Dr. Judith Hall awarded UBC Outstanding Faculty Community Service Award

Judith Hall is a leading pediatrician and clinical geneticist who has focused her research on disorders of growth, such as dwarfism, and birth defects, such as spina bifida and congenital contractures. She is driven by curiosity, sees her field as an art as much as a science, and enjoys her work so much she tends to take little time off. The results have been prolific. During more than 30 years of clinical research Dr. Hall has identified many new syndromes (two bear her name) and documented the natural history of many others. She has also discovered the mechanisms behind many disorders and developed new ways to classify them. She has published more than 290 original articles – some considered classics – and 10 books, two of them award-winning. Her Handbook of Normal Physical Measurements is essential for physicians specializing in growth disturbances in children.

Dr. Hall was educated and spent her early career in the US, where she studied under Victor McKusick, widely regarded as the founder of modern medical genetics. She moved to Vancouver in 1981, becoming a UBC professor of Medical Genetics and director of Genetic Services for BC and, later, Head of the Department of Pediatrics at UBC and BC Children’s Hospital. Now a professor emerita, she is based at the Children’s and Women’s Health Centre of British Columbia.

Although Dr. Hall is a world authority in her field, her biggest motivation has been translating discovery into clinical care and improved treatments. To this end she has devoted countless volunteer hours driving professional standards, providing advice to patients and caregivers, and developing links with lay support groups.

She has served on parent support boards, written newsletter articles in layperson’s language and been instrumental in developing the resources, services and care guidelines so vital for coping with genetic illnesses. She also advocates for research into rare disorders. Dr. Hall has been honoured with life membership in Little People of America.

Dr. Hall has also done much to set high standards for her profession. She has held many senior roles in major national and international science and medicine organizations, helping them to reshape priorities and commitments. Her volunteering includes board work for the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, the International Pediatric Association, the Vancouver Foundation, the Medical Research Foundation of Canada, the US and Canadian Children’s Miracle Networks, Genome Canada, and the Canadian Council of Academies. She has received many prestigious awards including a Senior Killam Prize for Research and the Ross Award from the Canadian Pediatric Society. She is an Officer of the Order of Canada.