Direct‐to‐consumer genetic testing companies tell their customers to ‘see a genetic counselor'. How do genetic counselors feel about direct‐to‐consumer genetic testing?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vicky Hsieh ◽  
Tamara Braid ◽  
Erynn Gordon ◽  
Laura Hercher
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Genetic Counselor ◽  
Genetic Counselors ◽  
Direct To Consumer

scholarly journals Direct-to-consumer genetic testing: An assessment of genetic counselors' knowledge and beliefs

2011 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 325-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn T Hock ◽  
Kurt D Christensen ◽  
Beverly M Yashar ◽  
J Scott Roberts ◽  
Sarah E Gollust ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Genetic Counselors ◽  
Direct To Consumer ◽  
Knowledge And Beliefs

Genetic Counselor Contributions to Medical Literature and Generalizable Knowledge

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Dempsey ◽  
Jill A. Rosenfeld ◽  
Susan E. Walther
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Practice ◽  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Large Volume ◽  
Medical Literature ◽  
Genetic Counselor ◽  
Genetic Counselors ◽  
Written Communication ◽  
Genetic Tests ◽  
Unique Position ◽  
Advanced Skills

Laboratory genetic counselors are in a unique position to contribute to the medical literature on genetic testing and genetic conditions given their exposure to a wide variety and large volume of genetic tests and results. They have the opportunity to develop in-depth experience in a given area of genetic testing due to their proximity to laboratory directors and other colleagues with clinical and laboratory expertise. These experiences, coupled with advanced skills in verbal and written communication, enable them to contribute in many ways to the medical literature and generalizable knowledge of genetic testing. This chapter will describe the types of publications and research the laboratory genetic counselor may be involved in. It also outlines the ways in which this knowledge is communicated and translated into laboratory and clinical practice.

The Laboratory Genetic Counselor as an Educator

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Rosenthal ◽  
April L. Studinski Jones
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Counseling ◽  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Educational Program ◽  
Genetic Counselor ◽  
Genetic Counselors ◽  
Educational Resource ◽  
Testing Laboratory ◽  
Laboratory Staff

The laboratory genetic counselor is commonly called upon to serve as an educational resource within the genetic testing laboratory. This chapter outlines this unique genetic counseling role. Laboratory genetic counselors provide education about genetic testing and genetic concepts within the laboratory to existing laboratory staff, new laboratory genetic counselor colleagues, formal educational program participants (genetic counselor interns, graduate students, medical students and residents, and laboratory fellows), and laboratory colleagues. They also use their skills and knowledge to educate client laboratories and clinicians. They may also participate in public and community forums.

Genetic Counselor Role in Sales and Marketing

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen Landy Schmitt ◽  
Gabriel A. Lazarin
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Counseling ◽  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Genetic Counselor ◽  
Genetic Counselors ◽  
Counseling Training ◽  
Testing Laboratories ◽  
Genetic Counseling Training ◽  
Sales And Marketing ◽  
Counselor Role

Sales and marketing functions may be a good fit for laboratory genetic counselors. Genetic counselors can use the technical and communication skills they learned during genetic counseling training to perform roles in marketing and sales and as medical liaisons for genetic testing laboratories. This chapter describes how genetic counselors in sales roles use their genetic counseling background. It discusses the challenges and limitations of such roles. Resources for thriving in sales and marketing roles are provided.

Genetic Counselor Role in Hospital Test Utilization

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessie Conta ◽  
Cheryl Hess ◽  
Jacquelyn Riley
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Patient Care ◽  
Genetic Counselor ◽  
Management Program ◽  
Genetic Counselors ◽  
Multiple Methods ◽  
Genetic Tests ◽  
Utilization Management ◽  
Counselor Role

Recently, hospital laboratories have significantly improved patient care by intercepting genetic tests that have been ordered in error or inappropriately. Such tests can be flagged before they are sent out to referral laboratories for testing. This is commonly performed by genetic counselors acting in support of test utilization management. This chapter details the role of the test utilization counselor. Multiple methods are described for developing and implementing a hospital-based test utilization management program for genetic testing.

Streamlining the genetics pipeline to increase testing for patients at risk for hereditary prostate cancer.

