Dr. R. Michael Scott, 82, passed away at his home in Mattapoisett, MA on August 4, 2023 with his beloved wife, Susan, at his side.
Dr. Scott served for many years as Neurosurgeon-in-Chief at Boston Children’s Hospital and as Professor of Neurosurgery at Harvard Medical School.
He carried out pioneering work on the neurosurgical treatment of stroke in children and was an internationally recognized authority on vascular malformations of the brain in pediatric patients.
He was born in Philadelphia as the oldest of four children and the son of Michael Scott, a neurosurgeon, and Catherine Fadde Scott, a child welfare nurse.
After his early schooling in the Philadelphia area, he graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Williams College in 1962 where he majored in English and he obtained his MD degree from Temple University School of Medicine in 1966 where he was Senior Class President.
After a Surgical Internship at Boston City Hospital and a two-year clinical research fellowship at the National Institute of Neurologic Diseases and Stroke, he began Neurosurgical residency training at Massachusetts General Hospital, completing his Chief Residency in 1973.
Dr. Scott began his academic Neurosurgical career at Tufts University Medical Center where he worked for 15 years, developing a specialty practice in Pediatric and Vascular neurosurgery. He then joined the faculty at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School where he became a full Professor and was appointed Neurosurgeon-in-Chief in 2004.
He received lifetime achievement awards from the Neurosurgical Society of America, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Joint Pediatric Section and The New England Neurosurgical Society.
A revered teacher, Dr. Scott received the Silen Lifetime Achievement in Mentoring Award from Harvard Medical School in recognition of his training and mentoring of countless residents and students of all levels of medical training. Throughout his career, he trained more than 25 fellows who themselves became leaders in Pediatric Neurosurgery throughout the country.
Mike had many interests outside of medicine including gardening, literature, opera, classical music, and cinema. Chief among them was his love of jazz and jazz piano-playing.
He headed a neurosurgical jazz quintet that played throughout the country for more than 20 years at neurosurgical meetings. He particularly enjoyed playing inventive jazz duets with an accomplished trumpet-playing friend, Jim Rose.
He is survived by his wife of 32 years, Susan Taylor Scott, whom he met when she was an operating room nurse at the New England Medical Center.
Mike treasured the many years they had together with long walks, theater, concerts, dinners and travels. Their Mattapoisett home was a beautiful quiet retreat where they could be alone together, garden together and enjoy the company of neighbors.
Through the years, with his brother, Dick and his wife, Mary, Mike and Susan enjoyed walking tours to Croatia, Sicily, England, France, and Italy. There were also memorable visits to Normandy and Northern Ireland with his siblings Dick, Bill, Judy, and their spouses. An annual month in Hawaii with Susan was a treasured respite in his post-retirement years.
Mike was a loving father to his three children, Elizabeth Tervo, Robert and David Scott and to his stepdaughter, Heather Bliss. He loved being with his five grandchildren: Paul, Lucy, Taylor, Isabella and Mae, whether taking one of them to a Red Sox or Bruins game or just hanging out with them playing board games, singing at the piano or gardening. He also shared his love of gardening with his daughter, Elizabeth, even though she lived on the West Coast, by trading photos of their prized plants and flowers. Like Mike, his sons Robert and David are accomplished musicians themselves, and when the trio got together, their jam sessions were spectacular.
Mike’s first wife, Catharine Sweeney Scott, pre-deceased him and he is survived by their three children; Elizabeth Tervo and her husband, Father Michael Tervo of Bellingham, WA; and by Robert Scott of Provincetown, MA and David Scott of Brooklyn, NY. He is also survived by his stepdaughter, Heather, and her husband, Greg Bliss of Hingham, MA.
Mike has three surviving siblings: Richard Scott and his wife, Mary, of Dedham, William Scott and his wife, Helene, of Indianapolis and Judith Scott and her husband, Don Stillman of Orcas Island, Washington.
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations in Dr. Scott’s memory be made to Temple University School of Medicine for benefit of the Catherine G. Scott Scholarship Fund or to The Southcoast VNA Hospice Program at www.southcoast.org/VNA.
