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The virtual diagnostic laboratory: A new way of teaching undergraduate medical students about genetic testing

Purpose: Medical students often perceive genetics as a discipline focused on rare diseases with relevance only to genetics specialists. Because genetic testing has now infiltrated most if not all medical disciplines, we need new teaching approaches to help trainees incorporate emerging genetic testing strategies appropriately into medical practice. With the ever-increasing number of known disease-associated genes, it is also important to shift from a paradigm of memorization to one of critical evaluation and an awareness of available resources.Methods: We designed case-based virtual laboratory sessions for first-year medical students at Emory University. These sessions emphasize both rare and common health issues and allow the students to practice applying their fundamental genetics knowledge in the diagnostic setting.Results: These sessions proved a valuable approach to presenting the intricacies of diagnostic genetic testing. Students rate the sessions very highly, with 92% of them agreeing or strongly agreeing that the sessions had educational value. The students commented that ours was an effective approach to teaching the material that illustrates well the impact of genetics on patient care.Conclusions: The virtual diagnostic laboratory approach is an effective, nonlecture-based method of teaching medical students about genetic testing strategies and their application in the clinical setting.