World Congress on Genetic Counselling 

Genetic counsellors bring a unique blend of knowledge and skills to the research setting. Their involvement enriches the process from study design and participant engagement, through to analysis and the dissemination of findings.

The fourth World Congress on Genetic Counselling will provide a forum to explore the way in which genetic counsellors are contributing to empirical research, both within traditional genetic counselling settings and beyond.

Join a multidisciplinary community of clinicians (working across genetic counselling, nursing, medical genetics, and/or the application of genetic technology in their practice), and academics (working across social sciences, psychology, ethics, and genetic counselling research), to connect, share knowledge, and find potential collaborators to support your work.

The programme will focus on the importance of trust in genetic counselling practice, and how this intersects with governance and participation in research. Discover the vital role research finding play in shaping service development policies, and the optimisation of genetic counselling services. Sessions will also explore how participatory research approaches can enhance the relevance, validity and impact of research findings.

Gain insights in to ‘what’s new’ in personalised medicine, and how these new areas of practice are shaping the landscape of genetic counselling to improve patient care, as well as facilitating the application of genetic counselling principles to impact broader research domains.

Register for an opportunity to enhance your professional development, expand your network, and gain valuable insights into the evolving landscape of genetic counselling practice and research.

Discussions will focus on a variety of interesting topics, including:

• Big data; trust, governance and participation
• Informing service development policies
• Research participants, patients and genetic counsellors working together
• What’s new in personalised medicine
• Applying our disciplinary lens to research beyond genetic counselling process and outcomes
• Mind the gap: What’s missing in global genetic counselling research?

Scientific programme committee

Jehannine Austin
The University of British Columbia, Canada

Annie Qurratulain Hasan
Kamineni Hospital, India

Charlotta Ingvoldstad Malmgren
Karolinska University Hospital, Sweden

Kelly Ormond
ETH Zurich, Switzerland

Christine Patch 
Wellcome Connecting Science, UK

Keynote speakers 

Danya Vears
Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Australia

Jehannine Austin
The University of British Columbia, Canada

Confirmed speakers 

Peter Abad – The University of Iowa College of Nursing, USA
Kennedy Borle – The University of British Columbia, Canada
Adam Buchanan – Geisinger, USA
Nour Chanouha – University of Iowa, USA
Catriona Hippman – University of Calgary, Canada
Kelly Kohut – St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, UK
Alison McEwen – University of Technology Sydney, Australia
Richard Milne – Wellcome Connecting Science, UK
Heini Natri – National Institutes for Health (NIH), USA
Amanda Pichini – Genomics England, UK
Hannah Wand – Stanford University, USA

Registration deadlines:  26 September 2023 (In person) | 17 October 2023 (virtual)

Deadlines close at 23.59 GMT.

The in-person registration fee includes:

• Full access to the scientific programme: short talk and poster presentations, and networking
• Access to the online conference portal to network with online participants
• Meals (lunch and dinner) and refreshments during the conference. Breakfast will be provided for delegates who have booked onsite accommodation
• Recordings of the live-stream sessions, which will be available ‘on-demand’ for four weeks after the event ends.

Virtual registration fee includes:

• Access to the virtual event portal (Log in details will be emailed a few days before the event starts)
• Live-stream sessions, including posters and online networking channels
• Recordings of the live-stream sessions, available ‘on-demand’ for four weeks after the event ends.

* To promote more inclusive scientific discussions with global colleagues at our conferences, virtual delegates based in underserved countries can register for free (see list of countries here).

Payments

Please note that payment can only be made with Mastercard or Visa credit cards.

Accommodation

Please note: there is limited onsite accommodation and this will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis; therefore, early registration is recommended.

Accommodation services phishing scam – please be vigilant. More information.

Travel visas

Citizens of many countries can travel to the UK to attend a course or conference without needing a visa. Please check the UK Government website for visitor information: https://www.gov.uk/standard-visitor.

Confirmed attendees requiring a letter to support a visa application should contact the event organiser.

Financial assistance/ bursary deadline: 8 August 2023

To support scientists – across the globe – who are experiencing financial barriers to access the learning and training you need to reach your full professional potential, we offer bursaries to cover up to 50% of the registration fee.

To apply for this form of financial support, use the dedicated bursary application link on the registration site. Please be prepared to explain why you are applying for funding and to answer questions about your work. Submit your application before midnight UK time on the bursary deadline date, to be considered.

Additional funding opportunities
Visit our support page for information on how to apply for financial support, including carer grants to help delegates with the costs of caring for children or dependent family members while attending one of our events.

Abstract deadline: 

We welcome abstracts from all areas relevant to the main themes of the meeting, for both short talks and poster presentations. Several short talks will be chosen from the abstracts submitted.

Abstracts will only be considered from registered delegates. Please use our online abstract submission system and follow the instructions given to ensure your abstract is submitted correctly. All abstracts must be submitted by the deadline. If you are intending to submit more than one abstract, please contact the conference organiser prior to registration. You can make changes to your submitted abstract before the deadline by logging into your account  and following the instructions.

The scientific programme committee will assess your abstract after the deadline has passed, and you will be notified whether you have been selected for an short talk or poster presentation.

All those accepted for a poster presentation will be given the opportunity to upload a short video describing their work.

Uploading abstracts after completed registration:

1. Login to your account via ‘My Account’.
2. Click on ‘View account history’ to show a table of your event registrations.
3. Select the appropriate conference
4. Click on ‘Upload file’ (in right hand column).
5. Select ‘Abstract’ and upload via the abstract form.
6. If you wish to upload a second abstract, click on ‘Additional Abstract’ and again upload via the abstract form.

Please note: documents submitted via ‘Supporting Documents’ are for bursary applications only and cannot be seen during the abstract selection process.

If you are interested in supporting this meeting, please contact the sponsorship manager.

See our sponsorship page for information about the benefits.