Genetic Counseling Milestones: A Framework for Student Competency Evaluation

Abstract

Graduate medical education has recently increased focus on the development of medical specialty competency milestones to provide a targeted tool for medical resident evaluation. Milestones provide developmental assessment of the attainment of competencies over the course of an educational program. An educational framework is described to explore the development of Genetic Counseling Milestones for the evaluation of the development of genetic counseling competencies by genetic counseling students. The development of Genetic Counseling Milestones may provide a valuable tool to assess genetic counseling students across all program activities. Historical educational context, current practices, and potential benefits and challenges in the development of Genetic Counseling Milestones are discussed.

Lessons from the implementation of developmental progress assessment: A scoping review

“…3,15,27,28,33,35,38,41 The second element that we frequently observed was the necessity that DPA be informed by a pre-established path of progression. 15,21,23,[25][26][27]30,[32][33][34][35][36][37][38][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52]…”

“…21,25,26,33,37,54,58,61 3 A common positive outcome of DPA implementation was the facilitated feedback to trainees. 22,25,29,30,32,37,47,49,[54][55][56]58,[62][63][64] In addition, several authors reported that the implementation of DPA provided the opportunity to identify trainees who require remediation. 22,27,29,30,36,38,43,52,54,55,63,65,66 Overall, the implementation of DPA was seen as an opportunity for better trainee assessment and programme evaluation.…”

Time Flies: an Examination of Genetic Counselor Professional Development: Introduction to Special Issue on Genetic Counselor Development

“…Reassuringly, these papers speak to many ways in which genetic counselor professional development is occurring in a trajectory that supports advancement and moves the professional/profession forward (i.e., Trajectory I). Whether through re-examination of training and educational needs (Akgumus et al 2016;Guy 2016;MacFarlane et al 2016;Wiesman et al 2016), expansion of genetic counseling roles (Field et al 2016;Rabideau et al 2016;Waltman et al 2016), or response to technological advancements (Wynn 2016), the critical importance of professional challenges to launch and sustain genetic counselor development is evident. As these papers attest, genetic counselors should remain alert and open to the ways they can challenge themselves professionally.…”

“…Achieving ABGC certification is an important first step in a genetic counselor's professional development and is a requirement to practice in many positions and in all US states with licensure (National Society of Genetic Counselors 2016). Four articles in this special issue discuss issues related to entry to the field (Wiesman et al 2016), developing competencies (Guy 2016), special challenges for international students (Akgumus et al 2016) and challenges presented by the ABGC certification exam (Colón 2016). In their paper From Campers to Counselors: A Resource for Prospective Genetic Counseling Students, Wiesman and colleagues discuss the value of educational programs that provide opportunities for prospective genetic counseling program applicants to gain a deeper understanding of the field and guidance about the application process.…”

Genetic counselor training for the next generation: Where do we go from here?

“…Formative and summative evaluations are sprinkled throughout the training program curricula. Use of competency‐based education and the development of genetic counseling milestones to assess student progress are likely to become further integrated into training pedagogy (Guy, ). As programs evaluate the effectiveness of these measures in developing and modifying curriculum, curriculum mapping will likely continue to be an essential component of program design and will be largely reliant upon the PBCs.…”