Course Director: Keith Eddleman, M.D.

This course reviews human embryology including fertilization and implantation and the development of organ systems.

Course Director: David Bechhofer, Ph.D.

The Molecules and Cells course is for students to gain an understanding into the mechanisms by which cells: receive and process extracellular signals, regulate gene expression, control organellar biogenesis, and divide or differentiate. The study of these mechanisms constitutes the first two-thirds of the course. The fundamentals of carbohydrate, fatty acid, and nitrogen metabolism constitute the final third of the course. The relationship of these processes to human disease is emphasized throughout. Course goals are achieved through a combination of lectures, reading, problem sets, and small group discussions. Each small group consists of 10 or 11 students and is led by two faculty members, one a basic scientist, the other, a clinician.

Course Director: James H. Godbold, Ph.D.

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to a) the basic study designs used in epidemiological and clinical research and b) the principles of statistical inference. The strengths and weaknesses of the following designs are discussed:

• Randomized clinical trial
• Prospective cohort
• Historical cohort
• Case control
• Cross sectional studies

Measures of association appropriate for each design are considered. The basic concepts of statistical reasoning are considered, such as Type I and Type II errors in hypothesis testing, statistical power, and the interpretation of confidence intervals. Students learn how to perform basic statistical tests such a t-tests and chi square; the general concept of a multivariate regression model is discussed. Students learn to use SPSS statistical software to analyze data sets containing multiple variables. Critical assessment of articles from the current medical literature is a recurring theme throughout the course.

Course Director: Rosamond Rhodes, Ph.D.

Students are provided a framework for the ongoing ethical discussions pervading the CRTP in a series of sessions led by an ethicist and a scientist. The sessions are designed to be interactive and case-based.

The topics covered include:

• The justification of human research and reasonable risk
• The use of animals in biomedical research
• Issues of informed consent and the IRB
• The validity of clinical trials
• Ethical concerns associated with genetic testing and screening
• Research in minors and adults of questionable consent capacity
• Conflict of interest and funding of research
• Investigator responsibilities with regard to fulfilling government regulation
• Scientific fraud and whistle blowing
• The scientific community and mentoring
• Authorship and attribution
• Special populations and inclusion of minorities
• Emergency room research
• Gene therapy

Course Director: Randi E Zinberg, M.S.

This course will provide a didactic and psychosocial approach to genetic counseling. Topics to be addressed include prenatal diagnosis and reproductive, pediatric, and adult genetic counseling, population screening, ethnocultural issues, impact of genetic diseases on family systems, grief and bereavement, and ethical and legal issues in genetic counseling. As the course progresses, professional issues related to genetic counselors will be discussed.

Course Co-Directors: Rosamond Rhodes, Ph.D., Randi E. Zinberg, M.S.

This course will introduce the student to the concept of professional responsibility and professional codes of ethics with a focus on the genetic counselor code of ethics. The principles of confidentiality and truth telling and the importance of a duty to treat (care) will be explored.

Course Director: Nancy Cincotta, M.S.W.

The course will introduce the genetic counseling students to fundamental interviewing skills and the counseling methodologies to provide the foundation for which they will build their experience.

Content from this module will be applied throughout the three semesters of Topics in Genetic Counseling.

Course Director: Rosamond Rhodes, Ph.D.

This course will introduce the broad central moral principles that apply to medicine and the medical sciences: autonomy, beneficence, justice. It will then probe the moral basis of key medical policies that express our constitutional commitments to liberty, privacy, and equality, and policies related to public health, standards of practice, and end of life. The course will also develop an approach to case decision making by examining cases from different medical specialties, focusing on the policies that govern clinical practice and the moral principles involved. The aim of the course will be to develop skill in applied ethics so as to facilitate the ethical analysis of particular policies in the political domain and cases arising in clinical experience. The course will provide a basis for critiquing medical practice and structuring social policies.

Course Director: Judith P. Willner, M.D.

This course is designed to provide students an introduction to medical genetics with an emphasis on molecular genetics, pedigree analysis, population genetics, clinical genetics, cytogenetics, and biochemical genetics. Throughout the course selected hereditary disorders will be presented, and the pertinent clinical presentation, diagnostic evaluation, pathophysiology, treatment, and counseling issues for each disorder will be discussed.

Course Co-Directors: Mary Foley, Ed.D., William Redd, Ph.D.

Behavioral medicine is the interdisciplinary field concerned with the development and integration of biomedical, behavioral, and psychosocial and sociocultural knowledge and techniques relevant to understanding health and illness. It is also concerned with the application of this knowledge and these techniques to disease prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and health promotion. Topical content in the course reflects an eclectic orientation and supports a variety of behavioral, physiological, cognitive, and socio-personality viewpoints. Through presentations, case studies, and class discussions this course is designed to enable learners to 1) apply principles of behavioral medicine to individuals, families, and communities and 2) facilitate voluntary health-related behavioral and social change in a variety of health and human service delivery settings.

Course Co-Directors: Mary Foley, Ed.D., Gary Butts, M.D.

This course is designed to enhance the competencies necessary for providing effective health care and applying research for patients and populations from diverse cultures and developing an appreciation for the need for diversity in health and science professions.

Course Director: Edward Schuchman, Ph.D.

Recent research articles are presented by students in the class and discussed. Topics include anything relevant to the field of human genetics, including positional cloning, gene therapy, mutation identification, disease delineation, etc. Grades are based on class participation and a term paper in the format of a grant application.

Course Director: Goldie Mulak, M.S.W.

This course has an action-oriented design that facilitates the attainment of insight into the social and psychological factors that affect familes and patients with chronic and acute diseases. There will be direct participation along with social workers in interviews with patients and families who are in states of stress and crisis as they ask for and receive medical and psychiatric care.