title: Genetic disorders among Palestinian Arabs. 4: Genetic clinics in the community.
abstract: Genetic disorders are frequent in the Arab population of Israel, mainly because of the preference for consanguineous marriages. Many of the inherited diseases are present with a high frequency only in a limited region or a single village. It is therefore not surprising that, in each of the villages, a different distribution of genetic diseases is found; thus, a detailed knowledge of the genetic disorders present in each village is of utmost importance for genetic counseling. As a direct consequence of these observations two community genetics clinics were opened as a pilot project to study their impact on the population to be served. The use of a computer database allowed for easier and more accurate genetic counseling. There were almost 1,500 visits in the 4-year period since the introduction of the services. During the years an increase in the mean number of consultations per clinic as well as a change in the type of referrals was observed. There was an increasing proportion of clinics that were made at a time in which genetic counseling allow for primary prevention. The presence of a genetic counselor in the village clinic allows for better and closer contacts with the family physician.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetic Community, Public Health Services, Health Ministry Israel and Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel. joelz@cc.huji.ac.il
authors.forename: Joël
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zlotogora
authors.forename: Saleh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Barges
authors.forename: Bishara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bisharat
authors.forename: Stavit A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Shalev
mesh_terms: D018912:Arabs / Q000235:genetics*; D025063:Chromosome Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D003153:Community Health Services; D003241:Consanguinity; D005006:Ethnicity; D005817:Genetic Counseling; D030342:Genetic Diseases, Inborn / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel / Q000453:epidemiology; D012984:Software