ABOUT US
EDMONTON PEDIATRIC INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE CLINIC (EPIC) is a multidisciplinary program that includes clinical physicians, nurses and dietitians, clinician scientists, basic scientists, and clinical laboratory scientists. Our goal is to provide excellent, family-centered care for pediatric patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) through knowledge creation, translation and high quality clinical care.
We are all involved in IBD research, which allows us to better understand why IBD happens so frequently in Canada, find more effective and safer ways to treat patients and do all we can to improve the care and well-being of our patients. Currently, our program actively follows over 250 children and teens living with IBD, a life-long, chronic, relapsing inflammatory condition of the intestines. National data indicates that Alberta has one of the highest incidences of IBD in Canada and our clinic diagnoses over 50 new cases a year. Our youngest patient was diagnosed at 7 months of age.
OUR MISSION is to foster a multidisciplinary team approach to the care of children with IBD following the three main pillars:
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Knowledge creation and translation through research and collaboration
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Quality assurance and improvement process that enables progressive visualization of these goals and achievements.
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Excellence in clinical care and patient-oriented, evidence-based medicine.
WHY DID WE CREATE THIS WEBSITE? We hope kidsibd.ca will serve as a helpful resource for our current patients as well as everyone who wants to find out more about IBD in children, research or how to get involved.
OUR TEAM
Physicians
Hien Huynh MBBS FRACP FRCPC
Gastroenterologist, Professor and Divisional Director Gastroenterology - Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta
Dr. Huynh is a Professor of pediatrics and has performed both basic and clinical studies in gastrointestinal disease such as IBD, Helicobacter pylori infection and eosinophilic esophagitis. He founded the pediatric IBD program at the Stollery Children’s hospital and developed the Pediatric IBD registry. He has over 10 years experience in pharmaceutical trials. He established the Western pediatric IBD network and is on the executive committee for the Canadian Children IBD network. Dr. Huynh is the site investigators for multiple cohort studies and has led investigator-initiated studies in such as IDEAL trial looking at Remicade levels in children with CD.
Matthew Carroll BSc BMed(Hons) MHSc FRACP
Gastroenterologist, Associate Professor - Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta
Dr. Carroll is an Associate Professor in Pediatrics and a Clinician Educator at the University of Alberta. Dr. Carroll completed his medical training in Australia specializing in Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition. He did further clinical and research training in complex pediatric IBD at BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, BC, earning his Masters in Health Science (Clinical Epidemiology) from the University of British Columbia. Dr. Carroll brings expertise in clinical epidemiology, quality improvement and health services research methodology and the use of administrative databases. He is a founding member of the Canadian Gastro-Intestinal Epidemiology Consortium (CanGEIC) research group, which is currently conducting a national study examining the impact IBD has on Canadian children, their families and the health system.
Dr.Carroll has an ongoing research interest in amongst Canadians of South Asian ethnic descent and has described a unique clinical IBD phenotype in this population. Within the Canadian Children IBD Network, Dr. Carroll is the Edmonton site lead for the national Pediatric IBD Quality Improvement project. He is also the Quality Improvement physician lead for the Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology.
Daniela Migliarese Isaac MD MSc FRCPC
Gastroenterologist, Assistant Professor - Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta
Dr. Isaac is a Pediatric Gastroenterologist and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Alberta. After completing her Medical Degree, General Pediatric Residency and Pediatric Gastroenterology Subspecialty Training at the University of Alberta, she began the Stollery – Shriners Clinical Research Fellowship focussing on the use of gastroenterologist performed bowel ultrasound in monitoring pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This exciting new area of pediatric IBD management remains her primary research focus. Dr. Isaac has undergone formal training and is internationally certified in performing bowel ultrasonography through the International Bowel Ultrasound Group.
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Dr. Isaac joined the University of Alberta Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition with a clinical focus on the management of pediatric IBD. In addition, she has clinical and research experience aimed at improving care for children with celiac disease through promoting a multidisciplinary clinic model and innovations in the endoscopic referral process. In addition, she has a strong interest in Global Health and Social Pediatrics, including experience in developing patient advocacy projects targeted at improving the social determinants of health for children and their families both locally and internationally. She is completing a Master of Science in Public Health with a focus on Health Services Management through the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
Alexandra Hudson MD HBSc FRCPC
Gastroenterologist, Assistant Professor - Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta
Dr. Hudson is a Pediatric Gastroenterologist and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Alberta. After completing her medical degree at Dalhousie University, she completed her General Pediatrics Residency and Pediatric Gastroenterology Subspecialty Training at the University of Alberta. She then completed a Pediatric Advanced Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Fellowship at the University of Washington, Seattle Children's Hospital as well as obtaining International Bowel Ultrasound Group (IBUS) intestinal ultrasound certification. Her clinical work and research focuses on pediatric IBD, intestinal ultrasound, as well as esophageal disorders such as eosinophilic esophagitis. She is an active member of the Canadian Children IBD Network and has participated in the development of international guidelines on pediatric IBD care and intestinal ultrasound use.
Morgan Morrissey MD BSc(Hons) FRCPC
Gastroenterologist, Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta
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Nurses
Cheryl Kluthe RN
Registered Nurse
Cheryl is a pediatric GI nurse with a strong interest in IBD. She is part of the Canadian IBD nursing network. She has shown leadership and dedication in EPIC quality by studying patient adherence to treatment, her result will be presented at Crohns and Colitis Foundation of America Orlando Dec 2014.
She is the main organizer of all our patient related events throughout the year including our IBD day. Her major role in studying Patient and parents Perception of Treatments and Disease will develop our nursing research capacity and will lead our qualitative research in EPIC with the support of WCHRI (Women and Children’s Health Research Institute) qualitative platform and the remaining EPIC team members.
Jason Wang RN
Registered Nurse
Leanne Shirton RN
Registered Nurse
Leanne Shirton is a pediatric GI nurse with a strong interest in IBD. She has been a nurse with Alberta Health Services for 30 years and has spent the last 10 years in the Stollery Pediatric Gastroenterology clinic.
Dietitians
Min Chen RD
Registered Dietitian
Min is one of the registered dietitians in IBD clinic. Her main focus is to provide advice and support for IBD patients regarding their dietary concerns and nutritional needs. She works with family to make sure our children follow the right diet, grow to their potential, and work towards preventing relapses.
Kayla Luick RD
Registered Dietitian
Research Team
Lead Research Coordinator
Kristie DeHaan BSc
Kristie joined the EPIC team in May 2022. She was a part of previous research teams as the lead research coordinator, and she continues to apply the plethora of skills and experiences with the EPIC team.
Research Coordinator
Deirdre McKay BSc
Deirdre joined the EPIC team in January 2023. She completed her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Food Science from the University of Alberta and discovered her love to learn about the relationship between nutrition and well-being. Deirdre is eager to work with the team in finding ways to improve the health and wellness of children with IBD. In her free time, she is likely cooking, baking, or discovering a new restaurant in the city.
Research Coordinator
Lorraine Lu BA MPH
Lorraine joined the EPIC team in May 2022. She did her Bachelor of Arts (Honours in Psychology) at the University of Alberta and completed her Master of Public Health at Western University. Lorraine was a research assistant during her undergrad in the Adolescent Development Lab also at the UofA, focusing on adolescent depression and parenting. She would love to continue her work in research and contribute to improving children's and adolescents' well-being with the pediatric IBD team. In her free time, Lorraine loves to cuddle with her cats and discover fun things to do around the city.