13 September 2013 Taylor & Francis

Routledge Journals highlights a special issue of Social Work in Public Health, which opens an innovative dialogue around topics that will remain vital to the future of social work and public health policy, practice, and research.  Human Genome:  Health Care Policy Issues in the Black Community is now available for free access online.

Every day, new research pours in about the human genome and the role of genetic factors in health issues.  How can social workers in the field of public health integrate the knowledge generated by this booming field, and how can they use and communicate what they learn in a way that is responsive to the needs of the Black community?  Routledge Journals highlights a special issue of Social Work in Public Health, which opens an innovative dialogue around topics that will remain vital to the future of social work and public health policy, practice, and research.  Human Genome:  Health Care Policy Issues in the Black Community is now available for free access online.

“We cannot, must not from this period forward attempt to explain social work without infusing the human genome as an underpinning for practice,” writes Guest Editor Elijah Mickel.  “The collection provides a resource that social workers can use to better understand both input and outcomes.  I would recommend this text to educators as well as practitioners.  It can be used both as a supplement to the practice of social work and to further users’ understanding of human behavior.”

This Special Issue addresses the implications of genetic and genomic research for public health workers in the Black community, including specific health conditions like autism, sickle cell disease, and neurofibromatosis and the intersection of genome and environment as it relates to specific medical conditions, including alcoholism and illnesses which require hemodialysis.  Perhaps most importantly, this issue assists social workers in learning to communicate effectively about genomic research by placing it in the context of an historical framework which considers systemic prejudice such as racism and eugenics, as well as health care disparities.

http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/whsp20/26/4