Improving genetic medicine for ethnic minority groups
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Capturing ethnic minority experiences of genomic pathways to understand what changes are needed to promote greater equity within the genomics medicine service.
IRAS ID
360821
Contact name
Shwetha Ramachandrappa
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Guys and St Thomas NHS foundation trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 3 months, 2 days
Research summary
A key aim of the nationally commissioned Genomic Medicine Service (GMS) is to encourage equity of access between different patient groups, however, there is evidence to suggest that it is being under-utilised by ethnic minority groups. The aim of this study is to explore how ethnic minority populations interact with the GMS and to identify changes that would promote equity within those services.
This is a mixed-methods study using interviews and group discussions with lay people, community organisers and charity workers, people who have had direct or indirect contact with the genomic medicine service and professionals within the service. By including potential service users, service users and professionals in this work and allowing people to share their experiences in whatever method feels most comfortable to them, we aim to get a broad understanding of the lived experience of everyone involved in these pathways which will be key to gaining a holistic understanding of how they are working in the real world.
The primary outcome measure will be an increased understanding of the experiences of people from ethnic minority groups navigating the genomic medicine space. The secondary outcome measure will be an increased understanding of how experiences differ across and between ethnic groups. We intend to use our insights to make changes which will improve utilisation of the genomic medicine service by patients from ethnic minority groups.
REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Bradford Leeds Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
26/YH/0055
Date of REC Opinion
13 Mar 2026
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion