Complexities of Clinical Genetics Consultation: An Interprofessional Clinical Skills Workshop

Abstract

Introduction: Advances in genomic medicine contribute to increased demand for clinical genetics services and require physicians to understand the interprofessional practice of this field. Medical students receive a foundation in genetics during preclinical studies, but variability in clinical experience may limit knowledge of and recruitment into this clinical specialty. In this resource, we describe an approach for simulating exposure to the practice of clinical genetics during the core pediatrics clerkship. Methods: Prior to class, students researched and considered a mock genetics case. In class, each of four small groups discussed two cases demonstrating varied presentations, with facilitation by genetic counseling students. Each case highlighted the variability in presentation, testing, management strategies, and psychosocial issues of a genetics case. Groups reported out to the class, and individuals completed an anonymous evaluation survey. Results: Surveys were distributed to nine of 10 pilot sessions (210 of 235 students) with a response rate of 48%. Students frequently reported no previous exposure to seeing patients with genetics professionals, indicated a preference for learning in case discussion format over traditional lectures, and felt the format helped them apply clinical skills and reasoning. Medical students appreciated the opportunity to interact with genetic counseling students in an interdisciplinary setting and desired further educational opportunities regarding delivering complex information to patients and their families. Discussion: This session expanded exposure to clinical genetics content and professionals, serving as an important foundation for further development of genetic knowledge during clinical training.

A Case-Based Active Learning Session for Medical Genetics Resources

“…For example, at UC Davis, third-year students shadow genetic counselors counseling familial cancer cases during the OB/GYN clerkship. As Hoffman et al 21 successfully delivered genetics cases during the third-year pediatrics clerkship, revisiting evidence-based genetics learning could provide a suitable opportunity to reevaluate and reinforce the use of medical genetics resources.…”

“…Our work makes a unique contribution to the literature by offering preclerkship students highly structured learning materials for introducing medical genetics resources, thereby providing know-how of genetic investigation in a time-efficient manner. This module could serve as a foundation for further genetics skills training during clerkship, such as reported by Hoffman et al 21 Either in conjunction with clerkship modules or as a standalone activity, the resource presented here will encourage students to use specialized medical genetics resources as a lifelong learning practice in clinical genetics.…”

Didactic strategy to increase knowledge of the clinical method in genetics

“…La genética médica ha pasado del estudio de enfermedades raras al esclarecimiento de los trastornos que afectan a todo el espectro de la práctica médica, (1) lo que ha permitido que cada día se avance más en la medicina genómica. (2) Con ello existe una mayor demanda de los servicios de Genética, que requieren del dominio de las habilidades clínicas y su la integración a los conocimientos básicos; (3) por lo que se necesita de un mayor dominio de las herramientas fundamentales que han caracterizado el quehacer médico, que junto a con los conocimientos básicos de la especialidad, hacen que se aplique el método científico a la práctica médica, y de ese modo se desarrolle el proceso diagnóstico. (4) El razonamiento clínico, es crucial para todos los médicos, independientemente de su área de especialización, (5) y requiere de fomentar las habilidades y conocimientos de los profesionales en formación, a fin de promover su progreso hacia independencia en el entorno clínico, que permita la capacidad de aplicar el método clínico, que es el proceso diagnóstico, para ello se necesita organizar e integrar el conocimiento al problema de salud del paciente a fin de lograr el razonamiento diagnóstico.…”

Genetic Testing and Counseling in Metabolic Liver Disease: An Interactive Lecture for Medical Students

“… 7 , 8 Previous MedEdPORTAL publications addressed several topics in genetics such as risk assessment 9 , 10 and ethics, 11 but none covered the intricacies of providing genetic testing. One source provided an excellent overview of several common genetic conditions including testing and ethical issues 12 but was geared towards pediatric residents rather than learners earlier in their career. We did not find any similar resources that provided this type of clinical genetics education for preclinical medical students.…”