Reminicing on the Past Year

Interview season is quickly approaching, and soon the Division of Human Genetics will be holding interviews with prospective students.  As a current student, I will be taking applicants on tours around the Division and throughout Children’s Hospital.  I find it hard to believe that I will be a tour guide, because it seems like just yesterday that I was still figuring out the labyrinth that is the hospital.  Come to think of it, it seems like I was just interviewing here as a prospective student.  As I reminisce about my interview experience, I marvel at everything that I’ve learned and accomplished since coming to the program one year ago.  The University of Cincinnati Genetic Counseling Program has given me the opportunity to accomplish goals that I never expected to achieve in such a short time.

First, I already have already selected a thesis project to work on with the help of my research advisor and research advisory committee.   I will survey clinical geneticists and genetic counselors to learn about the future of the ever-evolving genetic counseling field as well as the additional training that changes in the profession will necessitate.  I plan to ask respondents to identify the emerging content and skill areas in the field of genetic counseling, as well as to select the best method of incorporating emerging areas into training for genetic counselors.  I’m excited about my thesis because I feel that it will make a significant contribution to the genetic counseling field.   My first year classmates are equally as excited about starting their projects, which focus on everything from determining the needs of parents who adopt children with genetic conditions to learning about the accuracy of risk assessments provided by direct-to-consumer testing companies. 

In addition, I’m already starting to actively participate in clinic.  I have gained experience taking medical histories, drawing pedigrees, and explaining inheritance and recurrence risks to patients.  Some of my first year classmates have even led entire counseling sessions already!  We have seen a wide variety of conditions, some of which we may never see again in our practice because they’re so rare.  The Craniofacial Center, the Cardiovascular Genetics Program, and the Skeletal Dysplasia Center at Children’s Hospital are only a few of the unique clinics in which we have observed patients and taken on roles.  My classmates and I are excited to have the opportunity to become involved in clinic early on in our schooling. 

Lastly, I’m grateful to say that since beginning the program, I have made 25 new friends (11 full-time first year students, not including myself, 12 full-time second year students, and 2 part-time students).  I’m eager to come into school every morning to spend time with my classmates, and I don’t mind studying because there are always people in the Division to encourage me.  One of my favorite aspects of the genetic counseling program here is the strong sense of community that it fosters.  The students not only help each other with school work, but support one another on a personal level.  We’ve grown tremendously close over the past few months, and have developed friendships that will likely last a lifetime. 

As a side note, I’ve also mastered an unbelievable amount of medical terminology since beginning the program.   Words like hepatosplenomegaly simply roll of the tongue now.  Reflecting on everything that I’ve learned since I interviewed here a year ago, I’ve come to realize how lucky I am to be a student at the University of Cincinnati. 

-Maureen Osak, First Year Student

First Quarter Wrap-up

With our first quarter wrapping up and winter rolling in, it has been a very busy few weeks for us at the UC/CCHMC Genetic Counseling program.  With the unseasonably warm weather, it has been a challenge for us to start buckling down and studying for our finals next week.  The second years came back from the NSGC conference in San Diego and we were all very jealous.  It sounds like they had a blast at the conference and I can’t wait to go next year.  It is nice to look forward to three weeks without Molecular Genetics exams, lectures, or all of our other time commitments in a busy schedule with winter break coming up.  It hasn’t been all work though, we have still found time to get together to have a Thanksgiving feast with our classmates, tried many local eateries together, and have had volunteer activities such as PROM and VCFS support group.  It has so far been a very rewarding experience and it is shaping up to be a wonderful end to 2011. 

As a first year, I also started clinic rotations since my last blog post.  All of us first years are in an observational rotation with various clinics.  I am in general pediatrics right now and have learned so much from just observing a genetic counselor for a few cases a week, as well as figuring out case prep, EPIC, and case summaries.  It is just as exciting as I thought it would be, and I think everyone else in the year agrees.  I am learning more than I had hoped about specific disorders, and have seen a few really interesting cases.  We are getting more into role plays in class with IGC , and this helps with clinic too as we are practicing empathy, contracting, and medical intakes.  I am looking forward to lysosomal storage disorder clinic next quarter, as that will bring on a whole new set of genetic conditions for me to learn about, as well as taking on a role or two.  Yikes!

Recently we first years have gotten our thesis matches which we will be spending the next year and a half on.  There were many interesting topics, such as exomic sequencing, personalized medicine, and a study looking at direct-to-consumer testing.  I received my match on looking at adoptive parents with children who have DMD and their experiences.  I am so excited to get started, and I know a lot of the other first years are as well. 

I am hoping to make a more specific post about things we have learned such as exomic sequencing, course work, and other program happenings over winter break, so stay tuned! : )

Posted by Amy Gladstone, First Year Student

A Voice: "There's an App for that!"

