The time-consuming demands of the practice of medical genetics in the era of advanced genomic testing.

Abstract

Clinical genetics services are time- and labor-intensive. With increasing pressure for cost-effective medical care, the means of providing medical genetics services need to be evaluated in the current era of new genomic technologies. An anonymous online survey regarding activities linked to medical genetics practice was administered to an international cohort of professionals. Among 151 responses, the reported average time required for pediatric, oncogenetic, pregnancy with a malformed fetus, and preamniocentesis counseling sessions was 48, 37, 40, and 18 min, respectively. The time required to prepare a summary letter followed a similar pattern. Professionals with less experience needed more time for specific activities. The time required for the total workup of a pediatric patient ranged from 1 h and 48 min to 4 h, most of which was associated with indirect activities. Professionals performing one type of consultation (74% pediatric geneticists) perform fewer consultations per week. Respondents' narrative comments reflected the complexity of the work and challenges faced. Clinical genetics is a time-consuming profession with increased demands related to advanced genetic and genomic testing. Further consideration is required to determine how to adapt these changes to the demands of cost-effectiveness without compromising the quality of patient care.Genet Med 18 4, 372-377.