... of an affected fetus is legal in Tunisia. Contraception is encouraged. This paper reviews common genetic disorders in the country. In spite of the high quality of health care services provided in Tunisia and the progress made in genetic research in the country, genetic services still remain insufficient and do...

...Rosalyn Y. Beene-Harris; Catharine Wang; Janice V. Bach Objective: In efforts to prepare for implications of genomic advances, a needs assessment was undertaken from 2000 to 2002 by the Michigan Department of Community Health to develop a comprehensive state plan for genetic services. This paper...

... premarital screening program for β-thalassemia carriers commenced in June 2004. The high consanguinity rate and the large family size in Jordan have contributed to the description of a number of rare and new autosomal recessive conditions. Genetic services in Jordan are still scarce and do not cover all...

... in the publicly funded health systems. At the present time there is no national policy for genetic medicine in Italy, and only two regions, Emilia-Romagna and Liguria, have formally agreed to a strategic plan for health care in genetics. The current provision of genetic services in Emilia-Romagna is described...

...Susana Kofman-Alfaro; Victor B. Penchaszadeh The World Health Organization sponsored a Consultation on Community Genetic Services and a Regional Network of Medical Genetics in Latin America in Porto Alegre, Brazil, on June 19, 2003. The main recommendations of the meeting included: (a) the call...

... services in the state include: newborn screening for hypothyroidism, phenylketonuria, sickle cell disease and cystic fibrosis; clinical-genetic diagnostic evaluation and counseling; prenatal diagnosis, fetal medicine and paternity testing. Medical genetic services and research are underdeveloped because...

... and urbanization coexists with the persistence of nutritional and infectious diseases characteristic of poverty and underdevelopment. Over the last 2 decades of the 20th century, birth defects and genetic disorders have increased their share of morbidity and mortality, and tertiary-care-based genetic services have...

... mortality rate is 19.4 per 1,000, although there is gross under-reporting. Maternal mortality rate is alarmingly high at 110.9 per 100,000 livebirths, reaching 420.5 in rural areas. There are only two clinical geneticists and four biochemists trained in human genetics, and virtually all genetic services...

... of recent advances in medical genetics, demand for genetic services has increased, reinforcing the need for programs for the management and prevention of genetic diseases and birth defects, especially at primary health care level. An overview of these issues in Brazil is presented here, with information...

...Luis Heredero-Baute The author’s experience of 20 years as director of the medical genetic services program in Cuba is presented. The setting of the infrastructure for equipment and the training of personnel for the medical genetic program began in 1981 in the city of Havana, and was progressively...

... to clinical genetics services. 28 05 2004 12 11 2004 Five laboratories are in charge of the initial screening tests. Two of them belong to the National Health System: the ‘Hospital San Juan de Dios’ covers regions I–VII, XI, and the metropolitan region, while the ‘Hospital Concepción’ covers...

...Alejandro Giraldo Medical genetic services, including clinical genetics, cytogenetics, biochemical and molecular genetics and paternity testing, are performed in Colombia in the more developed medical schools or university institutions, in nine major cities of the country. Accessibility to genetic...

...María Luisa Urdaneta; Judith Livingston; Maricela Aguilar; Sandy Suther; Vicky Enciso; Celia I. Kaye Objectives: The objectives of this study were to assess the perceptions among medically indigent Mexican American clients in South Texas receiving genetic services, and the effects...

...Sara E. Kolb; Maricela C. Aguilar; Maura W. Dinenberg; Celia I. Kaye Objectives: The purpose of this project was to improve genetic service provision for the unserved patients in Texas Public Health Region VIII by providing primary care providers with the skills necessary to participate...

... to shaping the existing challenges are outlined. Issues which are relevant (but of different prominence) in all countries in providing genetic services are discussed. Conclusions: The challenges facing the provision of appropriate genetic services differ markedly in four major groups of countries...

...Ingeborg Blancquaert Data on the availability of genetic services are relatively scarce and suffer from several limitations. However, specific patterns of service delivery are observed in different countries. An analysis of the emerging patterns of organisation of services may help understand which...

...-care-based genetic services have been developing in urban areas, although their population impact is still very low. Cuba is an exception, as genetic services were conceived from the beginning as primary-care-based and with specific community health objectives. Clinical geneticists in the region have...

...A.L. Christianson; P.A. Venter; J.H. Modiba; M.M. Nelson The development of medical genetic services is not considered a priority in developing nations. However, many such countries are presently undergoing an epidemiological transition resulting in genetic disorders and birth defects becoming...

... guidelines [ 3 ]for clinical and laboratory staffing, and these were drawn up prior to the explosion in knowledge of the role played by genetic factors in common disorders and the emergence of cancer genetics as a major area of work. Thus the pressure on clinical genetic services is increasing as knowledge...

...Rodney Harris; Hilary Harris Effective genetic services depend upon co-operation between medical geneticists and many different non-geneticist professionals to ensure that the most appropriate patients are referred to geneticists and that those that require long-term care receive it. Important...