Dr. Scott will forever be be the example for all physicians/ surgeons to model. He was brilliant but more importantly he was kind and compassionate. It was an honor to know him and a privilege to work with him. He will never be forgotten. I will cherish my memories and he will forever be in my heart.Michelle
Dr. Scott, a noble physician and a true gentleman . I have many fond memories of working with you at The Floating Hospital for children in the PICU.
There should be chapter in medical school books on your dedication and compassion to patients , families and staff.
My thoughts and prayers go out to the family especially Dr Andrew Scott , who know cares for my grandchildren .
Thank you for saving my life Dr. Scott I’ll never forget you. I was 8 years old when he did my surgery in Bostons Children’s Hospital. I always wanted to reach out and tell him how much of and impact be made in my life. Out of all the doctors I have had he was the best one hands down. He was caring and had a heart of love. He really cared for patients. You will forever be in our hearts and I’ll never forget when my mom found you on line with my elementary school principal. She called you and you said to her how did you find this number this is my personal phone. My mom says it was god when she found you to do my surgery. I had to get flown from Las Vegas, NV
at the time and you did 13 hours of surgery on me because we couldn’t fly back in forth for two operations.
My deepest condolences go’s out to the family. What a angel and a incredible neurosurgeon you were and how many people you touched and taught throughout your years of living. It’s so sad that you past away and how it was from something you would do surgery on. My grandma died in 1996 from Brian cancer and its so heart breaking. I’ll never forget you and I know your legacy will always be alive. I’m doing okay 30 now with a son who’s 2 years old will miss you ♥️
Dr. Scott was an amazing physician and I worked with him for many years on the inpatient NeuroSurg floor at Tuft’s. I have wonderful memories of working with him. He was highly skilled, caring and compassionate. He was held in high esteem by patients, families and the nursing staff. He was also a teacher and I feel most fortunate to have worked with him. My sympathy , thought and prayers to his family.
My husband and I both worked with Mike many years ago at New England Medical Center. He was a gifted and caring to say nothing of skilled surgeon. Those years working with him have always been and will always be a very special time for us Heather and David
I had the honor of working with Dr. Scott in the neurosurgery department at BCH, a brilliant mind and dedicated soul who touched countless lives through his exceptional work. His passion, wisdom, and contributions will forever be cherished and remembered by all those who had the privilege of knowing him. Dr. Scott’s legacy will continue to inspire future generations in the pursuit of knowledge and innovation. He will be deeply missed, but his impact will resonate for years to come. Our thoughts and condolences are with his family and friends during this difficult time.
Dr. Scott operated on both my children at BCH, as well as my niece and nephew and continued to consult with the family on the next generation of children with the same genetic malformation. He was incredibly skilled, compassionate, wise and personable. Much more than a dedicated doctor, he was a renaissance man of many interests and a fine gentleman. Condolences to his family.
Dr. Scott was one of the kindest, most caring people I’ve ever met–he just exuded gentle attentiveness, I’m sure to all his patients. But to our family, we had the chance to experience his care over three generations as he operated on both our young children and their cousins for a hereditary condition, consulted with my adult siblings, and then 35 years later in retirement consulted on our granddaughter’s surgery. Our daughter asked him to light one of the candles on her bat mitzvah cake. We held him in the greatest honor and affection and will always remember him as a great beneficence in our lives. Our deepest condolences to the family he so clearly cherished.
Dr Scott performed three lifesaving surgeries on our daughter in the 1990’s, when she was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor. He was a lovely man who possessed the gift of relaying devastating news to parents while conveying his genuine sense of caring and concern. We stayed in touch with him over the years, updating him on our daughters milestones and he always responded with kind and encouraging words. He reached out as recently as one month ago to consult with us on a new diagnosis she was recently given. We are forever in debt to him, To our family, “his soul shall be where the heroes are and his memory will shine like a shining star”.
Rest In Peace, Dr. Scott ♥️