that made a big impact on your life?
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Answer
One of my patients gave me some wonderful advice about being a novelist. He said to spend more time writing than editing. If you edit every paragraph, you may get a perfect chapter – but you’ll never finish the book. That’s great advice for writing and for life. My first novel has 98,000 words and they aren’t all perfect. But they tell a story that makes me proud. The same is true in our lives. Each minute or day may not be perfect, but I’m working to create a life that makes me happy and proud. That’s my goal.
- Question What’s the best thing about the work you do now as director of the Upper Arlington Dental Clinic and the Dental Oncology Clinic?
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Answer
One of the best things is the fact that my team and I are creating an environment where patients enjoy their visit to the dentist. We have laughter and smiles in the office every day, and I feel proud when our patients say they never expected to have fun while getting their dentistry done!
- Question What is your life motto?
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Answer
My professional motto is this: “If you make every decision based on what’s in the best interest of your patient, you will never go wrong.”