FAMU graduate Briano Allen, PharmD, DDS, MS, has truly embodied the university’s motto “Excellence with Caring”, by providing excellent, compassionate service to some Tallahassee's neediest residents.
Dr. Allen, a Tallahassee-based endodontist, who earned his PharmD from FAMU, and his DDS from Howard University, teamed up with the Kearney Center, which provides comprehensive emergency services and temporary shelter and housing focused services.
The Kearney Center has a dental clinic but did not have the capacity to provide root canals. Last Friday, Dr. Allen shut down his Red Hill Endodontics practice and provided root canals to the Centers residents in need. In all, he saw about eight patients in severe pain.
Not having a place to live is stressful enough, without the added pain of a toothache.
When asked why he did it, Dr. Allen said, “I enjoy what I do because I am able to help people reduce their anxiety and it’s the same thing with these patients.” Many were in “a lot of anxiety (pain) but when they are done, they are happy and smiling. So, it's great."
“I just wanted to make sure that these patients got the highest quality of care possible,” Dr. Allen added.
Root canals for paying patients at Dr. Allen's practice normally cost between $900 to $1,500.
Editors note: This story first appeared on Rattler Nation on May 14, 2019. Rather than go blank during the slow holiday season, we decided to rerun some stories while we work on an end-of-the year review.