Dr. Leanne Ward is a Professor of Pediatrics in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa, where she holds a Tier 1 Research Chair in Pediatric Bone Disorders. Dr. Ward is also cross-appointed to the Department of Surgery at the University of Ottawa, given strong clinical and research ties to the Division of Orthopedics and to London Children’s Hospital, London, Ontario (to foster collaborative clinical care and therapeutic trials for children with rare bone disorders).  

Dr. Ward is the Scientific Director of The Ottawa Pediatric Bone Health Research Group at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, The Medical Director of the Pediatric Bone Health-Osteology Clinic at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), and a pediatric endocrinologist-osteologist in the CHEO Division of Endocrinology. In 2014, she founded The Canadian Consortium for Children’s Bone Health, a national, multi-disciplinary network of clinicians and scientists that fosters health professional education and research in childhood-onset bone disorders and The Canadian Alliance for Rare Disorders of the Skeleton (a patient advocacy initiative). 

Dr. Ward’s research program is dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of childhood-onset bone disorders, including skeletal dysplasias (i.e. osteogenesis imperfecta and achondroplasia), genetic forms of rickets, hypophosphatasia and osteoporosis due to chronic illnesses (i.e. childhood cancer and Duchenne muscular dystrophy). The Ward lab has a particular focus on therapeutic trials in childhood-onset bone disorders, emphasizing skeletal health outcomes quantified through central skeletal imaging and the study of novel drugs to mitigate the functional consequences of rare bone diseases. The Ward lab’s signature is local-to-global collaborative engagement with clinicians, researchers and the patient community in key areas that span orthopedics, genetics, radiology, endocrinology, allied health, biomedical statistics and clinical trial operations.   

Dr. Ward has held sustained funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research since 2003, published over 360 book chapters, abstracts and manuscripts, and delivered over 160 international invited speaking engagements. She works closely with patient advocacy groups to promote patient education and access to rare disease care, including the Canadian Organization for Rare Disorders, the Canadian Osteogenesis Imperfecta Society, the Canadian XLH Network, Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy, Defeat Duchenne Canada and Soft Bones Canada. In 2019, Dr. Ward was named a Fellow of the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research, an award in recognition of significant lifetime contributions to bone and mineral science in the area of Pediatric Bone Disorders.