About
Dr. Richard Danson earned his BS in Biological Sciences from UC Irvine in 1976 and his MD from UC Irvine School of Medicine in 1980. He completed his internal medicine internship and residency at UC Irvine Medical Center in 1983 and earned board certification from the American Board of Internal Medicine that same year. He then began his private practice of internal medicine in Santa Barbara, establishing a clinical laboratory as part of that practice from the outset.
Dr. Danson built and ran his Santa Barbara practice for over three decades. The laboratory he founded in 1983 grew into the cornerstone diagnostic resource that Santa Barbara Doctors operates today. In 2020, he sold his practice and laboratory to Dr. Hrach. He now serves as Laboratory Director of the Santa Barbara Doctors clinical laboratory, drawing on more than 31 years of laboratory experience.
Education & Training
Undergraduate
UC Irvine, BS Biological Sciences, 1976
Medical School
UC Irvine School of Medicine, MD 1980
Residency
Internal Medicine, UC Irvine Medical Center, completed 1983
Certifications
Who is Dr. Danson right for?
Dr. Danson now serves Santa Barbara Doctors in his role as Laboratory Director rather than as a treating physician. Patients benefit from his more than three decades of laboratory expertise through the accuracy and depth of the practice's in-house diagnostic services. His long history in Santa Barbara internal medicine underpins the clinical standards the laboratory upholds.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Dr. Danson serves as Laboratory Director of the Santa Barbara Doctors clinical laboratory. He oversees the in-house CLIA-certified lab that he originally established as part of his private practice in 1983.
Dr. Danson earned his BS in Biological Sciences and his MD from UC Irvine. He completed his internal medicine internship and residency at UC Irvine Medical Center, finishing in 1983.
Yes. The American Board of Internal Medicine board certified Dr. Danson in 1983, the same year he completed his residency and opened his Santa Barbara practice.
Dr. Danson founded the clinical laboratory in 1983 as part of his private practice. That gives him more than 31 years of direct laboratory experience. Santa Barbara Doctors acquired the laboratory in 2020, and he has continued as its director since then.
Yes. Dr. Danson opened his private internal medicine practice in Santa Barbara in 1983 and ran it for over three decades. He sold the practice and laboratory to Dr. Hrach in 2020.
Doctor profile last updated September 17, 2026