Genetic Counselors
Health Science > Therapeutic ServicesProjected Growth: Much faster than average
Projected Job Openings
Extensive Preparation Needed
Job Description
Your job is to Assess individual or family risk for a variety of inherited conditions, such as genetic disorders and birth defects. Provide information to other healthcare providers or to individuals and families concerned with the risk of inherited conditions. Advise individuals and families to support informed decisionmaking and coping methods for those at risk. May help conduct research related to genetic conditions or genetic counseling.
Common job titles of Genetic Counselors include:
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Experience and Education
Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.
100% said they needed a Master's Degree.
Tasks
Analyze genetic information to identify patients or families at risk for specific disorders or syndromes.
Provide patients with information about the inheritance of conditions such as cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and various forms of cancer.
Prepare or provide genetics-related educational materials to patients or medical personnel.
Assess patients' psychological or emotional needs, such as those relating to stress, fear of test results, financial issues, and marital conflicts to make referral recommendations or assist patients in managing test outcomes.
Interview patients or review medical records to obtain comprehensive patient or family medical histories, and document findings.
Determine or coordinate treatment plans by requesting laboratory services, reviewing genetics or counseling literature, and considering histories or diagnostic data.
Write detailed consultation reports to provide information on complex genetic concepts to patients or referring physicians.
Provide counseling to patient and family members by providing information, education, or reassurance.
Discuss testing options and the associated risks, benefits and limitations with patients and families to assist them in making informed decisions.
Interpret laboratory results and communicate findings to patients or physicians.
Provide genetic counseling in specified areas of clinical genetics, such as obstetrics, pediatrics, oncology and neurology.
Explain diagnostic procedures such as chorionic villus sampling (CVS), ultrasound, fetal blood sampling, and amniocentesis.
Read current literature, talk with colleagues, or participate in professional organizations or conferences to keep abreast of developments in genetics.
Refer patients to specialists or community resources.
Engage in research activities related to the field of medical genetics or genetic counseling.
Evaluate or make recommendations for standards of care or clinical operations, ensuring compliance with applicable regulations, ethics, legislation, or policies.
Collect for, or share with, research projects patient data on specific genetic disorders or syndromes.
Design and conduct genetics training programs for physicians, graduate students, other health professions or the general community.
Identify funding sources and write grant proposals for eligible programs or services.
Tools
Ultracentrifuges
Table top centrifuges
Phosphor imagers
Personal computers
Microplate readers
High speed centrifuges
Gel documentation systems
All ToolsFluorescent microscopes
Differential interference microscopes
Cryostats
Benchtop ultracentrifuges
Automated deoxyribonucleic acid DNA sequencers
Technologies
Benetech PRA
BRCAPRO
Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool
CancerGene
CyrillicSoftware Cyrillic
FileMaker Pro
Ftree
All TechnologiesJurek Software Pedigree-Draw
Medgen PED
PedHunter
PediDraw
Pedigree drawing and management software
Progeny Software Progeny Clinical
SynDiag
Wageningen MapChart
Skills
Reading Comprehension
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Complex Problem Solving
Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Active Listening
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Active Learning
Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Writing
Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Critical Thinking
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Social Perceptiveness
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Science
Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
Judgment and Decision Making
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Instructing
Teaching others how to do something.
Service Orientation
Actively looking for ways to help people.
Systems Analysis
Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
Time Management
Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Learning Strategies
Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Monitoring
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Coordination
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Persuasion
Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
Negotiation
Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
Systems Evaluation
Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
Abilities
Read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Written Comprehension
Apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Deductive Reasoning
Listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Oral Comprehension
Communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Oral Expression
Communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Written Expression
Tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Problem Sensitivity
Combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Inductive Reasoning
Arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Information Ordering