Health
David Paton, Creator of Flying Eye Hospital, Dies at 94
David Paton, an idealistic and innovative ophthalmologist who started Project Orbis, converting a United Airlines jet into a flying hospital that took surgeons to developing countries to operate on patients and educate local doctors, died on April 3 at his home in Reno, Nev. He was 94.
His death was confirmed by his son, Townley.
The son of a prominent New York eye surgeon whose patients included the Shah of Iran and the financier J. Pierpont Morgan’s horse, Dr. Paton (pronounced PAY-ton) was teaching at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University in the early 1970s when he became discouraged by increasing cases of preventable blindness in far-flung places.
“More eye doctors were needed,” he wrote in his memoir, “Second Sight: Views from an Eye Doctor’s Odyssey” (2011), “but equally important was the need to beef up the existing doctors’ medical education.”
But how?
He considered shipping trunks of equipment — almost the way a circus would — but that presented logistical challenges. He pondered the possibility of using a medical ship like the one that Project Hope, a humanitarian group, sent around the world. That was too slow for him.
“Shortly after the first moon landing in 1969, thinking big was becoming a reality,” Dr. Paton wrote.
And then a moonshot idea struck him: “Could an aircraft be the answer? A large enough aircraft could be converted into an operating theater, a teaching classroom and all the necessary facilities.”
All he needed was a plane. He asked the military to donate one, but that was a nonstarter. He approached several universities for the money to buy one, but administrators turned him down, saying the idea wasn’t feasible.
“David was willing to take risks that others wouldn’t,” Bruce Spivey, the founding president of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, said in an interview. “He was charming. He was inspiring. And he didn’t quit.”
Dr. Paton decided to raise funds on his own. In 1973, he founded Project Orbis with a group of wealthy, well-connected society figures like the Texas oilman Leonard F. McCollum and Betsy Trippe Wainwright, the daughter of the Pan American World Airways founder Juan Trippe.
In 1980, Mr. Trippe helped persuade the United Airlines chief executive Edward Carlson to donate a DC-8 jet. The United States Agency for International Development contributed $1.25 million to convert the plane into a hospital with an operating room, recovery area and a classroom equipped with televisions, so local medical workers could watch surgeries.
Surgeons and nurses volunteered their services, agreeing to spend two to four weeks abroad. The first flight, in 1982, was to Panama. The plane then went to Peru, Jordan, Nepal and beyond. Mother Teresa once visited. So did the Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
In 1999, The Sunday Times of London’s magazine sent a reporter to Cuba to write about the plane, now known as the Flying Eye Hospital. One of the patients who arrived was a 14-year-old girl named Julia.
“In developed nations, Julia’s condition would have been little more than an irritation,” The Sunday Times article said. “It is almost certain she had uveitis, an inflammation inside the eye, which can be cleared with drops. In Britain, even cats are easily treated.”
Her doctor was Edward Holland, a prominent eye surgeon.
“Holland uses tiny knives to make openings that allow him to get his instruments into the eye, and soon he is pulling at Julia’s scar tissue,” The Sunday Times article said. “As the tissue is pulled away, a dark and liquid pupil, unseen for a decade, is revealed. It is an intimate and moving moment; this is medicine’s chamber music. Next, he breaks up and removes the cataract, and implants a lens so that the eye will keep its shape.”
The Cuban ophthalmologists watching in the viewing room applauded.
But after the surgery, Julia still couldn’t see.
“And then a minor miracle begins,” the article said. “As the swelling begins to go down, she makes discoveries about the world around her. Minute by minute she can see something new.”
David Paton was born on Aug. 16, 1930, in Baltimore, and grew up in Manhattan. His father, Richard Townley Paton, specialized in corneal transplants and founded the Eye-Bank for Sight Restoration. His mother, Helen (Meserve) Paton, was an interior designer.
In his memoir, he described growing up “among the fine, intellectually sharp, widely traveled persons of the Establishment.” His father practiced on Park Avenue. His mother threw parties at their home on the Upper East Side.
David attended the Hill School, a boarding school in Pottstown, Pa. There, he met James A. Baker III, a Texan who later became secretary of state for President George H.W. Bush. They were roommates at Princeton University and lifelong best friends.
“David came from a very privileged background, but he was down to earth and just a very likable guy,” Mr. Baker said in an interview. “He had his objectives in life straight. He was a hell of a lot better student than I was.”
After graduating from Princeton in 1952, David earned his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University. He worked in senior positions at the Wilmer Eye Institute and served as chairman of the ophthalmology department at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
In 1979, while still trying to procure a plane for Project Orbis, he became the medical director of the King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
“Among my duties,” he wrote in his memoir, “was providing eye care for many of the princes and princesses of the kingdom — about 5,000 of each, I was told — and it seemed that all of them insisted on being treated exclusively by the doctor in charge, no matter how minor their complaint.”
