Genetics in the Clinic: Clinical, Ethical, and Social Implications for Primary Care
Edited by:
- Mary B. Mahowald,
- Victor A. McKusick,
- Angela S. Scheuerle &
- Timothy J. Aspinwall
Mosby, $39.95,, 2001, ISBN 0-323-01203-5 | ISBN: 0-323-01203-5
It is widely believed that the Human Genome Project, by facilitating the identification of genes causing or predisposing to a host of human disorders, both common and rare, is leading to a profound transformation in the practice of medicine and public health. For better or worse, depending on one's point of view, medicine and health care are becoming 'geneticized,' and it is expected that genetic considerations will become important in all aspects of disease diagnosis, treatment and prevention. Given the relative scarcity of medical geneticists and genetic counselors specifically trained to deal with such matters, the prevailing assumption is that primary care providers, whether physicians, nurses, or other health care professionals, as well as non-geneticist specialist-physicians, will of necessity be the ones providing the necessary genetic services to their patients. As a result, there has been much discussion about improving the genetic education of not only primary care providers, but also of the medical students who will soon join their ranks.
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