Dr. Robert Friedlander, longtime head of neurological surgery at UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh, has stepped down from his post, the hospital system confirmed Tuesday.

A UPMC spokesperson offered no additional details about Friedlander’s abrupt departure from his position, which he’s held since 2010.

Pitt referred TribLive to UPMC’s statement.

Dr. Edith Tzeng will hold Friedlander’s former job in an interim capacity.

Friedlander could not be reached for comment.

UPMC and Pitt appear to have scrubbed Friedlander from their websites within the last day, an unusual step following the departure of a prominent clinician.

Friedlander’s compensation from UPMC neared $1.8 million in 2023, making him the 20th highest paid employee in the organization.

The organizations gave no indication of an upcoming split. On Nov. 3, Pitt posted a video to social media where Friedlander spoke about coming to the U.S. from Venezuela as a young man to study at Harvard Medical School and his role mentoring neurosurgery residents.

“I consider myself extremely fortunate to be able to have this job and lead this amazing department,” Friedlander said in the video.

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