The Lifespan Hemoglobinopathy Program at LHSC reflects our dedication to providing equitable health care for equity-denied populations. Offering advanced, state-of-the-art care, the clinic delivers collaborative support, integrating medical, psychological, and social services tailored to the needs of patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) and thalassemia.
Clinic staff are committed to providing compassionate, culturally informed, and patient-focused care to better serve the diverse communities impacted by SCD and thalassemia.
What does the LHSC Lifespan Hemoglobinopathy Program do?
The program provides various services in support of patients with SCD, including:
- Retrieval of positive newborn screening results;
- Complete medical care for outpatients, focusing on both preventing illness and treating existing conditions;
- Chronic transfusion support, including exchange transfusion therapy;
- Iron overload management;
- Close collaboration with SickKids in Toronto for paediatric stem cell transplants;
- Stem cell transplants for select adult patients with SCD; and
- Regional collaboration with Windsor Regional Hospital.
Contact LHSC's Lifespan Hemoglobinopathy Program
- Telephone: 519-685-8500, extension 57219
- Email: HBprogram@lhsc.on.ca
Meet the team
- Jennifer Jaswal – Nurse Practitioner, Lifespan
- Dr. Amy Lu – Paediatric Hematologist
- Dr. Soumitra Tole – Paediatric Hematologist, Medical Director
- Dr. Ziad Solh – Adult Hematologist, Medical Director
- Sarah Leppington – Nurse Case Manager, Lifespan
- Stefan Branov – Social Worker, Lifespan
- Monica Hyatt – Program Secretary, Lifespan
Directions to the clinic
Directions for paediatric patients:
The clinic is located in the Paediatric Medical Day Unit (PMDU), located on the first floor of Zone B, Children’s Hospital, London Health Sciences Centre, 800 Commissioners Road East in London, Ontario.
- Our patients find it easiest to enter Victoria Hospital from Baseline Road East.
- Parking is available in the visitors' parking garage (P8).
- You can enter the hospital directly from the garage on either the first or second level.
- Proceed to the Paediatric Medical Day Unit, located on the first floor beside the main elevators, and check in with the clerks behind the desk.
Directions for adult patients:
The clinic is located on the fifth floor of E Building, Victoria Hospital, 800 Commissioners Road East in London, Ontario.
- Our patients find it easiest to enter Victoria Hospital from Baseline Road East.
- If possible, park in visitor parking lot 7 and make your way to the entrance of E Building, which faces north directly across from visitor parking lot 7.
- As you enter the building, you will find the volunteer desk and information kiosk directly across from the entrance. Please feel free to ask the volunteer for help navigating to the clinic.
- Take the elevators to the fifth floor.
- Check in and verify your information with the clerks who sit directly across from the elevators. The clerk will then direct you to the waiting room.
Visit the Victoria Hospital and Children’s Hospital Maps and Directions webpage.
When should I visit the Emergency Department?
If you or your child have SCD, please follow the recommendations below:
- If you develop a fever of 38oC (100.4o F): From Monday to Friday (between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.), please call your Nurse Case Manager immediately. If it is after 4:00 p.m. or on a weekend, please go directly to the Emergency Department.
- If you are experiencing pain: Please follow your current pain plan to manage sickle cell pain at home. If you continue to experience pain, call your Nurse Case Manager immediately from Monday to Friday (between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.). If it is after 4:00 p.m. or on a weekend, please go directly to the Emergency Department.
- If you are having difficulty breathing, chest pain or changes in mental status: Go directly to the Emergency Department.
- If you are having a painful erection or a prolonged erection that will not go away (greater than 2 hours): Go directly to the Emergency Department.
- If you are having pain that does not feel like your sickle cell pain: Go directly to the Emergency Department.
- When to call 911:
- Severe pain
- Severe headache
- Difficulty speaking or slurring of speech
- Sudden weakness, loss of feeling, or cannot move a body part
- What to bring with you to the emergency department:
- Medications
- Your sickle cell card: If you do not have a card, please request a card at your next clinic visit.
View Paediatric emergency department wait times.
View Adult emergency department wait times.
Mental health crisis
If you or someone you know is having a mental health crisis, contact Reach Out 24/7 at 519-433-2023 or toll-free at 1-866-933-2023.
Youth under 16 can call the Tandem Crisis Line at 519-433-0334. In an emergency, call 911.
SCD Quality Standards
Quality standards outline what high-quality care looks like for conditions where there are large variations in how care is delivered, or where there are gaps between the care provided in Ontario and the care patients should receive. Quality standards help:
- Patients, families, and caregivers know what to ask for in their care;
- Health-care professionals know what care they should be offering, based on evidence and expert agreement; and
- Health-care organizations measure, assess, and improve their performance in caring for patients.
Health Quality Ontario’s SCD quality standards are developed in collaboration with health-care professionals, patients, and caregivers across Ontario to address care for children, young people, and adults with SCD.
They address the prevention of complications, assessment and management of acute and chronic complications, and the use of disease-modifying therapies. They apply to all paediatric and adult health-care settings (including hospitals, emergency departments, urgent care clinics, and primary care, specialist care, and home and community care settings).
Visit Health Quality Ontario’s SCD quality standards website.
