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Genetic counseling is a communication process concerning the occurrence and the risk of recurrence of genetic disorders within a family. The aim of such counseling is to provide the counselee(s) with as complete an understanding of the disorder and/or problem as possible and of all the options and implications. The counseling process is also aimed at helping families cope with their problems and at assisting and supporting them in their decision making.

The personal right to found a family is considered inviolable. Such reproductive autonomy is enhanced by genetic counseling, a process that both emphasizes freedom of choice and reviews the available options in order to enrich the decision‐making process. All couples have a right to know whether they have an increased risk of having children with genetic disease and to know which options pertain to their particular situation. The physician and genetic counselor have a clear duty and obligation to communicate this information, to offer specific tests or to refer couples for a second or more expert opinion. In the United States, at least, the full force of law supports the prospective parents' right to know.

As Kessler¹⁷² stated so succinctly, “Because genetic counselors work with people filled with uncertainty, fear of the future, anguish and a sense of personal failure” they have unusual challenges and opportunities “to understand clients, give them a sense of being understood and help them feel more hopeful, more valued and more capable of dealing with their life problems.” The physician and genetic counselor providing genetic counseling should have a clear perception of the necessary prerequisites, guiding principles, and potential problems.