Dr. Paton’s marriages to Jane Sterling Treman and Jane Franke ended in divorce. He married Diane Johnston in 1985. She died in 2022.
In addition to his son, he is survived by two granddaughters.
Dr. Paton left his role as medical director of Project Orbis in 1987, after a dispute with the board of directors. That year, President Ronald Reagan awarded him the Presidential Citizens Medal.
Although his official connection with the organization had ended, he occasionally served as an informal adviser.
Now called Orbis International, the organization is on its third plane, an MD-10 donated by Federal Express.
From 2014 to 2023, Orbis performed more than 621,000 surgeries and procedures, according to its most recent annual report, and offered more than 424,000 training sessions to doctors, nurses and other providers.
“The plane is just such a unique venue,” Dr. Hunter Cherwek, the organization’s vice president of clinical services and technologies, said in an interview. “It was just an incredibly bold and visionary idea.”
Use left and right arrow keys to navigate between menu items.
Use escape to exit the menu.
Sign Up
Create a free account to access exclusive content, play games, solve puzzles, test your pop-culture knowledge and receive special offers.
Already have an account? Login
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Starting the morning on the right foot can pave the way for a successful day.
A new wellness trend focuses on the “5 to 9 before your 9 to 5,” which entails a healthy regimen between the hours of 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. before heading to work.
Behavioral scientist and happiness expert Arthur Brooks, professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Business School in Boston, has proven these benefits through his six-step morning protocol to live more positively.
THAT MORNING CUP OF COFFEE COULD BE THE KEY TO A HAPPIER DAY, NEW STUDY SUGGESTS
In an in-person interview with Fox News Digital, Brooks broke down each of the six steps that set him up for a productive day, which he says have “dramatically improved” his life.
“You need to be disciplined, and you need to structure your day, and it turns out that what you do first thing in the morning really matters a lot,” he said. “I follow [this] almost every day.”
Behavioral scientist and happiness expert Arthur Brooks joins Fox News Digital for an interview. (Angelica Stabile; Fox News Digital)
1. Wake up before dawn (4:30 a.m.)
Brooks said he was not a morning person for years, as he was a musician in his 20s who never woke up before sunrise and thought of himself as a “night owl.”
COFFEE CRAZE HITS HOME AS MORE AMERICANS EMBRACE IN-HOUSE CAFÉ CULTURE
“The truth of the matter is, you can change your chronotype,” he said. “You can be more of a morning lark. It’s actually not that genetic, and it’s a really worthwhile endeavor to try to change that.”
“If you get up before dawn, you’ve kind of won the day, but not just morally — you’ve won neuro-scientifically.”
Research suggests that waking up before dawn promotes better focus, creativity and mood. (iStock)
According to the “Office Hours” podcast host, research suggests that waking up before dawn promotes better focus, creativity and mood. This is rooted in an “ancient idea of Indian wisdom” called Brahma Muhurta, which means “creator’s time” in Sanskrit.
“But it’s not just religion. It really does have a lot of science behind it,” Brooks said. “I get up at 4:30 a.m. — it works for me; it works with my schedule. You’ve got to figure out what yours is. But if you’re getting up when the sun is already warm, you’re already kind of behind the eight-ball.”
VIRAL MORNING WELLNESS ROUTINE PROMISES MORE ENERGY AND FOCUS BY NOON
Brooks noted that he uses a real alarm clock to wake up, as he keeps his phone out of the bedroom at night to avoid overexposure.
2. Move your body (4:45 a.m.-5:45 a.m.)
Brooks begins his day with a workout in his home gym, noting the importance of getting “real exercise” first thing in the morning.
Armed with an electrolyte drink, he typically does 75% resistance training and 15% Zone 2 cardio — steady-state aerobic exercise that feels easy to moderate — for an hour.
For those who are just starting out with this new schedule, Brooks recommends light exercise, like walking. (iStock)
There are a variety of ways to exercise, from endurance to yoga, Brooks noted. “If the first thing you do when you wake up is pick up heavy things and run around, you’re going to have a much better day,” he added.
TIKTOK’S 50-JUMP RITUAL IS REDEFINING HOW PEOPLE WAKE UP AND WARM UP
For those who are just starting out with a fitness and early wake-up routine, Brooks recommends light exercise, like walking.
3. Get metaphysical (6:30 a.m.)
After showering, Brooks heads out of the house for a 6:30 a.m. Catholic mass.
While not everyone is Catholic, or even religious, Brooks recommends participating in some type of “transcendent activity” that connects the body and soul.
Worship and meditation are great for “de-focusing” yourself, Brooks said. (iStock)
“You need to do something to not focus on yourself,” he said. “Worship is great for that. Meditation is good for that. There are a lot of different ways you can actually undertake this, but the whole point is to zoom out and get little.”
