SAVANNAH, GA, February 02, 2022 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Marquis Who's Who, the world's premier publisher of biographical profiles, is proud to present Richard Frederick Leighton with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award. An accomplished listee, Dr. Leighton celebrates many years' experience in his professional network, and has been noted for achievements, leadership qualities, and the credentials and successes he has accrued in his field. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
Dr. Leighton is a cardiologist and professor of internal medicine at the Mercer University School of Medicine, Savannah, Georgia campus. Practicing medicine for more than 50 years, he joined the Georgia-based university in 1998. He also chaired the Memorial Health University Medical Center institutional review board for 20 years between 1998 and 2018. More recently, Dr. Leighton served as an alternate member of the Biomedical Research Alliance of New York's institutional review board since 2007 and was the medical director of the Center for Heart Disease Prevention at Saint Joseph's Candler Health Systems in Savannah, Georgia, from 2007 to 2015.
Beginning his career in academia in 1965 at The Ohio State University, Dr. Leighton rose from assistant to associate professor of medicine. He subsequently served as director of the coronary care unit on campus from 1968 to 1969 and was director of the cardiac catheterization laboratories from 1970 to 1974. Dr. Leighton was then acquired by the Medical College of Ohio, where he enjoyed a long and successful career. Hired as a professor of medicine and chief of cardiology in 1974, he taught in that capacity for 16 years. He also served as acting chairman of the department of medicine during 1988, as vice chairman from 1988 to 1990, as vice president of academy affairs and dean of the School of Medicine from 1990 to 1995, and as senior vice president of academy affairs and dean of the School of Medicine from 1995 to 1996.
Due to his extensive research, Dr. Leighton has disseminated his findings in over 85 peer-reviewed medical journals and has authored eight books. He has also served on the editorial board for La Lettre du Cardiologue and Annals of Internal Medicine.
To support his community, Dr. Leighton was active on the Hospice Savannah board of directors from 2013 to 2019. He formerly served on the Skidaway Island United Methodist Church administrative board, was on the southeast affiliate board of directors and Northwest chapter's executive committee, and board of directors of the American Heart Association. Additionally, Dr. Leighton was committed to the Saint Paul's Community Center board of directors and the L'Alliance Francaise de Toledo as a board member.
Dr. Leighton initially took an interest in cardiology after his father had suffered a series of heart attacks. He also became familiar with learning to read electrocardiograms as part of his training while in the United States Navy, which he found interesting. Dr. Leighton received a Bachelor of Arts at Western Maryland College in 1951 and a Doctor of Medicine at the University of Maryland in 1955, followed by an internship at University Hospital in Baltimore between 1955 and 1956. In medical school he was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha, the national honor society. From there, he served with the United States Navy School of Aviation Medicine in Pensacola, Florida, beginning in 1956 and became a U.S. Navy flight surgeon of the Airborne Early Warning Squadron One. Additional educational pursuits to his credit include a residency in internal medicine and a cardiology fellowship at The Ohio State University Hospital.
Supporting his career, Dr. Leighton is an elected fellow of the American College of Physicians. He is also a member and former governor of the Ohio chapter of the American College of Cardiology, the Central Society for Clinical Research, the Association of University Cardiologists, the Society Francaise De Cardiologie, and the National Lipid Association.
Dr. Leighton received an honorary Doctor of Science from the Medical College of Ohio in Toledo in 2000. He has also been honored multiple times for his work, including as America's Top Cardiologists for 2008, with a Teaching Award from the department of internal medicine at Memorial Health University Medical Center in 2007, and with a Legacy of Life Award from the American Heart Association in 2000. In 2005 he was given an Honor Award by the Medical Alumni Association of the University of Maryland. In 2012 he was given an Alumni Professional Service Award by McDaniel College (formerly Western Maryland College). Additionally, he won a New York Big Book Award in 2021, recognizing his writing expertise. A celebrated Marquis listee, Dr. Leighton has been showcased in more than 45 editions of Who's Who in America, Who's Who in American Education, Who's Who in Medicine and Healthcare, and Who's Who in the South and Southwest.
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