For Physicians
General physicians, OB/GYNs and pediatricians are in a unique position to counsel and inform young Jewish women about Jewish Genetic Diseases, and encourage timely and complete genetic screening.
The JGDC Medical Grand Rounds Program, aimed at OB/GYNs, pediatricians, medical students, nurse/midwives and other health care professionals who treat or counsel women who are thinking about starting families, is an introduction to the family of genetic mutations that exist most commonly, though not exclusively, among Jewish populations of Eastern European descent (Ashkenazi). This one-hour seminar is a comprehensive educational module that encompasses medical, cultural, and psychosocial aspects of genetic screening in a pre-conceptional and/or pregnant population.
The very best time to educate young women and encourage genetic testing is prior to pregnancy.
The JGDC Medical Grand Rounds Program
The JGDC program pairs a medical professional expert in the area of Jewish genetic diseases along with the parent of a child with one of these diseases. The program encompasses medical, cultural and psychosocial aspects of genetic screening. The content includes Power Point slides with professional formatting and graphic design, as well as animation and video clips to highlight and illustrate key concepts. The other resources in the program include a description of the various conditions, information on the risks, benefits and limitations of genetic screening, a discussion of ethical issues involved in screening, an explanation of Jewish perspectives (Orthodox, Conservative and Reform) on how these ethical issues may be resolved and personal testimony from a family member of a child with a Jewish genetic diseases.
History of the Program
Starting in 2005, the Canavan Foundation, along with a team of individuals from several member organizations of the Jewish Genetic Disease Consortium, developed and piloted the educational (unitalisize module Genetic Screening and Counseling for Jewish Genetic Diseases. The program is aimed at OB/GYN practitioners, including doctors, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, medical students, nurses and midwives, to promote awareness of Jewish genetic diseases and the importance of genetic screening.
The target venue for this program is the Grand Rounds Seminar, a weekly or monthly meeting among OB/GYN faculty, residents and medical students. The program provides information on new technologies and changes in the standard of care for genetic testing and screening in the Jewish population. The program is also appropriate for regional and society professional meetings.
In the first year, Genetic Screening and Counseling for Jewish Genetic Diseases was presented to over 200 practitioners in the NY, NJ, PA area. The program provides a description of 16 Jewish genetic disorders for which genetic screening is available and discusses the risks, benefits and limitations of genetic screening. It covers ethical issues surrounding genetic screening and an explanation of Jewish perspectives on how these ethical issues may be resolved. The program is unique in that it also involves personal testimony from a family member of a child with a Jewish genetic disease. The presentation uses PowerPoint slides and speaker notes, professionally designed and formatted with animation and video clips highlighting key concepts. A patient educational brochure accompanies the program.
Feedback from each presentation has been extremely well received. Overall ratings on evaluations have been very high with average scores of greater than 4.5 out of 5. Some of the comments from the evaluation forms have included:
“Well organized presentation, knowledgeable regarding topic/genetic screening. Very informative lecture, very applicable for our patient population”
- St. Barnabas Hospital, Livingston, NJ
“The personal story was powerful”
- St. Vincent’s Hospital, New York, NY
As a result of the pilot program’s success, The Martin and Evelyn Bernstein Foundation, who generously provided the original funding, provided additional funding to continue the program and expand it nationwide.
The Jewish Genetic Disease Consortium expects that this program will make a measurable difference in the quality of information provided by health care providers to Jewish families throughout the United States and will result in a significant increase in the number of people who are screened for Jewish genetic diseases. Ultimately, this will mean that fewer babies will be born each year suffering from these horrible diseases.
If you would be interested in having the OB/GYN Grand Rounds program at your medical center, please contact the Jewish Genetic Disease Consortium at info@jewishgeneticdiseases.org or call 855-642-6900.
Historical JGDC Medical Grand Rounds presentations
New York
Maimonides Medical Center – Brooklyn, NY – OB/GYN
St. Vincent Hospital – New York, NY – OB/GYN
Staten Island Hospital – Staten Island, NY – OB/GYN
Forest Hills Hospital – Forest Hills, NY – OB/GYN
New York Hospital Queens, – Flushing, NY – OB/GYN
Northern Westchester Hospital – Mt. Kisco, NY – OB/GYN
Winthrop Hospital, – Mineola, NY – OB/GYN
Stony Brook University Medical Center – Stony Brook, NY – OB/GYN & Pediatrics
New York Methodist Hospital – Brooklyn, NY – OB/GYN
Staten Island Hospital – Staten Island, NY – Pediatrics
Long Island Jewish Hospital – New Hyde Park, NY – OB/GYN
Long Island College – Brooklyn, NY – OB/GYN
Montefiore North Hospital – Bronx, NY – Pediatrics
Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital at Westchester Medical Center – Valhalla, NY – Pediatrics
White Plains Hospital – White Plains, NY – Pediatrics
Huntington Hospital – Huntington, NY – OB/GYN
Westchester Medical Center – Valhalla, NY – OB/GYN
SUNY Downstate, Brooklyn – NY – OB/GYN
Lenox Hill Hospital, New York – NY – OB/GYN
New Jersey
St. Barnabas – Livingston, NJ – OB/GYN
Monmouth Medical Center – Long Branch, NJ – OB/GYN & Pediatrics
Jersey Shore Hospital – Neptune, NJ – OB/GYN
University of Medicine and Dentistry of NJ – Newark, NJ – OB/GYN
St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center – Paterson, NJ – OB/GYN & Pediatrics
Hackensack University Medical Center – Hackensack, NJ – Pediatrics
Englewood Hospital – Englewood, NJ – OB/GYN & Pediatrics
Connecticut
Yale University Hospital – New Haven, CT – OB/GYN
Norwalk Hospital – Norwalk, CT – OB/GYN
Stamford Hospital – Stamford, CT – OB/GYN
Greenwich Hospital – Greenwich, CT – Perinatology
Connecticut Children’s Medical Center – Hartford , CT – Pediatrics
University of Connecticut Medical School – Farmington, CT – OB/GYN & Perinatology
St. Francis Hospital – Hartford, CT – Pediatrics
Florida
Miami Children’s Hospital – Miami, FL – Pediatrics
Boston
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center – Boston, MA – OB/GYN
