Tuesday was supposed to be my first day in clinic, but it didn't work out because our patients didn't show up. Unfortunate, but I did spend my time somewhat productively, looking through a textbook of dysmorphology (my theme for the week) and learning more about the counseling process from Kelly.
It turns out that genetic counselors sometimes help physicians make a diagnosis. Not directly, mind you, because GCs don't have MDs, but gathering a complete and accurate family history is an integral part of any diagnosis. After getting a family history and constructing a pedigree, the GC can look up the patient's symptoms and narrow down the possible diagnoses for the physician. The GC can't MAKE the diagnosis, but they help. Some geneticists do this preliminary work themselves, if they work alone, but GCs can do the legwork and facilitate post-diagnostic counseling.
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