Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Dr. Ronald D. Miller

On Friday, October 3, 2025, the Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Care celebrated the life and lasting legacy of Dr. Ronald D. Miller at the UCSF Sandler Center auditorium. Dr. Michael Gropper, Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Anesthesia and Perioperative Care Department, began by welcoming Dr. Miller’s daughter, Shelley Miller Mitchell, CRNA, who shared personal stories and anecdotes. Throughout the rest of the afternoon, Drs. Judith Hellman, Myer Rosenthal, Neal Cohen, Merlin Larson, Jeanine Wiener-Kronish, Lars Eriksson, Manny Pardo, Romain Pirracchio, George Gregory, Dennis Fisher, and Marty Bogetz highlighted Dr. Miller’s unparallelled influence over the anesthesia specialty – across the globe.  

Some speeches focused on Dr. Miller’s research accomplishments, including his groundbreaking work with transfusion and neuromuscular blocking agents. Others discussed his time in Vietnam, where he served in the Naval Hospital in Da Nang, earning a Bronze Star with a Combat V for meritorious service. Other remembrances acknowledged his global impact with stories of how his life and work inspired others far beyond hospitals and operating rooms. His authorship of the most widely used textbook for anesthesia in the world (Miller’s Anesthesia) has featured UCSF faculty and enhanced our department’s international reputation. Drs. Pardo and Pirracchio shared how their work with Dr. Miller led to their own journeys of success at UCSF and beyond.  

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After the symposium, the group moved to the Sandler Center atrium for a reception, which, along with food and drinks, featured entertainment by a string trio to honor Dr. Miller’s lifelong love of music. Attendees continued to share stories, catch up, and be in community with one another. As Dr. Miller once said, “It’s still of prime importance to think big and dream.”

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Photography credit: MarcoSanchez.net