Facilitating the Genetic Counseling Process Practice-Based Skills, Second Edition

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• The letters generated by students could be used for genetic counseling role-plays.
  The “patient” could either act out the content from her/his own letter or from a
  classmate’s letter.

Exercise 7: Role-Play

Engage in a 15-min role-play of a genetic counseling session with a classmate. The
role-play can be based on a patient you saw in clinic or it can be a made-up patient
situation. During the role-play, focus on primary empathy and attending skills.
Audio record the role-play. Next transcribe the role-play and critique your work.
Use the following method for transcribing the session:

Counselor Patient Self-critique Instructor

Key phrases of

dialogue

Key

phrases

Comment on your own

responses

Will provide feedback on your

responses

Create a brief summary:

1. Briefly describe patient demographics (e.g., age, gender, ethnicity, socioeco-
   nomic status, relationship status) and reason for seeking genetic counseling.


2. Identify two things you said/did during the role-play that were effective and two
   things you could have done differently.
   Give the recording, transcript/self-critique, and summary to the instructor who
   will provide feedback.
   [Hint: This assignment encourages self-reflective practice regarding your clinical
   performance. The goal is not to do a perfect session. Rather the goal is to assess the
   extent to which you can accurately assess your psychosocial counseling skills. You
   will gain more from this exercise if you refrain from scripting what you plan to say
   as the counselor].

References

Abrams LJ, Kessler S. The inner world of the genetic counselor. J Genet Couns. 2002;11:5–17.
Anonymous. My story: a genetic counselor’s journey from provider to patient: a mother’s story. J
Genet Couns. 2008;17:412–8.
Azar B. Defining the trait that makes us human. Am Psychol. 1997;28:1–15.
Barlow-Stewart K, Yeo SS, Meiser B, Goldstein D, Tucker K, Eisenbruch M. Toward cultural com-
petence in cancer genetic counseling and genetics education: lessons learned from Chinese-
Australians. Genet Med. 2006;8:24–32.
Barrett-Lennard GT.  The empathy cycle: refinement of a nuclear concept. J Couns Psychol.
1981;28:91–100.
Bellcross C. A genetic counselor’s story of birth, grief, and survival. J Genet Couns. 2012;21:169–72.
Bellet PS, Maloney MJ. The importance of empathy as an interviewing skill in medicine. JAMA.
1991;266:1831–2.

References