Dr. Edmond S. Chan, UBC clinical associate professor and head of the division of allergy & immunology in the department of pediatrics at UBC, is the winner of the 2019 Robyn Allen Leadership Award.
The award recognizes an individual who has made a unique contribution to the lives of Canadians with food allergy through their efforts in education, advocacy, community building, leadership or fundraising.
Dr. Chan created the UBC Pediatric Clinical Immunology and Allergy fellowship training program and was its first program director. He is also a clinical investigator at the BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute.
“There are few things I find more rewarding than being in the clinical setting, seeing my patients and their parents, and sharing how my research work translates to what we’re going to do for the care of their child,” said Dr. Chan. “It’s also gratifying when parents in clinic comment on how they are very appreciative of all the research we’re working on, so that the whole patient community can benefit from it. These moments make it all worthwhile, ‘connect the dots,’ and validate the time that is needed to do this type of work in terms of advocacy, policy changes, research, fundraising, at the same time as continuing to see patients in clinic.”
Dr. Chan is on the board of directors of the Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (CSACI), on the executive of the allergy section of the Canadian Paediatric Society (CPS), a member of Food Allergy Canada’s Healthcare Advisory Board and is involved in the National Food Allergy Action Plan.
Currently, Dr. Chan is co-leading the team developing Canadian clinical practice guidelines on the treatment of food allergy with oral immunotherapy. He is a co-author of the CPS practice point on the introduction of allergenic foods, a co-author for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) guidelines on the prevention of peanut allergy and the principal author of the CPS/CSACI food allergy prevention position statement.
Dr. Chan demonstrates his passion for pediatric allergy through the care he provides his patients, and his desire to make improvements in the field of food allergy through research in allergy prevention and treatment.
The Robyn Allen Leadership Award is in memory of Robyn Allen, who passed away from an anaphylactic reaction in 1990, just months before her 16th birthday. A lack of awareness of the severity of anaphylaxis contributed to her death and her parents, Marilyn and Bob Allen, have made it their mission to ensure that Robyn’s story continues to be a beacon of awareness, encouraging others to strive to better the lives of those with potentially life-threatening allergy. The award is presented by the Allens and Food Allergy Canada.
Credit: UBC Faculty of Medicine story, August 15, 2019.
