Allan Holmes

Founder

Allan Holmes founded Iridia Medical in 1998 under the name Global Medical Services, with a goal of assisting clients to bring Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) into their workplaces and has led the expansion of our services ever since. As founder, Allan continues to bring his 27+ years of experience in the field of emergency and pre-hospital medicine to support all the business lines at Iridia.

As an early pioneer in AED program implementation, Allan remains passionate about improving access to these life saving devices. As an accomplished educator and course development expert, he uses his extensive teaching experience to guide the delivery of the highest quality education programs by our Iridia instructors. Allan continues to innovate in the field of remote and rural care delivery as a key member of our Paramedic physician team. As a respected member of the pre-hospital care community, he remains a strong advocate for the improvements in patient care delivered by fire departments and ambulance services alike. Finally, as a leader in the emerging field of physician engagement, he assists Health Authorities and physician leaders in working together toward common goals.

Favourite Quote

“The three great essentials to achieve anything worthwhile are, first, hard work; second, stick-to-itiveness; third, common sense.”

– Thomas Edison

Notable Achievements

  • Completed his specialty in the field of Emergency Medicine in 1993 and worked for 12 years as an emergency physician at one of B.C.’s busiest tertiary hospitals, Royal Columbian Hospital.
  • Led the implementation of one of B.C.’s first workplace AED programs at Harmac Pacific in Nanaimo and now oversees over 450 programs across BC and Canada.
  • Allan was the first physician in B.C. to develop and implement a direct physician access care model which is the key differentiator of Iridia’s Paramedic Program.
  • Provided the physician leadership, and applied his engagement skills to the successful opening of the Jim Pattison Outpatient Care and Surgery Centre, the first of its kind in Western Canada.