From: CanHealth Network
Date: Feb. 20, 2025
February 20, 2025 (Halifax, NS) – IWK Health and Virtual Hallway have joined forces to improve genetic health literacy among health care providers and improve access to specialized genetic services for those who need it most. As part of a 12-month CAN Health Network commercialization project at IWK, the partners have developed interactive digital education modules for clinicians to enhance genetic literacy, reduce avoidable referrals and streamline patient care.
Advanced genetic technology has significantly increased the potential for patients to receive diagnostic genetic testing to help inform medical treatment, however these advances have also created challenges for medical genetics service providers. As referrals from community and non-genetic specialist health care providers are outpacing current capacity, patients are experiencing increasingly long wait times to access genetic testing. Providing educational supports can help make patient care more efficient and reduce avoidable referrals to medical genetics services.