As Chief Medical Officer for the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps, CAPT Bartholomew will provide leadership and guidance to the Medical Category. He will advise the Office of the Surgeon General and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on recruitment, assignment, deployment, retention, and career development of physicians. His vision is for the Medical Category to be an always-ready cadre of clinical and public health strength and acumen, protecting and improving the health of the people served; fully deployable to care for the sick, injured, underserved, or disadvantaged; and effective and efficient in response during periods of calm and at times of crisis.

CAPT Bartholomew is currently the Deputy Director of the Division of Recruitment and Retention at the Indian Health Service (IHS). He provides oversight to key IHS recruitment and retention initiatives and clinical workforce pipeline programs including the IHS Scholarship Program, IHS Loan Repayment Program, health professions recruitment, and IHS/Uniformed Services University-Medical Student Program. Previously, he was the Director of the Division of Health for Unaccompanied Children in the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) at the Administration for Children and Families. During his tenure at ORR, he led a team that delivered health services and managed public health response to infectious disease threats for up to 120,000 unaccompanied immigrant children (UC) annually.

CAPT Bartholomew started his clinical career as a general pediatrician at Tséhootsooí Medical Center and went on to serve in numerous leadership positions at IHS Headquarters. He has a proven record of working with the Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in Indian Country, having been awarded three AAP grants targeting oral health and childhood obesity, and served as the AAP Indian Health Special Interest Group Chair. CAPT Bartholomew commissioned as a JRCOSTEP and was assigned to the IHS Office of the Director.

CAPT Bartholomew was the co-chair of the Physician Professional Advisory Committee Awards Sub- Committee and served on many other awards boards (agency-specific and for the USPHS Commissioned Corps). As a dedicated mentor to junior officers, CAPT Bartholomew believes positive mentorship can profoundly impact a Public Health Service officer’s career, outlook, and longevity. CAPT Bartholomew’s recent deployments include the Southwest Border and COVID-19 missions. As an UC health subject matter expert, he supported Operations Apollo, Artemis, and Allies Welcome.

CAPT Bartholomew has a Doctor of Medicine and Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences. He is a board-certified pediatrician and AAP Fellow. He completed his applied epidemiology training with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer.

CAPT Bartholomew, an enrolled member of the Kiowa Tribe, is married to Dr. Margaret Bartholomew, a pediatrician in Bethesda, Maryland. They are outnumbered by three teenagers- Isla, Lachlan, and Harper- and two flat-coated retrievers. When not working or swimming, they enjoy returning to the Bartholomew family dairy farm in Vermont.