Marshall Allen

Reporter/ Medical Affairs

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Call Marshall at 702-259-2330.

Recent Stories (view all stories)

This Labrador would make Lassie proud: Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009; Danielle Londrigan met Will when he was a puppy, and she was training him as a Seeing Eye dog. But Will, a Labrador-retriever mix, washed out because he was too friendly with other dogs. So the Henderson resident has enlisted him in her service. Will’s nose can save Londrigan’s life.
Aiming to revolutionize dementia research: An interview with the president of the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute; Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009; Dr. Zaven Khachaturian compares the mission of the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute to President John F. Kennedy’s vision of putting a man on the moon.
For extra bucks, some get perks: Pregnant women who can pay can opt for concierge-style of care; Monday, Jan. 5, 2009; When most expectant mothers visit their obstetricians, they don stiff paper gowns. Platinum Mommies enjoy plush cloth gowns. Other pregnant women may have lengthy waits in their doctors’ offices and have a hard time reaching physicians after hours with questions. There’s another difference, too: Platinum Mommies pay $3,500 for their VIP treatment.
Clinic reports lapses in disinfection: Patients are at minimal risk, health officials say; Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2008; An outpatient surgery center has notified state authorities that it failed to properly disinfect instruments it uses during procedures, state health officials said Tuesday.
Brain institute thinking big: It wants to develop a model for treatment of dementia; Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2008; The country’s top dementia experts — academics, advocates and researchers — gathered in a conference room the other day to brainstorm public policy recommendations for Congress on how to fight dementia.
State fines providers, says more to come: Health Division official hopes hefty penalties will ensure rules are followed; Monday, Dec. 22, 2008; Saying that the hepatitis outbreak at the beginning of the year taught them a painful lesson, officials are hitting Nevada health care providers with much larger fines for breaking rules intended to protect the public.
Doctor linked to 8 overdose fatalities: DEA suspends Buckwalter’s right to prescribe narcotics nationally; Friday, Dec. 19, 2008; The Drug Enforcement Administration on Thursday stripped Dr. Kevin Buckwalter of his ability to prescribe controlled substances, alleging that at least eight of his patients since 2005 have died of overdoses. The DEA said that allowing the Henderson physician to prescribe controlled substances “constitutes an imminent danger to public health and safety.”
No money, no treatment: State says it can’t pay for the therapy hundreds of Nevada children need; Monday, Dec. 15, 2008; A Las Vegas woman is joining the Army, calling it the best way to get health care for her disabled infant — treatment the state is supposed to provide, but isn’t.
Remedy for a closed process: Medical board chief pitches plan to give patients a voice in discipline cases; Saturday, Dec. 6, 2008; When Louis Ling took administrative charge of the state’s medical board in September, he fretted that the process of investigating doctors and disciplining the bad ones could take two years or longer. Ling, who is a lawyer, was bothered too that the disciplinary process seemed more concerned about watching out for the doctors than the patients. The process was “cloaked in confidentiality,” as he put it, and “a lack of transparency inevitably leads to accusations of favoritism and unaccountability.”
Another doctor loses his right to prescribe: Psychiatrist, 81, can no longer provide patients access to controlled substances; Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2008; The Nevada State Medical Examiners Board has stripped a Las Vegas psychiatrist of his license to prescribe controlled substances because the drugs he prescribed to a Kentucky woman may have contributed to her suicide.