The Division of Allergy
The Division of Allergy serves as a tertiary referral centre for children from around the province, and has the only hospital-based pediatric allergy clinic west of Winnipeg. Its goal is to provide the highest level of clinical care, and excellence in teaching and research. The Division has been recognized nationally and internationally for its achievements in these domains.
UPDATED April 25 2025
Faculty research interests span a wide variety of topics in pediatric allergy.
Dr. Edmond Chan’s primary research interest is food allergy. He has over 210 peer-reviewed publications and is a co-author of several national/international guidelines on food allergy (including the first Canadian guidelines on food oral immunotherapy and several guidelines on primary prevention of food allergy). He has an additional research interest in eosinophilic esophagitis, working alongside Dr Erdle and Dr Avinashi (Gastroenterology) in the EoE Program. He is President of the Canadian Society of Allergy & Clinical Immunology (CSACI) and has been a recipient of its Jerry Dolovich Award for being a leader/role model and its F. Estelle R. Simons Award for research. He is on the Executive of the Canadian Paediatric Society (CPS) Allergy Section, Food Allergy Canada’s healthcare advisory board, and the steering committee for Canada’s National Food Allergy Action Plan. Broad research projects include oral and sublingual food immunotherapy registries (FAIT Program), food allergy clinical trials, food allergy-associated anxiety tool development, an EoE registry, and a variety of other related research topics.
Dr. Tiffany Wong's primary work is within health quality improvement. She is a leader a large-scale penicillin allergy de-labeling initiative that started in conjunction with the Antimicrobial Stewardship program at the BC Children's Hospital and has spread internationally. Specific projects within this initiative include developing resources and point-of-care assessment tools that will assist healthcare professional in identifying patients at very low risk of penicillin allergy that can be de-labeled. She is currently the lead investigator for the Canadian Egg and Milk Allergy Ladders project, which provides a structured, step-wise approach to helping select children outgrow these allergies. Dr. Wong is co-founder of the BC Children’s Hospital Pediatricians QI Network since. Dr. Wong is the UBC Faculty of Medicine PGME lead for QI and Patient Safety, as well as Physician Lead for Spread of Quality Improvement at PHSA.
Dr. Raymond Mak's research interests have been in food allergy immunotherapy as well as drug allergy including severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs). He has been a collaborator on many of the FAIT food immunotherapy studies and has been a sub-investigator in the epicutaneous peanut immunotherapy clinical trials. He has been a collaborator on the penicillin allergy de-labeling projects, including co-leading a study involving pregnant women at BC Women’s Hospital. His initial residency training in internal medicine provided Dr Mak with unique perspective and expertise on transitioning adolescents from pediatric to adult care. He was co-lead for the St Paul’s Hospital based MedSafe Clinic, which provided consultation for patients with SCARs. He was also site lead for VGH Adult Allergy, and operated a rapid access clinic which provides a destination for adolescents with food allergy and other complex allergic disorders when transferring from BCCH.
Dr. Stephanie Erdle’s primary research interests are food allergy and food allergy immunotherapy (oral immunotherapy and sublingual immunotherapy). She has additional research interest in eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), working alongside Dr. Chan and Dr. Avinashi (Gastroenterology) in the EoE Program at BCCH, and in allergic contact dermatitis, working alongside Dr. Rehmus (dermatology) in the Patch Testing Program at BCCH. Dr. Erdle is the Faculty Lead for the Pediatric Residency Journal Club, and is on the BC Society of Allergy and Immunology Executive Team.
Dr. Vicky LeBlanc’s research interests are mostly in food allergy, specifically food allergy immunotherapy (oral immunotherapy and sublingual immunotherapy) and food protein induced enterocolitis in collaboration with Dr Moshe Ben Shoshan at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec.
UBC/BCCH has the only Canadian Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada accredited training program in Pediatric Clinical Immunology and Allergy west of Manitoba. Our main goal is to train candidates to practice evidence based Pediatric Clinical Immunology and Allergy, preparing them for a career in either academic or community based practice. The BC Children’s Hospital Allergy Clinic provides ample training for a variety of allergic conditions in children and adolescents, including asthma, food allergy, atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, eosinophilic esophagitis, urticaria, drug allergy, and venom allergy. Training in primary immunodeficiency is provided by the Division of Immunology. Candidates are expected to take the Royal College examination in Clinical Allergy and Immunology. Completion of a research project is mandatory. There is a weekly Academic Half day shared with programs across Canada. Further details of training can be found on the CaRMS web site: www.carms.ca
A variety of other trainees rotate through the Allergy Clinic, including medical students, first year Pediatric residents as a part of their combined Allergy/Immunology/CF/Respiratory rotation, Pediatric residents in other years of training, and Pediatric residents on elective from out of province. Faculty members present regularly at international, national, UBC affiliated, and community CME events.
