Genetic counseling in Catholic hospitals. Facilities must provide guidance to keep pace with new knowledge and techniques.

As advances in the knowledge of human genetics change the practice of medicine, Catholic healthcare facilities will, according to ethicists, be increasingly obliged to provide genetic counseling services to their patients. Facilities should ensure that counselors make genetic information available in a context in which no pressure, overt or subtle, is exerted to use that information in a way that may violate an individual's value system. Some hospitals may, for example, set up a separate genetic counseling department, which does not diagnose or treat genetic disorders but does facilitate access to these treatments when patients need them. Effective counseling requires accurate, current knowledge about tests and treatments, as well as about theological discussions and Church decisions on the subject. Counselors also need to be aware of some typical misconceptions people have about genetic disease. Catholic hospitals should also work with other Catholic organizations to influence legislation addressing human genetic issues, especially when such legislation addresses reproductive rights.