David Paton (ophthalmologist)

David Paton (born August 16, 1930) is an American retired ophthalmologist best known as founder in 1970 of Project Orbis (now named Orbis International, Inc.) and thereafter as its first medical director helping to develop (1970–1982) and then deploy its teaching aircraft for ophthalmologists worldwide, especially in the developing nations.[1] Paton resigned from Orbis in 1987 and focused on other aspects of academic ophthalmology, but in 2011 he returned in a voluntary capacity to assist in fund raising for a new annual appointment, the David Paton Orbis Fellowship in Global Ophthalmology.[citation needed]

David Paton
Born (1930-08-16) August 16, 1930 (age 94)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
OccupationOphthalmologist, retired writer, memoirist
GenreNonfiction

Biography

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Paton was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in August 1930.[2] He is the son of a prominent ophthalmologist, Richard Townley Paton, founder in 1946 of the world's first eye bank.[3] His paternal grandfather, Stewart Paton MD was a neurologist and psychiatrist,[4] and his maternal grandfather, Frederic Hill Meserve was a self-made businessman, and the first great collector of photographs of Abraham Lincoln, Civil War leaders, and other notable persons of the nineteenth century.[5]

Paton is a graduate of Princeton University and The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine where he later served as a member of the faculty of the Wilmer Eye Institute. He is past chairman of The American Board of Ophthalmology, past first vice-president of The American Academy of Ophthalmology, and former chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at Baylor College of Medicine.[citation needed]

In 2011, one year after his granddaughter Cricket Paton was born, Paton self-published his memoir, Second Sight: Views from An Eye Doctor's Odyssey.[6]

Education and work

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Awards and honors

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Achievements

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  • Markle Scholar, Academic Medicine, 1967–72
  • American College of Surgeons, Fellow, 1965–
  • Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, dean, student admissions, 1967–70
  • American Board of Ophthalmology, chairman 1981-81
  • American Academy of Ophthalmology, secretary, continuing education, 1977–82
  • American Academy of Ophthalmology, first vice president, 1982
  • Project ORBIS, founder, medical director, 1968–87
  • As teacher, surgeon and/or medical administrator: a cumulative four years in developing countries.
  • Honorary member or honored guest of ten South American medical societies
  • Over time, numerous international and domestic board memberships of domestic and international NGOs

DSc honorary degrees

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Other honors

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  • Legion of Honor, France, Chevalier, 1988
  • Presidential Citizens Medal, US, 1987
  • Princeton Class of ’52, Distinguished Classmate Award, 1992
  • Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Distinguished Medical Alumnus Award, 2005

References

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  1. ^ History Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. ORBIS. Retrieved on 2012-08-11.
  2. ^ David Paton M.D. – One World Sight Project. Owsp.org. Retrieved on 2012-08-11.
  3. ^ Bronson, Nathaniel R (1984). "RICHARD TOWNLEY PATON, md". Trans Am Ophthalmol Soc. 82: 19–20. PMC 1298649.
  4. ^ Rogers, FB (May 1965). "Stewart Paton (1865-1942): Mental Hygienist". Am J Public Health Nations Health. 55 (5): 654–6. doi:10.2105/AJPH.55.5.654. PMC 1256292. PMID 14287833.
  5. ^ Meserve, Frederick Hill, 1865–1962, collector. Historical portraits: Guide. Oasis.lib.harvard.edu. Retrieved on 2012-08-11.
  6. ^ Paton, David (2011). Second Sight: Views From An Eye Doctor's Odyssey. CreateSpace.
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