While some theorists argue that medicine is caught in a relentless process of ‘geneticization’ and others offer a thesis of biomedicalization, there is still little research that explores how these effects are accomplished in practice. Joanna Latimer, whose groundbreaking ethnography on acute medicine gave us the social science classic The Conduct of Care, moves her focus from the bedside to the clinic in this in-depth study of genetic medicine. Against current thinking that proselytises the rise of laboratory science, Professor Latimer shows how the genetic clinic is at the heart of the revolution in the new genetics. Tracing how work on the abnormal in an embryonic genetic science, dysmorphology, is changing our thinking about the normal, The Gene, the Clinic, and the Family charts new understandings about family, procreation and choice. Far from medicine experiencing the much-proclaimed ‘death of the clinic’, this book shows how medicine is both reasserting its status as a science and revitalising its dominance over society, not only for now but for societies in the future. This book will appeal to students, scholars and professionals interested in medical sociology, science and technology studies, the anthropology of science, medical science and genetics, as well as genetic counselling.

The Practical Guide to The Genetic Family History Robin L. Bennett Compiling the most recent genetic developments in medical specialties, The Practical Guide to the Genetic Family History is a valuable resource which outlines the proper methods for taking and recording a patient's family medical history, allowing primary care physicians to be more efficient in diagnosing conditions with potential genetic components. With genetic screening forms, an overview of directed questions, pedigree nomenclature, and outlining common approaches used, genetic counselor Robin L. Bennett provides readers with the basic foundation in human genetics necessary to recognize inherited disorders and familial disease susceptibility in patients. As the only guide which is geared for the physician in this field, The Practical Guide to the Genetic Family History includes remarks by renowned medical geneticist Arno Motulsky, as well as information on structuring an accurate pedigree and its components, including: * Using a pedigree to identify individuals with an increased susceptibility to cancer * Family history, adoption, and their challenges * The connection between the pedigree and assisted reproductive technologies * Making referrals for genetic services * Neurological and neuromuscular conditions * Tables covering hearing loss, mental retardation, dementia, and seizures * Five case studies of genetics in practice An essential reference for genetics clinics, medical geneticists, and counselors, The Practical Guide to the Genetic Family History is also an invaluable aid for both primary care and specialist physicians who need an up-to-date reference that emphasizes both the science and art of modern clinical genetics.

This book moves the focus from the bedside to the clinic in this in-depth study of genetic medicine. Against current thinking that proselytises the rise of laboratory science, Professor Latimer shows how the genetic clinic is at the heart of the revolution in the new genetics. Tracing how work on the abnormal in an embryonic genetic science, dysmorphology, is changing our thinking about the normal, The Gene, the Clinic, and the Family charts new understandings about family, procreation and choice.

A riveting medical mystery about a young woman’s quest to uncover the truth about her likely fatal genetic disorder that opens a window onto the exploding field of genomic medicine When Joselin Linder was in her twenties her legs suddenly started to swell. After years of misdiagnoses, doctors discovered a deadly blockage in her liver. Struggling to find an explanation for her unusual condition, Joselin compared the medical chart of her father—who had died from a mysterious disease, ten years prior—with that of an uncle who had died under similarly strange circumstances. Delving further into the past, she discovered that her great-grandmother had displayed symptoms similar to hers before her death. Clearly, this was more than a fluke. Setting out to build a more complete picture of the illness that haunted her family, Joselin approached Dr. Christine Seidman, the head of a group of world-class genetic researchers at Harvard Medical School, for help. Dr. Seidman had been working on her family’s case for twenty years and had finally confirmed that fourteen of Joselin’s relatives carried something called a private mutation—meaning that they were the first known people to experience the baffling symptoms of a brand new genetic mutation. Here, Joselin tells the story of their gene: the lives it claimed and the future of genomic medicine with the potential to save those that remain. Digging into family records and medical history, conducting interviews with relatives and friends, and reflecting on her own experiences with the Harvard doctor, Joselin pieces together the lineage of this deadly gene to write a gripping and unforgettable exploration of family, history, and love. A compelling chronicle of survival and perseverance, The Family Gene is an important story of a young woman reckoning with her father’s death, her own mortality, and her ethical obligations to herself and those closest to her.