‘GREAT LOCK-IN’ BECOMES FALL’S HOTTEST WELLNESS TREND — HERE’S WHAT IT MEANS
“When I am on the road, which is about half the time, I stay in places where there’s a morning mass if I can possibly find it, such that I’m focusing on my soul just as much as I focus on my body.”
4. Coffee (7:15 a.m.)
Most people who wake up before 5 a.m. will feel inclined to immediately head for the coffee machine, but Brooks discouraged this impulse to reach for caffeine first thing in the morning.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Caffeine blocks a chemical in the brain called adenosine, which swarms the brain at night and makes you groggy in the morning. As a result, drinking it makes you feel more alert.
But Brooks said this is “not the best use” for coffee, as he instead recommends a morning workout to help clear any remaining adenosine.
Drinking coffee first thing in the morning is “not the best use” for max energy, according to Brooks. (iStock)
By the time coffee is introduced into the system, about an hour or two after waking, the brain is clear of adenosine, and the caffeine can focus on providing the body with energy.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR HEALTH NEWSLETTER
“You’re not going to wake up with caffeine, you’re going to focus with caffeine,” he said. “It’s going to vacuum dopamine into your prefrontal cortex, and you’ll be more creative, you’ll be more stimulated to come up with new ideas, and that means you’re setting yourself up for a brilliant workday.”
5. Eat a high-protein breakfast (7:30 a.m.)
Protein is “critically important” for getting the most return from your morning workout, building strong muscles and shaping a balanced diet, according to Brooks.
For breakfast, he prefers non-fat Greek yogurt, topped with walnuts for micronutrients, mixed berries for antioxidants, whey protein and sometimes stevia for sweetness.
Clean protein can help build strong muscles and boost mood, the expert said. (iStock)
“I get 60 grams of protein with less than 400 calories. And man, I am ready to go,” he said. “With that caffeine and that meal, I’m ready to work.”
These “clean protein” breakfast options also contain tryptophan, the chemical best known for its presence in turkey that can cause sleepiness. In smaller doses, tryptophan can improve mood and mellow out the nervous system, Brooks noted.
6. Enter a flow state (8:00 a.m.)
Between 8:00 a.m. and noon, Brooks said he gets four solid hours of productivity and creativity, “with a level of focus I was never able to get earlier in my life before I set up this morning protocol.”
TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ
He enters and remains in a “state of flow” during his morning work, uninterrupted by social media or phone notifications.
“I can do more in four hours than I used to be able to do in two days. And I’m happier when I do it,” Brooks said.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE HEALTH STORIES
By the time he eats another high-protein meal for lunch, he has completed his essential tasks and can take on other objectives in the latter part of the day.
“It’s really important that you not wreck that period of focus and concentration, spoiling it with your devices,” Brooks added. “Stay clean. Stay focused. Stay creative. And stay happy.”
Use left and right arrow keys to navigate between menu items.
Use escape to exit the menu.
Sign Up
Create a free account to access exclusive content, play games, solve puzzles, test your pop-culture knowledge and receive special offers.
Already have an account? Login
Grand Egyptian Museum to display tomb paintings bringing ancient Egypt to life • FRANCE 24 English
Drag queen accused of sex with 13-year-old boy he believed was adult: report
Miami Beach commissioner to donate salary to family of fallen police officer
Ramaswamy: 2025 GOP wins in New Jersey, Virginia, would ‘set the table for…more decisive victories’ in 2026
Video: What You Need to Know About New York City’s Ballot Measures
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Video: ‘It Didn’t Have to Happen This Way:’ U.Va. Faculty Call for Review of Police Response to Protests
Grand Egyptian Museum to display tomb paintings bringing ancient Egypt to life • FRANCE 24 English
The Security Brief: Putin provokes Europe with drones and fighter jets | BBC News
‘We were struggling’: Actress from ‘The Morning Show’ talks about when she faced food insecurity
Trump and Xi skip Taiwan talk despite years of war preparations
Al-Qaeda linked JNIM says one killed in its first Nigeria attack
-
New York1 week agoVideo: How Mamdani Has Evolved in the Mayoral Race
-
News1 week agoVideo: Inside Our Reporter’s Collection of Guantánamo Portraits
-
Milwaukee, WI4 days agoLongtime anchor Shannon Sims is leaving Milwaukee’s WTMJ-TV (Channel 4)
-
News4 days agoWith food stamps set to dry up Nov. 1, SNAP recipients say they fear what’s next
-
Politics1 week agoAOC, Sanders rake in millions as far-left cements grip on Democrat Party
-
Alabama6 days agoHow did former Alabama basketball star Mark Sears do in NBA debut with Milwaukee Bucks?
-
Politics1 week agoGrassley releases memo showing DOJ ‘unleashed unchecked government power’ on Trump associates
-
News1 week agoMap: Minor Earthquake Strikes Southern California