Experiences of Chinese Speaking Genetic Counselors: Insight into Counseling in a Second Language

The lack of racial diversity of genetic counselors in the genetic counseling profession is a frequent discussion topic. Despite this, little research has focused on the clinical and training experiences of genetic counselors identifying as racial minorities. Additionally, while multilingualism is relatively common among this population, no research has focused on the genetic counselor���s perspective and thoughts on counseling in a second language. This study aimed to explore the experiences of Chinese-speaking genetic counselors counseling patients in Chinese. We conducted semi-structured interviews with four Chinese speaking genetic counselors to explore their experiences and four themes, and related sub-themes emerged through inductive content analysis: (1) counseling in Chinese has improved patient interactions; (2) several barriers, including the need for self-initiated efforts, translation issues, and institutional requirements prevent these genetic counselors from counseling in Chinese; (3) genetic counselors counseled in Chinese due to patient demand and benefit; (4) programs and workplaces should make more efforts to support bilingual genetic counselors, including increasing outreach, initiating and supporting discussions and triggering student interests. The recommendations from this study have the potential to not only increase diversity within the genetic counseling field but also may improve the clinical and training experiences of minority genetic counselors.