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The First Online Genetic Assistant Training Program: Curriculum, Student Demographics and Outcomes

Education and Research Strategies
  • Primary Categories:
    • General Education
  • Secondary Categories:
    • General Education
Introduction:
Genetic counseling assistants (GCAs) have emerged as a workforce supplement to increase efficiency and expand genetic services.  Thus far, training of GCAs has occurred on-the-job, conducted by genetic counselors, and is often limited to job-specific duties.  We created an online, instructor-led program consisting of two 10-week courses that provides students with a foundational knowledge of cellular and molecular genetics and genomics, medical genetics concepts, laboratory methodologies, regulatory issues, and social/ethical considerations.  Students earn a certificate, verifying completion of all course learning modules and assignments.  We opted to use the term “genetic assistant” as the educational content is valuable to those pursuing GCA careers, as well as those supporting medical geneticists, physicians, and laboratories. 

Methods:
The program was advertised via mass emails to the National Society of Genetic Counselors membership and on the DNA Today podcast.  Courses are offered three times a year- Spring, Summer, and Fall. Demographic and educational data were self-reported and obtained via an introductory survey. The program was assessed using optional weekly and end-of-course evaluations. 

 

Results:
Over the first five years the course was offered (June 2019-Spring 2024), there were 739 enrollments representing 412 unique individuals.  Enrollment in each course has been steady across all years, with only two semesters (Fall 2019 and Summer 2020) having 15 or less students.  Summer 2023 had the highest enrollment with 37 and 40 students enrolled in each course. Demographic information was provided by 342 students.  Most students self-identified as female (n=311, 90.9%) and selected white to describe their ethnicity (n=228, 84.2%). All age groups were represented with the largest subset being young adults (age 18-25, n=170; 49.7%). Educational background and goals were shared by 399 students.  While the majority of students had a bachelor’s degree (n=271, 68.9%), the remaining third of students had a high school diploma and/or some college or technical training (n=113, 28.3%) or an associate’s degree (n=15, 3.8%). Thirty-one individuals (7.8%) were trained as certified medical assistants (CMAs).   When asked about future educational goals, 61.4% (n=245) students planned to apply to graduate school, particularly in genetic counseling (n=206, 84.1%), though 9.4% (n=23) were considering other careers in addition to genetic counseling and 6.5% did not plan to pursue other disciplines.  Most students (n=222, 55.6%) stated that they were taking the course to obtain a position as a genetic assistant.  Among the 399 respondents, 23.8% (n=95) were employed as a genetic assistant with 94.7% of those (n=90) employed in a clinical versus research setting.  Although the program focuses on the United States (US) healthcare system, 12.3% (n=39/317 respondents) answered that they work outside the US.  Of the 265 students that completed the final course evaluations, 96.6% (n=265) rated the overall quality of the courses as “exceptional” or “good” (other choices were “fair” and “poor”). Twelve employers enrolled different employees (n=50) in multiple offerings of the program.

 

Conclusion:
The success of this program- defined by number of students enrolled, consistent enrollment across semesters, and student ratings- demonstrates the need for didactic education in genetics and genomics for healthcare.  These data also highlight the increasing demand for medical professionals to understand genetics, genomics and genetic testing both in and outside of the United States and suggest an opportunity to increase diversity within the field of genetic medicine.

 

Agenda

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