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Incorporation of Genetics in Primary Care Practice-Reply
Gail Geller, ScD
Genetics and Public Policy Studies The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions Baltimore, Md
Arch Fam Med. 1994;3(3):218.
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In reply
As Revels indicates, the article1 demonstrated that family practitioners engage in genetic counseling more often than do other primary care physicians. However, Revels is mistaken in concluding from the data that family practitioners are more likely to engage in directive counseling than are other primary care physicians. Primary care physicians, overall, appear to be more directive than are genetics professionals. This is likely to be a function of both their training and the fact that patients may seek opinions more often from physicians with whom they have established long-term relationships. Even though we can explain why primary care physicians may give their opinions, such behavior cannot be justified if it occurs at the expense of patient autonomy. Although physicians who offer their opinions to patients are not necessarily violating patient autonomy, especially if they do so at the patient's request, physicians nevertheless have a moral obligation to at least
. . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]
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