The Paediatric Allergy service at the North Middlesex University Hospital was established in 2012. It has grown immensely since its inception and is now a busy secondary care service with very close tertiary links. It is audited twice a year and receives fantastic patient, carer and referrer feedback.

Dr. Linda Walker, Paediatrician with a special interest in allergy, is the service lead.  The service runs paediatric allergy clinics, food challenges, asthma clinics, a community allergy clinic and multiple nurse and dietetic led clinics. It also offers group sessions for patients and their families, in addition to providing training for primary healthcare colleagues.

In addition to the three Consultant leads, the team comprises of three GPs with a special interest in allergy, two Paediatric Allergy Clinical Nurses Specialists, one Paediatric Asthma Clinical Nurse Specialist and a specialist Paediatric Dietitian, all of whom are trained in the management of childhood allergic disorders. The team were winners in the national Nursing Times Awards for their initiatives in the Management of Long-Term Conditions and finalists in the category of Children’s Services. Services offered include skin prick testing, specific IgE testing, food challenges, spirometry (lung function testing), as well as patient and parental education and home visits for children with severe disease. It is further supported by an on-site Paediatric Respiratory Specialist, Paediatric Gastroenterologist, Child and Family Psychology Team, Dermatologists and Ophthalmologists as well as having close working links to specialist Paediatricians at Great Ormond Street Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust’s Paediatric Allergy Network and Evelina Children’s Hospital. 

Nursing Times Awards 2022 Winner