Robert received his MD from Dartmouth College in 1978, and completed a three-year residency in internal medicine at Cambridge Hospital in Massachusetts. He received an MS degree in human nutrition from Columbia University in 1975, and an MS in Traditional Chinese Medicine from SWAC/Santa Fe in 2007. He is both NCCAOM and ABIM certified. He has a lengthy practice in internal medicine, with over 20 years spent with the Indian Health Services in Arizona, and New Mexico, as well as being an emergency room, hospitalist, urgent care, and primary care provider in other facilities.