Inquiries about the training program, including the application process, can be directed Daisy Yin, Program Assistant
The BCCH Allergy Clinic provides a consultation service to physicians throughout the Province of BC resulting in a wide variety of allergic disorders being seen: food allergy, asthma, atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, eosinophilic esophagitis, and allergy to drugs, venom and vaccines. There are over 3000 patient encounters per year and the ambulatory program is designed to provide a “one stop” service for diagnosis and management by including diagnostic, treatment and teaching facilities within the clinical unit. The Allergy Clinic provides and leads development of cutting-edge oral and sublingual food immunotherapy treatments. The Challenge Testing Program for foods and drugs continues as a unique and important outpatient program of the Division. Outreach is provided virtually to remote BC communities. The Division is sharing leadership roles in multidisciplinary, dedicated asthma, eosinophilic esophagitis, and contact dermatitis clinics based at BC Children’s Hospital.
MORE: http://www.bcchildrens.ca/our-services/clinics/allergies
Faculty:
Dr. Edmond S. Chan, MD, FRCPC, FCSACI, FAAAAI, Clinical Professor, Division Head
Dr. Tiffany Wong, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Associate Professor, Medical Lead
Dr. Raymond Mak, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Assistant Professor
Dr. Stephanie Erdle, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Instructor
Dr. Alanna Chomyn, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Instructor, Virtual Outreach Program
Dr. Vicky Le Blanc, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Instructor
Dr. Sarah Lohrenz, MD, FRCPC
Dr. Kevin Lee, MD, FRCPC
Dr. Timothy VanderLeek, MD, FRCPC, FCSACI, FAAAAI
Dr. Victoria Cook, FRCPC, Clinical Instructor (Victoria, BC - IMP)
Dr. Jennifer Tong, MD, CCFP, FCFP, Thriving Families Program Physician
Dr. Shun Chi Ryan Lo, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Instructor (Locum)
Community Members:
Dr. Scott Cameron, MD, PhD, FRCPC, Clinical Instructor (Victoria, BC - IMP)
Dr. Sara Leo, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Instructor
Dr. Bahar Torabi, MD, FRCPC, MSc, Clinical Instructor
Dr. Joanne Yeung, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Instructor
Dr. Elissa Abrams, MD, FRCPC, MPH, UBC Adjunct Professor UBC, University of Manitoba Associate Professor
Fellows-in-training:
Dr. Angela Maccan, MD (2nd year)
Dr. Sujen Saravanabavan, MD (2nd year)
Dr. Elise Van Brummelen, MD (2nd year)
Dr. Amy Plessis, MD (1st year)
Food Allergy Immunotherapy (FAIT) Research Program Staff:
Lianne Soller, PhD, research manager
Jennifer Fortkamp, program secretary
Ravinder Dhaliwal, RN
Lisa Gaudet, RN
Kelly Morrison, RN
Christina Service, RN
Brock Williams, PhD candidate, research dietitian and postdoctoral fellow
Nursing staff:
Qin Wang, RN
Allergy technologists:
Tess Erazo, MLT
Shaun Leong, MLT
Neetu Dhari, MLT
Clerical and administrative staff:
Kristine Salva, Administrative Secretary
Abdul Bangura, Booking clerk
Amandeep Kaur, Booking clerk
Kelvin Mubere, Booking clerk
Tannu Tannu, Floating Support Clerk
Smriti Garg, Floating Support Clerk
Daisy Yin, Fellowship program assistant
Contact:
Division of Allergy
Department of Paediatrics
4480 Oak Street
Room 1C31B
Vancouver, BC V6H 3V4
Phone: 604-875-2118 x 1
Fax: 604-875-3653
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The mission of the Food Allergy Immunotherapy (FAIT) Program is to study the implementation of safe and standardized food immunotherapy protocols in the real world, within the context of our publicly funded health care system.