“I’m always striving to find ways to improve healthcare, develop new ways to do things, and the technology to help get there.”
Dr. Allison joined the Total Health Management team in July 2018, serving as a family physician with a special interest in women’s health and travel medicine.
After completing medical school at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, she did her residency at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario and her final month of residency in Lifford, Ireland.
With her love of travel, Dr. Allison pursued her Certificate in Travel Health from the International Society of Travel Medicine. She has spent time on a volunteer mission in Honduras with the Hackett Hemwall Foundation, a non-profit organization whose members are dedicated to providing high-quality medical treatment around the world to people who otherwise can’t afford medical care, and in Haiti and Peru with Canadian-based STIMMA (Short Term Medical Missions Abroad).
While her volunteer work is inspiring, it can be challenging. During one of Dr. MacQueen’s volunteer trips to Peru, she had a translator alongside her who was interested in medicine and he liked to observe her working whenever possible. “I had a gentleman come in to see me about his shoulder as he had fallen off a roof. I thought it would be a great opportunity for the translator to see how to conduct a shoulder exam,” says Dr. MacQueen.
But the moment he took his shirt off, she knew this wouldn’t be a routine shoulder exam. The arm was obviously hanging out of its socket. Then Dr. MacQueen was told it had been like that for six or seven months. “I relocated the shoulder but I knew he didn’t have the money or resources to access an orthopaedic surgeon, which is what he really needed for long-term improvement and to return to work, safely and productively. Moments like that make me thankful for the medical services we have available in Canada,” says Dr. Allison.
Dr. Allison MacQueen is also a Certified Menopause Practitioner with the North American Menopause Society, and serves as INLIV’s in-house physician providing counselling and treatments on women’s health issues like hormone and menopause challenges, and some procedures, including IUD insertions, endometrial biopsies and cervical polyp removals.
Dr. Allison also provides travel medicine services for our INLIV patients. “The best part about providing travel medicine is the patients are always happy and excited about heading off someplace wonderful. I get to hear all about these great places all over the world. Though then I want to go visit all of these places, too! It’s an occupational hazard!”
“The best part about providing travel medicine is the patients are always happy and excited about heading off someplace wonderful.”
When not at work, Dr. Allison MacQueen feeds her innovative nature by serving on two committees; the Alberta PrescribeIT working group, providing a physician’s perspective on emerging e-prescribing technology, and the Informatics Coordinating Committee, a forum for physicians involved in IT projects throughout the province.
As a former competitive swimmer, Dr. Allison can often be found at the pool, or enjoying nature while hiking, kayaking and snowshoeing with her family.