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1590-1590
Author(s):  
Barry Tong ◽  
Hala Borno ◽  
Eric Jay Small ◽  
Fern Alagala ◽  
Amie Blanco ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prostate Cancer ◽  
Genetic Testing ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Metastatic Prostate Cancer ◽  
Genetic Counselor ◽  
Germline Mutations ◽  
Genetic Counselors ◽  
High Risk Population ◽  
Risk Population ◽  
Positive Results

1590 Background: Metastatic prostate Cancer (mPCa) is increasingly recognized as a heritable disease and germline genetic testing has increasingly become a part of standard of care. At the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) Genitourinary (GU) Medical Oncology clinic, approximately 850 new patients with mPCa are seen annually. A feasibility pilot Genetic Testing Station (GTS) was developed to expand access to genetic testing among this high-risk population. GTS is facilitated by Genetic Counselor Assistants (GCA) under the supervision of genetic counselors. Methods: This is a feasibility pilot of a GTS model among patients with mPCa. In this model, all patients with mPCa are offered a same day GTS visit with a GCA. At the GTS, the patient receives pre-test education via videos developed by genetic counselors. The patient provides informed consent, a family history, and a saliva sample for Invitae’s 87-gene panel. All positive results trigger a genetic counselor visit while non-positive results either receive a letter or a genetic counselor visit (in person or via telehealth). To evaluate the model, testing frequency and laboratory turnaround time (TAT) was assessed before and after the pilot. Results: In the first four months of the GTS pilot (10/14/2019 – 02/10/2020), 94 patients were referred and received genetic testing. Eight germline positives were identified (BRCA2, CHEK2, HOXB13 MSH6, RECQL4). The average TAT was 8 days. 9.3% of patients were found to have pathogenic mutations through the prostate GTS which is comparable to previously published rates of germline mutations in metastatic prostate cancer patients. In a 4-month time frame the prior to the intervention (10/01/2018-1/31/2019), 26 genetic testing orders were placed. The average laboratory TAT in this prior process was 17 days. Rates of positive germline mutations in the prior model was 8.6%. Conclusions: The GTS is a feasible method to increase access to germline genetic testing among a high-risk population. It may reduce barriers to testing and facilitate real-time discussion of treatment and prevention strategies with patients and family members. As a result, we will continue to operate the GTS. This model provides a framework for scaling access for and cascade testing in other high-risk patient groups.

scholarly journals Direct-to-consumer genetic testing in the college classroom: Knowledge, attitudes, and concerns of introductory biology students

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicanor Austriaco
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Genetic Counselor ◽  
College Classroom ◽  
Undergraduate Biology ◽  
First Semester ◽  
Biology Students ◽  
Direct To Consumer ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Medical Health Care ◽  
Enhance Student Learning

Pioneered by companies like 23andMe.com, deCODEme.com, and Navigenics.com, direct-to-consumer genetic testing refers to genetic tests that are marketed directly to consumers via television, print media, or the Internet. This kind of testing provides access to a customer’s genetic information without necessarily involving either a medical health care professional or a genetic counselor in the process. In recent years, a course offered to medical and graduate students at Stanford University has included an option for students to undergo personal genotyping, raising the possibility that direct-to-consumer genetic testing could also be incorporated into undergraduate biology courses to enhance student learning. In this study, I assess the attitudes and concerns of college students enrolled in the first semester of an introductory majors course in biology, before and after they had completed the course, regarding the availability of this technology and its possible use in the college classroom. The pre-course survey revealed that these students were open to the possibility of using this technology in their courses, but that they had concerns about the confidentiality and the accuracy of their genetic results. Strikingly, however, completing the genetics, molecular and cellular biology semester-long portion of the yearlong introductory sequence in biology appeared to boost student confidence in this technology and its use in the undergraduate classroom.

Contesting New Markets for Bodily Knowledge

2019 ◽  
pp. 377-396
Author(s):  
Rene Almeling
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Testing ◽  
The United States ◽  
Medical Professional ◽  
Genetic Counselors ◽  
First Century ◽  
Professional Organizations ◽  
Direct To Consumer ◽  
Clinical Relationship ◽  
Bodily Knowledge ◽  
And Control

Using the case of direct-to-consumer genetic testing, this chapter examines how experts contested the emergence of this new market for bodily knowledge in the United States at the beginning of the twenty-first century. Drawing on theoretical innovations in economic sociology and medical sociology, the author analyzes how scientists, clinicians, and genetic counselors made the argument that genetic information should be provided within the context of a clinical relationship and not a commercial relationship. A systematic examination of editorials in scientific and medical journals, statements by medical professional organizations, and interviews with genetic counselors reveals that experts draw a bright line between medical genetic testing and commercial genetic testing by emphasizing the complexity of the information and the different motivations of clinical versus corporate purveyors. The conclusion offers suggestions for how to study markets for bodily knowledge, and it discusses how experts’ claims may affect people’s ability to access and control their own bodily information.

Genetic counselor approaches to BRCA1/2 direct‐to‐consumer genetic testing results

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Burke ◽  
Maureen Mork ◽  
Krista Qualmann ◽  
Ashley Woodson ◽  
Min Jin Ha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Genetic Counselor ◽  
Direct To Consumer
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