Toiviainen Hanna, Jallinoja Piia, Aro Arja R, Hemminki Elina
1National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (STAKES), Health and Social Services, PO Box 220, 00531 Helsinki, Finland.
Eur J Hum Genet. 2003 Aug;11(8):565-72. doi: 10.1038/sj.ejhg.5201006.
The purpose of this study was to compare physicians', midwives' and lay people's attitudes towards genetic screening and testing to find out whether medical education and experience influence attitudes of genetic screening and testing. The study was based on comparison of answers to joint questions in three different cross-sectional postal surveys between October 1996 and April 1998 in Finland. Target groups were physicians (study base n=772, response rate 74%, including gynaecologists, paediatricians, general practitioners and clinical geneticists), midwives and public health nurses (collectively referred to as midwives in the following; n=800, response rate 79%), and lay people (n=2000, response rate 62%). Midwives were more worried about the consequences of genetic testing and stressed the autonomy of the customer more strongly than lay people did. Furthermore, professionals considered that lay peoples' expectations as regards to genetic testing are too high. Having more medical education was related to having less 'cannot say' and missing responses. Our results do not suggest that major conflicts about the direction of genetic testing and screening would arise in near future. However, different positions and interests should be considered. Reporting in public about new prospects and developments in medical genetics should pay more attention also to concerns for balancing promises and drawbacks.
本研究的目的是比较医生、助产士和普通民众对基因筛查和检测的态度，以查明医学教育和经验是否会影响对基因筛查和检测的态度。该研究基于对1996年10月至1998年4月间芬兰三项不同横断面邮政调查中共同问题答案的比较。目标群体包括医生（研究基数n = 772，回复率74%，包括妇科医生、儿科医生、全科医生和临床遗传学家）、助产士和公共卫生护士（以下统称为助产士；n = 800，回复率79%）以及普通民众（n = 2000，回复率62%）。与普通民众相比，助产士更担心基因检测的后果，并且更加强调客户的自主权。此外，专业人员认为普通民众对基因检测的期望过高。接受更多医学教育与较少“无法回答”和缺失回复相关。我们的结果并不表明在不久的将来会就基因检测和筛查的方向产生重大冲突。然而，应考虑不同的立场和利益。在公开报道医学遗传学的新前景和发展时，也应更加关注平衡承诺和弊端的问题。
