How to find a genetic counselor on Facebook
As social media continue to flourish, all types of people and businesses are recognizing ways in which social media can help them better connect with others and reach their goals. Traditionally, I am not the biggest fan of social media, as it is extremely time-consuming and fills my brain with mostly useless information. I recently had a social media experience, however, in which I realized that it can be used as an effective tool to help me do my job.
As a genetic counselor, I am a member of many Facebook (FB) groups related to genetic diseases. About two weeks ago, I was FB emailed from a member of a genetic eye disease FB group asking me if I was affected with said disease, as her child was recently diagnosed. I replied that I wasn’t but am a genetic counselor, and I asked if she needed any help getting the resources she needs for her child and her family. She replied, “What is a genetic counselor?”
As one of the couple thousand genetic counselors in the United States, I often hear this question. Yet, I was still surprised when a parent of a child with a genetic disorder, someone who could benefit from seeing a genetic professional, hadn’t even heard of genetic counselors. So, what is a genetic counselor?
Genetic counselors are health professionals trained in both human genetics and counseling. Genetic counselors are trained in:
- Assessing risk for inherited conditions
- Offering appropriate genetic testing options (when available)
- Explaining the benefits and limitations of genetic testing
- Answering questions regarding genetic testing or inherited risk
- Educating about disease characteristics, management, prevention and follow-up
- Providing emotional support
- Referring to specialists or outside recourses (when needed)
Although there are many different reasons to see a genetic counselor, it is sometimes difficult to find local services. The National Society of Genetic Counselors has a directory that can be a good place to start. AccessDNA has also created a directory to help people access local genetic counseling services.
[...] is the original: How to find a genetic counselor on Facebook Tags: been-redeemed, disease, facebook, food-substance, from-poverty, genetic-counselor, [...]
Hi. I’d also recommend GeneTests as an outstanding place for people to start looking for a local genetics professional: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/GeneTests/clinic?db=GeneTests.
-Matt Mealiffe, M.D.
DNA and You
http://www.dnaandyou.org
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Dan Vorhaus and DNA Network, AccessDNA. AccessDNA said: How to find a genetic counselor on Facebook: http://bit.ly/2TpFeS [...]
I highly recommend speaking to a Genetic Counselor if you are planning a family and have a history of any genetic disorders on either parents side. It’s better to be prepared and know the risks and the CHANCES of your children having to suffer from a congenital defect. I wish this was available years ago…..
This site was mentioned how to find a genetic counselor on Facebook…. It is very informative…..