Richard R. Miller Jr.'s two daughters, Patricia and Katrina, accept an award on his behalf from the Industry Division of AACC at the 2007 Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo in San Diego, California. 

It is with sadness and respect that we honor the life and accomplishments of Richard R. Miller, Jr.  Rick passed away on 7 July 2007 at age 63, and his loss will be felt by everyone in the clinical laboratory community. We all extend our deepest sympathy to his wife, Debra, and their three children, Christopher, Patricia, and Katrina. 

Rick received a BS degree in Physiological Chemistry from the Ohio State University in 1966. He began his career as a clinical chemist in a four-hospital complex. He then moved to the in vitro diagnostics (IVD) industry where he held several positions with Technicon (transitioning to Revlon and then Bayer), including Manager of Quality Systems, Manager for the Evaluation and Reference Laboratory, Principle Scientist for Calibration Systems, Manufacturing Manager, and Manager of Customer Complaints Investigation. He ended his career with Dade Behring where he was Quality Manager for the Stratus Product Line and Staff Scientist responsible for Metrology and Calibration Traceability in Production Systems.

Rick was an outstanding contributor to laboratory medicine and served the profession in many capacities over his career. He volunteered generously to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI), American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC), International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and Joint Committee for Traceability in Laboratory Medicine (JCTLM) to promote standardization and traceability of laboratory testing. He was a member of the CLSI, then NCCLS, Council for the National Reference System for the Clinical Laboratory; Area Committee for Clinical Chemistry and Toxicology; and chaired or participated in development of standards for quality control, electrolytes, traceability, uncertainty of measurement, and other aspects of laboratory practice. He was the AACC representative to JCTLM, a past-chair of the AACC Industry Division, and received the Industry Division’s Service Award for contributions to the profession this year. He was a member of the US Technical Advisory Group for ISO Technical Committee 212, Clinical laboratory testing and in vitro diagnostic test systems. Recently, Rick was instrumental in organizing and presenting several CLSI, AACC, and CLMA workshops to inform clinical laboratorians about industry’s approach to risk management for enhanced patient safety.

I have had the pleasure of working with Rick for many years on a number of standardization activities. I have come to respect his breadth of knowledge, balanced approach to consensus development, and emphasis on quality and practicality. Rick clearly articulated and championed the important role of the IVD industry in the practice of laboratory medicine. Rick truly went above and beyond in his dedication to clinical chemistry and could always be counted on to have a good idea or to bring helpful clarity to a complex discussion. I knew him as a colleague and a friend, and speak for the entire clinical laboratory profession in recognizing his contributions and our sadness at losing his wit and wisdom.

Respectfully submitted,

Greg Miller [ return to top ]