Prominent Las Vegas OB-GYN dies, ‘true leader’ in medical community

A prominent Las Vegas OB-GYN who died last week was a leader in the medical community and helped form UNLV’s medical school, his colleagues said.

Kenneth Warren Volker died Nov. 21 at age 58, according to an online obituary.

Volker, Nevada’s chief clinical officer for Intermountain Healthcare, was a pioneer of minimally invasive surgery and an expert on women’s health issues, according to the hospital system’s website. He focused on minimally invasive and robotic gynecology and pelvic reconstruction surgery.

The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Volker also was an adjunct clinical associate professor at UNLV’s Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine and was one of the first doctors to teach at the school when it started in 2017.

Dr. Marc Kahn, dean of the medical school, called Volker “a true leader in the medical community.”

“Warren was an inspirational leader whose presence and generous spirit will be missed for many years to come,” Kahn said Monday in an emailed statement.

Volker served on the school’s community advisory board and spoke about the need for a school of medicine in Southern Nevada to combat a lack of doctors in the area.

“I’m really invested in the medical community and education,” Volker said in an undated video posted to UNLV’s website about the need for a school of medicine. “One of the things is as this community has grown so fast, we’ve really fallen behind on the health care that we’re delivering here.”

Volker was born in Grand Forks, North Dakota. He married his wife and “love of his life,” Michele Beauchamp, in June 1988 in East Grand Forks, Minnesota, according to his obituary.

Volker graduated from the University of North Dakota Medical School. His career in the medical community lasted more than 20 years and included executive leadership positions in medical institutions across the country. He was recognized this year as one of the top 100 physicians by U.S. News and World Report, the obituary said.

He previously served as the chief of medical staff at Centennial Hills Hospital and Medical Center and chairman of the OB-GYN department at the Summerlin Hospital Medical Center, according to his LinkedIn page.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Volker “helped to raise community clinics,” according to his LinkedIn page, and was quoted by local TV stations discussing the virus.

He had participated in medical missions in Honduras and the Dominican Republic, and provided humanitarian relief to Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, according to the page.

Volker’s family could not be reached for comment.

He is survived by his wife, three children, granddaughter, mother and five siblings, the obituary said.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.