As I sit here in our program's area at Children's, I've got white earbuds jammed in my ears bringing me wonderful music from my iPod. Some of us might have iPhones, Droids, or other smart devices which we use to text, checkour facebooks as if something majorly important needs our attention, tweet with twitter apps, or play games like Sudoku or Angry Birds. Yet, have we really thought of the potential of these devices?

Using google I found this picture of the one, the only, the iPad. Now, my thinking might be primitive, but I expected business people to use this for hands-on presentations, checking the stock market, sending emails. I expected my Grandma to use it to read a book through a Kindle App. In a little google search "uses of iPad," some of the top uses were for Mobile Gaming, eReading, Business, texting and tweeting, watching TV/videos, and using it as a GPS. However, I'm not sure the creators of this device ever expected it to give someone language.

Setting: I'm a first year student rotating in our clinic space. This clinic space is sometimes shared among services - so today there was a Cancer Genetics rotation and an Aerodigestive clinic. While I was only in one of them, everyone is very friendly and we share insights about patients (more like they share, and I, the student, listen). I had just stepped out of a room with a patient, and was called over to the other side of clinic by one of our Geneticists. She said "you've got to see this!" - and she was right.

In front of me was a six-year-old child in a wheelchair who had several health complications due to her condition. Up to a few months ago, her family and doctors thought she was basically non-communicative. She wouldn't respond in animated ways when her mother talked to her, she wouldn't ask for anything, she wouldn't move her arms. Then, she got her iPad.

I didn't pry into how exactly the idea of getting an iPad was brought up with the family, but the mother seemed very active in her child's care and after six years of low to no communication, I wouldn't doubt that she figured this out for her daughter in talking with other parents.

The six-year-old girl could now click on a drink application on the iPad homescreen, and tell her mom what she wanted to drink. She could play educational games and point to the correct shapes if you asked her. She knew who the Disney Princesses were now. Her mom said to me "last week, she read her first book all by herself." Her mom said they both had more freedom, and how special it was to be able to communicate with her daughter after all this time. To me, I was SO touched, I had to hold back the tears. Here I was (as well as most of the population) playing on iPads, thinking they're "cool," playing mindless games, checking my e-mail and then here was this child who was given language with an iPad. Just think of not being able to verbalize your needs, wants, desires. Not knowing popular culture. Not reading. Not Communicating. And then, with a new-age device - you can.  I can say confidently, it was an experience I will never forget. It most certainly put things into perspective, and showed me so many lessons on all I have to be thankful for, and just how sweet technology is becoming.

I don't think the inventors of the iPad ever intended for such a large impact on that child and family, and me in clinic that day. But I do think that everyone needs to take a step back and realize just what this technology can do for patients and families. Not only with genetic conditions, but with several lifelong conditions. There are tools for them, and sometimes it seems we just have to think outside of the box.

I wonder if there's an App for that.

Posted by Leslie Gress, First year

Hustle & Bustle in the GCP!

It's a busy time of year for the students and staff here at the program!

First years have begun their clinic rotations and are about to wrap up their first quarter of classes. We just had a big Molecular Genetics test on Monday, and finished a few weeks with what seemed to be endless assignments for other classes. It's nice looking at the rest of our "to-do" list: only a few exams and we are onto Christmas break! Although, I think the lesson a lot of us are learning in our first few weeks here at UC is that the "to-do" list is surely going to be never-ending over the next two years! The "buzz" around us is all about thesis topics - we submitted our choices to Melanie on Monday and are waiting to hear back which project we will be devoting endless hours to over the rest of our time here. We were really lucky to have great choices to pick from, and I think most of us would be happy with whatever we get! Updates on that are sure to come!

Second years are deep into their research for their Thesis projects. In talking with a few of them, it seems they are really enjoying their classes, especially Advanced Genetic Counseling and Teratology. Also they are seeing more patients on average because several of them are in a specialty clinic setting. Even though I'm just a first year, I get the feeling that the second years really enjoyed their summer rotations, but are glad to be back at Children's and UC and wrapping up their time on the way to graduation in June!

The program staff is also busy! Like I said, Melanie is matching students for thesis projects which I'm sure is keeping her busy. Katie is preparing the rest of the clinic schedule for the first years, and Kathleen and Carrie are always busy as well! I think we are all VERY thankful for our program coordinator, Bette Young, who joined the program staff in September. Speaking from experience, if there is a superhero out there - it IS Bette! She is such a pleasant woman and can get anyone whatever information you need. She also keeps little treats for us - like pretzels, or cough drops when you're ill, and recently hand lotion has made an appearance since winter is approaching!

I'd say generally all is good and happy here at the GCP. I'm working on some more specific blog posts about clinic experiences, classroom experiences, and other things - just waiting for some feedback from my classmates to be able to post! :-)

Thanks for joining us on our blog-endeavor! Remember, you can e-mail us gcgradstudent@cchmc.org or comment below. Have a great day!


Posted by: Leslie Gress, First Year