Pediatric Urology

Caring for our children

Pediatric urology, as the name suggests, is the subspecialty field of urology that deals with the various conditions afflicting children. Congenital abnormalities of the genito-urinary tract comprise a large portion of our practices, as do acquired conditions such as infections, dysfunctional voiding, and foreskins issues.  Although malignancies of the urinary system are rare in children, as the only tertiary care pediatric centre in the Maritimes, these cases are typically managed at our facility.  We collaborate with the other pediatric subspecialties at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax and the Saint John Regional Hospital in New Brunswick.

The IWK, which is the only pediatric hospital in the Maritimes, serves the population of all three provinces. It is staffed by two urologists with subspecialty training: Drs. Dawn MacLellan and Daniel Keefe, as well as a pediatric general surgeon with additional training in urology, Dr. Karen Milford.

	Dr. Daniel Keefe Dr. Keefe joined the IWK Division of Pediatric Urology and Dalhousie Department of Urology in August 2021 after completing fellowship training at University of Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children. Prior to this, he finished Urology training at the University of Ottawa, and medical school at Dalhousie University. He is in the process of completing a MSc in System Leadership and Innovation at the University of Toronto. Dr. Keefe was born and raised in Prince Edward Island and is looking forward to providing care for patients from across Atlantic Canada. He has a clinical interest in caring for the entire spectrum of conditions in pediatric urology with a focus on kidney stone management, urinary tract obstruction, and pediatric renal transplantation. His academic interests include medical education, applications of artificial intelligence in urology, and urinary tract obstruction.
	Dr. Dawn MacLellan Dr. MacLellan is from Truro, NS. She completed a Bachelor of Science degree, medical school and Urology residency training at Dalhousie University. She spent three years as a Fellow at the Boston Children's Hospital performing clinical and basic science research in pediatric urology. Dr. MacLellan was appointed as Assistant Professor in 2014. Dr. MacLellan's current interests are the clinical care of children with urologic diseases and clinical and basic science research in the pathophysiology of kidney obstruction and other congenital anomalies. She has served as teh Secretary/Treasurer and President of the Pediatric Urologists of Canada and the President of the Canadian Academy of Urologic Surgeons. Dr. MacLellan has also served on the Board of the North Eastern Section of the American Urological Association.
	Dr. Karen Milford Karen Milford joined the IWK in October 2023, and is a Paediatric Surgeon and Urologist. Prior to moving to Halifax she was working in Johannesburg, in South Africa. She completed her Paediatric Surgery training at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital in Cape Town, and a fellowship in Paediatric Urology at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. Her undergraduate medical degree was completed at the University of Pretoria. Dr Milford’s particular areas of interest include the care of children with neurogenic bowel and other obstructive uropathies including posterior urethral valves. She is also actively involved in the care of children with combined urological and anorectal pathology, as well as children with severe idiopathic constipation and Bladder and Bowel Dysfunction. She is a keen hypospadias surgeon. Her current research activities are aimed at neurogenic bladder and the provincial management of children with gallstone disease. She also holds a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing, from the University of the Witwatersrand.

Approximately six regularly scheduled clinics per week cover all aspects of pediatric urology problems, and surgical procedures typically occur on a twice weekly schedule. There are approximately 2,200 patient visits in the clinics annually. Opportunities to participate in clinical research are abundant.
 
We also participate in a multi-disciplinary clinic for children with spina bifida and other neurogenic-related urology issues. There is a specialized clinic for functional urology issues which includes a child psychologist. We have a full urodynamics facility staffed by a subspecialty trained nurse. The pediatric urologist at the Saint John Regional Hospital, Dr. James Ashfield, adds further clinical expertise