About the Center

The University of Washington Center for Genomics and Healthcare Equality (CGHE) is one of four Centers of Excellence in ELSI Research (CEER) funded by the National Human Genome Research Institute. It is affiliated with the UW Dept of Medical History and Ethics. The UW Center addresses the ethical, legal and social factors that influence the translation of genetic information to improved human health.

Mission Statement: The Center for Genomics and Healthcare Equality promotes interdisciplinary work to evaluate the clinical integration of genomic information and technologies, and its role in improving health outcomes and healthcare equity.
The specific goals of the Center include the following:

• evaluate the ethical, legal and social implications of genomics through
  analytic and empiric research
• develop partnerships for community-based participatory research
• identify policy options that address the needs and concerns of
  minority and medically underserved populations  

Recent Center Actvities

Summary document of recent Center activities

Recent Center Publications

S. Malia Fullerton, MHE Assistant Professor, had a chapter published on race and biology titled "On the Absence of Biology in Philosophical Considerations of Race" in the new book Race and Epistemologies of Ignorance .

Henrickson, N., Burke, W., and Veenstra, D. "Ancillary Risk Information and Pharmacogenetic Tests: Social and Policy Implications" was recently accepted for publication in The Pharmacogenetic Journal. The exact date of the publication will be available soon.

Summary of Center Publications

Upcoming CGHE meetings

There is no meeting in May.

Please check back soon for the date for the June 2008 monthly meeting.

The Annual CGHE All-Investigator meeting is October 16 and 17th, 2008.

Updates, News and Events

CGHE is currently recruiting two full-time interns for the summer of 2008. Click here for more information.

The Center for the Study of Diversity in Science, Technology and Medicine at MIT is hosting a conference "What is the Use of Race?" on April 25-26, 2008. More information is available here.

PLos Genetics recently published an article on "Genetic Variation and Population Structure in Native Americans."

The Secretary's Advisory Committee on Genetics, Health and Society is seeking comments on a draft report to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, on the US system of oversight of genetic testing. The request for comments can be found here, and the draft report is available here.

The ELSI Regular Research Grant (RO1) and Small Research Grant (RO3) program announcements have been released.

Read more about the new NHGRI/NIH Bioethics Faculty postion here.

Dr. Wylie Burke has been elected to the Institute of Medicine. The Institute of Medicine is both an honorific and an advisory organization. Read more about it here. Congratulations Wylie!

The Case Western Reserve University CEER is co-sponsoring a conference with NHGRI on May 1-3, 2008: Translating "ELSI": Ethical, Legal and Social Implications of Genomics.

Questions about the Center? Contact Dana Gold, CGHE Research Coordinator.