Allergy and Immunology

Allergy and Immunology is the branch of medicine that pertains to the treatment of asthma and other allergic diseases.

The Allergy and Immunology Division consists of four members who are actively involved in providing clinical consultative services at St. Paul's Hospital and in the community.  Additionally, Members provide outreach clinics in several communities around British Columbia including Dease Lake, Stewart, Hazelton, Bella Bella, Campbell River, Parksville, Bamfield, Prince George and Sechelt.

Contact Information
Division of Allergy and Immunology
166 - 1081 Burrard Street
Vancouver, B.C., V6Z 1Y6
Telephone: 604-806-9276

Head
Dr. Robert Schellenberg, Division Head

Members
Dr. Robert Schellenberg, Professor and Head
Dr. Michael Mandl, Clinical Associate Professor
Dr. Donald Stark, Clinical Associate Professor
Dr. Amin Kanani, Clinical Instructor

A major initiative of the Division is the development of a specialized clinic from Primary Immune Deficiency patients. Goals are to have a defined clinic where these patients can have specialized teaching and training for the initiation of home therapy with replacement immunoglobulin. Such a facility would enhance patient care while decreasing the requirement for hospital resources. Drs. Kanani, Stark and Schellenberg are actively pursuing this in collaboration with the outpatient nursing coordinator and the blood bank administrator at St. Paul's Hospital. The initial proposal is to undertake a pilot project in the health region with expansion provincially when proven benefits are demonstrated. The goal of this project is to have a provincial centre and resource for all patients with primary immune deficiency and link registries with others across Canada and globally.

Teaching
All members of the Division are involved in providing clinical teaching in allergy and immunology at all levels. This includes major initiatives in patient education, CME programs for physicians, and elective rotations for residents and medical students at the University of British Columbia.

Research
The members at St. Paul's Hospital have a major interest in the management of primary immune deficiency and have initiated a number of research projects as well as interactions with the lay organizations, Canadian Immune Deficiency Patient Organization and the Jeffrey Modell Foundation.