279798
Genetics/genomics education for health professionals: A systematic literature review
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Lei Xu, Ph.D.,
Department of Health Education and Promotion, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC
Kiran Bhurtyal, MD,
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Rural Public Health ,Texas A&M Health Science Center, College Station, TX
Eunju Jung, Ph.D.,
Department of Health and Kinesiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
Background: The completion of the Human Genome Project has opened many avenues for better prevention, diagnosis, and management of diseases. As health professionals do not keep up with the advancement in genomics, various organizations and researchers have advocated the needs of genomic education for this group. We conducted a systematic review to provide an overview of genetics/genomic education programs for health professionals. Methods: We searched five electronic databases for relevant articles between 1990 and Jan 2013. Thirty-four studies met our inclusion criteria (e.g., delivering genetics/genomics education programs to health professionals and presenting the evaluation findings). Results: There was a growing publication trend: 1990-1994 (n=0), 1995-1999 (n=3), 2000-2004 (n=5), 2005-2009 (n=13), 2010-Jan 2013 (n=13). The majority of studies were conducted in the United States. Participants included genetic professionals and non-genetics doctors, residents, and allied health professionals. The curricula varied, ranging from basic genetic concepts, applied genetics/genomics, ethical, legal, and social implication of genetics/genomics, to genomic competencies/recommendations in particular professional fields. Yet, only five curricula were theory-based. Regarding evaluation designs, most adopted a pre/post design and an inferential statistics without controlling for the covariates (e.g., paired-t test and chi-square). Less than one-fourth of studies reported data validity and reliability. Outcomes of the programs were measured in terms of participants' changes in the following areas: knowledge, attitudes, intention, behavior/practice, self-efficacy, and comfort level. Conclusions: Although there was a rise in publications in genomic education for health professionals, improvements in the methodological quality of studies are needed to strengthen this body of literature.
Learning Areas:
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health biology
Public health or related education
Learning Objectives:
Discuss the findings and methodological quality of genetics/genomic education programs for health professionals.
Keyword(s): Health Education, Genetics
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because:
I have published several articles in the area of public health genomics, and one of my research focuses is genomics education.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.