Compassionate physician. Champion of access to care. A special person.

Longtime NCMS member Dr. Frank Walter Leak, Sr., died Wednesday, October 4th. He was 89.

Leak graduated from UNC Medical School in 1967. He completed his residency at Charlotte Memorial Hospital and was awarded the Mead Johnson Award for Family Medicine Residents. He practiced family medicine in Clinton, NC, from 1969-1997 and was one of the founders of the Clinton Medical Clinic. He served as the president of the Sampson County Medical Society and the NC Academy of Family Practice.

Leak received many accolades as a physician, including the NC Academy of Family Practice Physician of the Year (1983) and the National Rural Health Association Physician of the Year (1990).

In 1998, Leak retired from clinical practice, moved to Raleigh, and accepted a position with NC Medical Society in conjunction with the Kate B. Reynolds Foundation Community Practitioner program. Throughout his career, he was dedicated to bringing family physicians to rural areas of North Carolina.

“As a newer NCMS staff member, I remember asking him tons of questions about the health care system and not being able to figure out why, at times, folks just couldn’t get along and do the right thing for patients,” says Pam Highsmith, NCMS Vice President, Advancement. “His wise response was, ‘Pam, it’s about the almighty dollar! Follow who’s keeping the money and who’s losing it, and you’ll usually find your answer’. That advice has proven true many times!”

Read Dr. Leak’s full obituary here.