J. Robert Buchanan, M.D., 97, Led Major Academic Hospitals and Medical Schools
J. Robert Buchanan, M.D., who served as General Director of Massachusetts General Hospital, President of Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center in Chicago, and Dean of Cornell University Medical College (now Weill Cornell Medicine), died on December 22, 2025, in Evanston, Ill. He was 97.
Dr. Buchanan was born on March 8, 1928, in Newark, N.J., to John Hamilton Buchanan and Elsie Castles Buchanan. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology, cum laude, from Amherst College and a medical degree from Cornell University Medical College. He completed his residency and early faculty work at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center and rose through the school's administration in the 1960s, becoming associate dean and later dean.
In 1977, Dr. Buchanan was recruited to Chicago as president of Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center. He also served as a professor of medicine and associate dean at the University of Chicago's Pritzker School of Medicine.
From 1982 to 1994, he was general director of Massachusetts General Hospital, presiding over a period of institutional expansion and helping to lay the groundwork for the 1994 creation of Partners HealthCare, now Mass General Brigham. At the time of his death, he was general director emeritus of Massachusetts General Hospital.
Trained in endocrinology, Dr. Buchanan served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in Korea immediately after graduating from medical school. The experience sparked a lifelong interest in regional, national, and international health care education and delivery. He was a founding trustee of Aga Khan University in Pakistan, where he contributed to the development of its medical school and hospital system for more than three decades.
Dr. Buchanan also served state hospital associations and national medical organizations, including the Association of American Medical Colleges, the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, and the China Medical Board of New York, where he was chairman for more than a decade.
He received honorary degrees from Amherst College, Cornell University Medical College, Rush Medical School, and Peking Union Medical College in China. In the corporate sector, he served as a director of the Bank of New England, Charles River Laboratories, WorldCare, American Medical International, and i-Stat Corporation. After retiring from Massachusetts General Hospital, he served as chairman of i-Stat until the company was sold to Abbott Laboratories.
Dr. Buchanan was predeceased by his wife of 46 years, Susan Carver Buchanan, M.D., and by his daughter, Allyn Buchanan Risen. He is survived by his son, Ross Townsend Buchanan, and two granddaughters, Elise Van Ness Buchanan and Erin Carver Buchanan. Memorial contributions may be made to Aga Khan University, www.aku.edu, Amherst College, P.O. Box 5000, Amherst, MA 01002-5000, www.amherst.edu, Massachusetts General Hospital, 125 Nashua Street, Suite 540, Boston, MA 02114-1101, giving.massgeneral.org, the Michael Reese Health Trust, 200 W. Madison Street Suite 300 Chicago, Illinois 60606, www.wearemichaelreese.org and Weill Cornell Medicine, Office of External Affairs, P.O. Box 22497, New York, NY 10087-2497, give.weill.cornell.edu.
Interment private. Services will be held at a later date. Arrangements by Chicago Jewish Funerals - Skokie Chapel, 847.229.8822, www.cjfinfo.com
J. Robert Buchanan, M.D., who served as General Director of Massachusetts General Hospital, President of Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center in Chicago, and Dean of Cornell University Medical College (now Weill Cornell Medicine), died on December 22, 2025, in Evanston, Ill. He was 97.
Dr. Buchanan was born on March 8, 1928, in Newark, N.J., to John Hamilton Buchanan and Elsie Castles Buchanan. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology, cum laude, from Amherst College and a medical degree from Cornell University Medical College. He completed his residency and early faculty work at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center and rose through the school's administration in the 1960s, becoming associate dean and later dean.
In 1977, Dr. Buchanan was recruited to Chicago as president of Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center. He also served as a professor of medicine and associate dean at the University of Chicago's Pritzker School of Medicine.
From 1982 to 1994, he was general director of Massachusetts General Hospital, presiding over a period of institutional expansion and helping to lay the groundwork for the 1994 creation of Partners HealthCare, now Mass General Brigham. At the time of his death, he was general director emeritus of Massachusetts General Hospital.
Trained in endocrinology, Dr. Buchanan served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in Korea immediately after graduating from medical school. The experience sparked a lifelong interest in regional, national, and international health care education and delivery. He was a founding trustee of Aga Khan University in Pakistan, where he contributed to the development of its medical school and hospital system for more than three decades.
Dr. Buchanan also served state hospital associations and national medical organizations, including the Association of American Medical Colleges, the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, and the China Medical Board of New York, where he was chairman for more than a decade.
He received honorary degrees from Amherst College, Cornell University Medical College, Rush Medical School, and Peking Union Medical College in China. In the corporate sector, he served as a director of the Bank of New England, Charles River Laboratories, WorldCare, American Medical International, and i-Stat Corporation. After retiring from Massachusetts General Hospital, he served as chairman of i-Stat until the company was sold to Abbott Laboratories.
Dr. Buchanan was predeceased by his wife of 46 years, Susan Carver Buchanan, M.D., and by his daughter, Allyn Buchanan Risen. He is survived by his son, Ross Townsend Buchanan, and two granddaughters, Elise Van Ness Buchanan and Erin Carver Buchanan. Memorial contributions may be made to Aga Khan University, www.aku.edu, Amherst College, P.O. Box 5000, Amherst, MA 01002-5000, www.amherst.edu, Massachusetts General Hospital, 125 Nashua Street, Suite 540, Boston, MA 02114-1101, giving.massgeneral.org, the Michael Reese Health Trust, 200 W. Madison Street Suite 300 Chicago, Illinois 60606, www.wearemichaelreese.org and Weill Cornell Medicine, Office of External Affairs, P.O. Box 22497, New York, NY 10087-2497, give.weill.cornell.edu.
Interment private. Services will be held at a later date. Arrangements by Chicago Jewish Funerals - Skokie Chapel, 847.229.8822, www.cjfinfo.com
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