The Departmental Roadmap

IV. Educational Activities

Recommendations for Educational Activities

The Committee recommends that the Department focus on enhancing the basic and clinical educational resources for the training of our graduate and postgraduate students. Specific recommendations include the following:

1. Predoctoral and Postdoctoral Training in Genetics and Genomic Sciences
2. M.D. Clinical Genetics Training
3. Cancer Genetics Training Program
4. Postgraduate Training

1. Predoctoral and Postdoctoral Training in Genetics and Genomic Sciences

A major priority for our Department will be to expand recruitment and programs for our NIH training grant in Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. These improvements will enhance our efforts to renew our grant and to increase our funding.

2. M.D. Clinical Genetics Training

The training of internists in genetics is critical to the integration of new genetic knowledge into the clinical research and care of patient with complex disorders such as cardiovascular disease and cancer. Therefore, a joint residency training program should be established with Internal Medicine, particularly because combined Genetics/Internal Medicine training programs have been approved by both boards.

3. Cancer Genetics Training Program

A training program for physicians in cooperation with the Cancer Prevention and Control group should be established and funding obtained to train physicians who can combine genetic expertise with the skills of behavioral medicine. These individuals will be uniquely qualified to create the testing, screening and counseling models for susceptibility genes, and also will be trained in epidemiology and surveillance methods that will allow them to compete for CDC and other federal funding.

4. Post-Graduate Training

There is a critical need for post-graduate education in genetics, particularly for public health professionals and physicians who care for adults. We are uniquely positioned through our long-standing, collaborative research relationship with the CDC to participate in the development of these programs, and expect that substantial funding will be available for curriculum development and pilot studies. Therefore, an annual postgraduate CME program focusing on various themes (e.g., Recent Advances, Cancer Genetics, Reproductive Genetics, Therapy of Genetic Diseases, etc.) in Medical Genetics should be given at Mount Sinai.