HELPS YOU DEVELOP AND ASSESS PEDIGREES TO MAKE DIAGNOSES, EVALUATE RISK, AND COUNSEL PATIENTS The Second Edition of The Practical Guide to the Genetic Family History not only shows how to take a medical-family history and record a pedigree, but also explains why each bit of information gathered is important. It provides essential support in diagnosing conditions with a genetic component. Moreover, it aids in recommending genetic testing, referring patients for genetic counseling, determining patterns of inheritance, calculating risk of disease, making decisions for medical management and surveillance, and informing and educating patients. Based on the author's twenty-five years as a genetic counselor, the book also helps readers deal with the psychological, social, cultural, and ethical problems that arise in gathering a medical-family history and sharing findings with patients. Featuring a new Foreword by Arno Motulsky, widely recognized as the founder of medical genetics, and completely updated to reflect the most recent findings in genetic medicine, this Second Edition presents the latest information and methods for preparing and assessing a pedigree, including: Value and utility of a thorough medical-family history Directed questions to ask when developing a medical-family history for specific disease conditions Use of pedigrees to identify individuals with an increased susceptibility to cancer Verification of family medical information Special considerations when adoptions or gamete donors are involved Ethical issues that may arise in recording a pedigree Throughout the book, clinical examples based on hypothetical families illustrate key concepts, helping readers understand how real issues present themselves and how they can be resolved. This book will enable all healthcare providers, including physicians, nurses, medical social workers, and physician assistants, as well as genetic counselors, to take full advantage of the pedigree as a primary tool for making a genetic risk assessment and providing counseling for patients and their families.

A proven working model of healthcare IT as a transformative clinical and business engine—from one of the world’s leading healthcare organizations Exciting new technology is revolutionizing healthcare in the twenty-first century. This visionary guide by Cleveland Clinic’s esteemed CIO shows you how to design, implement, and maximize your organization’s IT systems to deliver fully integrated, coordinated, high-quality care. You’ll learn how to: • Collaborate with patients: Track and monitor patients’ progress and communicate with them any time, anywhere. • Coordinate multiple caregivers and care teams: Build a network of communication among healthcare professionals across disciplines in different locations who are working on a single patient case; and integrate various IT systems into a fully functioning network. • Optimize electronic medical records: Quickly pull up and share patient histories, test results, and other essential data to provide timely care; and expand real-time access to clinical data and research. • Use IT for competitive advantage: Enable live chats, virtual visits, and online second opinions; create a content-rich, user-friendly website; build a social media strategy that engages patients and caregivers alike. Using the latest advancements in IT, you’ll be able to access and apply a wide range of online tools and field-tested strategies to any organization. Go behind the scenes at Clinic Cleveland to see how caregivers executed their IT strategy in a working environment—and how patients benefitted as a result. You’ll find simple but powerful ways to expand your IT network and provide personal, one-on-one care to all of your patients, anywhere in the world. By connecting your patients with caregivers—and caregivers with each other—you’ll be better equipped to diagnose conditions, recommend treatments, and monitor patients in ways that weren’t even possible 10 years ago. And you’ll see a vision of where IT is headed in the Internet of Healthcare. This is the future of healthcare. It’s on your computer, your phone, your tablet, your network, and the world wide web. It’s the IT advantage that makes organizations like Cleveland Clinic so successful—and patients healthier and happier. It’s about time. IT’s About Patient Care.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “The story of modern medicine and bioethics—and, indeed, race relations—is refracted beautifully, and movingly.”—Entertainment Weekly NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE FROM HBO® STARRING OPRAH WINFREY AND ROSE BYRNE • ONE OF THE “MOST INFLUENTIAL” (CNN), “DEFINING” (LITHUB), AND “BEST” (THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER) BOOKS OF THE DECADE • ONE OF ESSENCE’S 50 MOST IMPACTFUL BLACK BOOKS OF THE PAST 50 YEARS • WINNER OF THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE HEARTLAND PRIZE FOR NONFICTION NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review • Entertainment Weekly • O: The Oprah Magazine • NPR • Financial Times • New York • Independent (U.K.) • Times (U.K.) • Publishers Weekly • Library Journal • Kirkus Reviews • Booklist • Globe and Mail Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine: The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, which are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions. Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave. Henrietta’s family did not learn of her “immortality” until more than twenty years after her death, when scientists investigating HeLa began using her husband and children in research without informed consent. And though the cells had launched a multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials, her family never saw any of the profits. As Rebecca Skloot so brilliantly shows, the story of the Lacks family—past and present—is inextricably connected to the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we are made of. Over the decade it took to uncover this story, Rebecca became enmeshed in the lives of the Lacks family—especially Henrietta’s daughter Deborah. Deborah was consumed with questions: Had scientists cloned her mother? Had they killed her to harvest her cells? And if her mother was so important to medicine, why couldn’t her children afford health insurance? Intimate in feeling, astonishing in scope, and impossible to put down, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks captures the beauty and drama of scientific discovery, as well as its human consequences.