Meet your instructors

Dr. Hotaling is an associate professor of surgery(urology) at the University of Utah and the Vice President of Research for Innovation. He established the clinical male infertility program at IVIRMA and in Utah and is the Director of the Men’s Health program which has grown 400% over the past four years. They have developed a model with 5 MDs, 4 APCs, 4 RNs, and a team of 5 patient care coordinators as well as a management team and multiple medical assistants for a total staff of 28. Dr. Hotaling has over 260 publications and has had over $12M in NIH funding to study men’s health and male infertility. He has also had multiple start-up companies related to men’s health and male infertility and has several patents. His work focuses on understanding how de novo mutations impact male infertility and its link to poor somatic health, in vitro gametogenesis, microfluidic sperm sorting, and the genetics of erectile dysfunction. He is the former president of the Society for the Study of Male Reproduction (SSMR) and an editor for Fertility & Sterility in addition to being the fellowship director for male infertility in Utah and the men’s health program director. He is also the Associate Vice President of Research for Innovation and Translation for the University of Utah.

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Alexander W. Pastuszak, MD, PhD, is a fellowship-trained urologist and Assistant Professor within the Division of Urology, Department of Surgery at University of Utah School of Medicine. Dr. Pastuszak earned his undergraduate degree at Yale University, New Haven, CT, and completed his MD and PhD at the University of California, San Francisco. He completed both his urology residency and a fellowship in male reproductive medicine and surgery with Drs. Larry I. Lipshultz and Dolores J. Lamb at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Pastuszak specializes in the treatment of male infertility, as well as both male and female sexual dysfunction. His clinical and basic science research focuses on men’s health, with his laboratory currently investigating the genetic factors that cause male infertility and Peyronie’s disease. His other professional interests include adult circumcision, benign prostatic hyperplasia, prostatitis, epididymitis/orchitis, and general urology. Dr. Pastuszak is also a respected educator, and received the prestigious Norton Rose Fulbright Faculty Excellence Award for Enduring Educational Materials in 2018.

John P. Smith, DO grew up in Orem, Utah and completed his undergraduate work at Utah Valley University, majoring in basic sciences. He then attended Medical School at the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine in Fort Worth, Texas. He then graduated from Family Practice Residency at Long Island Community Medical Center in Patchogue, New York. He completed a Genitourinary Medicine Fellowship at the Smith Institute for Urology in Lake Success, New York.

Dr. Smith is board-certified in Family Medicine and completed a Fellowship in Genitourinary Medicine. Dr. Smith brings a unique perspective to Urology with a goal to provide high quality, evidence based urologic care in a comfortable and compassionate environment. Dr Smith has been with the University of Utah Urology team since 2019 working with Men’s Health and General Urologic patients.

R Drew Durtschi, MD is a Genitourinary Specialist at the University of Utah. He specializes in General Urology and Men’s Health. He completed his Undergraduate at Weber State University in Ogden, UT. He has a Master’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. He attended Medical school at Drexel University and Residency at Abington – Jefferson Hosptial in Philadelphia, AP. He completed a fellowship in Genitourinary Medicine at the University of Utah and is very excited to have joined the faculty. He is a native of Utah and enjoys the outdoors and spending time with his family.

Kathryn (Kate) Trueheart, PA-C, grew up in Rochester, New York and attended Boston University where she completed an undergraduate degree in East Asian studies. From there she went to Berkeley, California, where she attended Meiji College of Oriental Medicine, earned a Master of Science in Oriental Medicine and became a licensed acupuncturist. After several years practicing acupuncture, she pursued training in conventional western medicine and became a Physician Assistant. Ms. Trueheart graduated from the University of Utah Physician Assistant Program in 2008.
Ms. Trueheart has worked in academic research, lectured at the University of Utah College of Nursing and College of Communications, done community outreach talks and created durable content for our Men’s Health APC Fellowship. Ms. Trueheart is a member of the American Urologic Association, the Sexual Medicine Society of North America and the American Academy of Physician Assistants.

Ms. Trueheart has been with the Division of Urology since 2011 and has been with Men’s Health since 2013. Men’s Health is a collaborative group of surgeons, non-operative physicians and advanced practice clinicians providing comprehensive care in male infertility, erectile and sexual dysfunction, scrotal contents pain, peyronie’s disease, hypogonadism and other disorders of male genitalia.

Laura Clafiln, DPN, APRN, is a Nurse Practitioner in men’s health at the University of Utah Health specializing in urology, infertility, erectile dysfunction, male hypogonadism, testicular pain, Peyronie’s disease, sexual medicine, and andrology.

In Laura’s practice, she treats each patient with the personal care they deserve to give the best experience possible. She strives to provide a safe environment for patients to feel comfortable discussing personal problems such as infertility, erectile dysfunction, or sexual health problems. She seeks to provide safe and compassionate care for her patients in an empathetic and relaxed setting.

Laura received her nursing degree from Utah Valley University in 2009. She went on to earn her Masters of Nursing Education in 2014 and taught at the University of Utah College of Nursing from 2014-2017. She completed her Doctorate of Nurse Practitioner from University of Utah in 2020 and went on to complete additional fellowship training at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.

Laura enjoys being active and loves outdoor activities including hiking, snow skiing, and water skiing. She is passionate about health and fitness and has taught group fitness classes in the community for several years. She loves traveling, her favorite countries she has visited include Peru, Croatia, Bali, and Thailand.

Chris Oliver DNP, APRN, FNP-C, is a Nurse Practitioner with University of Utah Health Men’s Health Clinics where he specializes in urology, including male infertility, erectile dysfunction, male hypogonadism, testicular pain, Peyronie’s disease, sexual medicine, andrology, and vasectomy.

His goal in working with patients is to provide excellent clinical care in a personable manner. Discussing personal problems such as infertility, erectile dysfunction, or sexual health problems can be very difficult; he seeks to provide compassionate care for these cases in an empathetic and relaxed setting.
He attended Weber State University where he received his bachelor’s degree in Nursing. After several years working as an Emergency Department registered nurse, he pursued his Doctorate degree at the University of Utah and graduated in 2020 with a Doctorate of Nursing Practice. Chris joined the University Health Care system in 2020 with a clinical emphasis in urology and men’s health.

Chris enjoys many outdoor activities including ski mountaineering, backcountry skiing, canyoneering, mountain biking, hiking, fishing, pack rafting, and whitewater rafting among many, many others.

Yashasvi Manektala, PA-C, is a Physician Assistant at University of Utah Health Men’s Health Clinic specializing in urology with a focus on men’s health, specifically men’s hormones and sexual function.
Yash’s clinical goal is to address patient concerns with compassion and realism and engage in shared decision making regarding the best treatment for each patient.

He completed a Bachelor of Science in kinesiology at Iowa State University where he assisted in research focusing on weight training and cardiovascular function. He then completed the Physician Assistant program at the University of Iowa where he was awarded the Rex Montgomery Scholarship as well as the Dennis R Oliver student recognition award. He was recently recognized as the winner of the 2023 Urology APC excellence award.

Yash has given presentations on Physician Assistant Interest in Men’s Health and Other Post-Graduate Sub-Specialty Training.