Genetic Counseling Scientific Interest Group

The Genetic Counseling Scientific Interest Group (GC SIG) at the NIH serves the critical need of connecting genetic counseling providers across the NIH in order to provide a forum for them to share ideas, receive continuing education and collaborate with one another. The group also has relevance to other professions, given the increasing number of Institutes and protocols that are confronting issues that are central to genetic counseling practice and training, such as ensuring that participants make informed decisions about genetic testing, educating participants about genetic testing results (including secondary genomic findings) and providing psychosocial assessment and short-term counseling related to genetic disorders or testing results.

The specific goals of this group are to:

Provide continuing education on topics driven by member-identified needs and interests, such as discussion of evidence-based practice guidelines or updates on policy and laws relevant to genetic testing and counseling.
Promote research collaboration amongst membership, which has the potential to increase the number and impact of genetic counselor-led publications and raise the profile of the profession and the projects participating in such collaborations, as well as to reduce administrative costs by improving efficiency.
Organize mentorship opportunities for junior staff members.
Offer a centralized resource for those seeking genetic counseling research expertise, such as the organizers of the Wednesday Afternoon Lecture Series or the NIH Research Festival.
Enhance communication about genetic counseling across Institutes in order to improve consistency in common practices and members’ knowledge about genetic counseling resources within the NIH.
Facilitate discussion about other issues related to the genetic counseling profession, such as practice models, ethical issues and informed consent, and implementation of high-throughput sequencing and return of results.

The GC SIG meets throughout the year in-person on the NIH campus with the option to join via WebEx for members who work off-site. The meeting format varies depending on the topic but may include seminars, journal clubs, guest lectures, and group discussions.

Mailing List

To join the Genetic Counseling Scientific Interest Group mailing list, please visit the Genetic Counseling Scientific Interest Group Listserv home page, then click the “Subscribe or Unsubscribe” link in the right sidebar.