Robert Bartlett Death and Obituary – Robert H. Bartlett, M.D., an esteemed emeritus surgeon at Michigan Medicine and professor at the University of Michigan Medical School, passed away on October 20, 2025, after a long illness. He was 86. Bartlett’s remarkable career spanned decades of groundbreaking research, surgical innovation, and mentorship that transformed critical care medicine worldwide.
Born at University Hospital in Ann Arbor, Bartlett was the eldest of four children in a family deeply rooted in medicine; his father was a surgical resident at the University of Michigan at the time. The family soon moved to Akron, Ohio, but Bartlett returned to Michigan for higher education, earning his undergraduate degree at Albion College and his medical degree at U-M, graduating cum laude in 1963. Determined to follow in his father’s footsteps, he trained in general and thoracic surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and pursued research in an academic surgery program at Harvard Medical School from 1966 to 1970.
Bartlett began his academic career at the University of California, Irvine, in 1970, where he advanced research into extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a technology designed to support failing hearts and lungs outside the body. In 1976, his team made history by successfully using ECMO on a newborn patient, Baby Esperanza, who had suffered lung damage from meconium aspiration syndrome. After three days on the machine, she recovered fully—a milestone that marked the beginning of ECMO’s life-saving legacy.
In 1980, Bartlett returned to the University of Michigan, where he continued refining ECMO technology, explored artificial organs, and helped prolong the viability of transplantable organs. He led the development of U-M’s Extracorporeal Life Support (ECLS) laboratory and co-founded the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO), which now supports hospitals worldwide in ECMO use. His research and innovation directly influenced the care of more than 261,000 critically ill patients globally, with ECMO saving countless lives, including during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Over his career, Bartlett published nearly 600 papers, held multiple patents, and won continuous funding from the National Institutes of Health for over 50 years. His leadership extended to U-M’s surgical divisions, including roles as chief of general surgery, director of the Surgical ICU, and chief of Trauma/Critical Care. Beyond his professional achievements, colleagues remember Bartlett for his boundless curiosity, optimism, and mentorship. Justin Dimick, M.D., chair of U-M’s Department of Surgery, described him as someone who inspired generations of students and researchers while remaining deeply engaged in life and science.
Bartlett was also a devoted musician, author of two novels, and a passionate hockey fan. He co-founded the Life Sciences Orchestra at U-M and remained active in Ann Arbor’s community band, the Ann Arbor Civic Band.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Robert M. Bartlett and Elizabeth Bartlett, and his sister, Jeannie Bonnell. He is survived by his wife, Wanda Bartlett; his children, Karl, Keith, and Karen Fischer; his siblings Bruce and Beth Bartlett; his grandchildren Sam, Helen, Jason, and Samantha; and an extended family of nieces, nephews, and grandnieces and nephews.
Robert H. Bartlett’s legacy lives on in the patients he saved, the innovations he pioneered, and the countless lives he touched through mentorship and leadership. His contributions continue to shape the future of medicine, ensuring that his impact will be felt for generations to come.