Technically, medical genetics is genetic counseling. A clinical geneticist is what an MD is called and works in a medical genetics department. A person does not pursue both avenues. Why is this? The training an MD gets is not the type of training a genetic counselor gets. Genetic counselors are trained in expertise for analyzing the biopsychosocial aspects of genetic conditions. A clinical geneticist is an expert in diagnosing a genetic disorder. Some of the role that a genetic counseling provides is information and support to a family member (or individual) who have a birth defect or genetic disorders, and to families who may be at risk for a variety of inherited conditions. With doing a family history (which is more complicated then people think) they will identify families at risk, investigate the problems present in the family, interpret information about a genetic disorder, analyze inheritance patterns and risks of recurrence and review available testing options with the family.
The field of genetic counseling is expanding. Genetic counselors are now making their way into are areas of cardiology, neurology, hematology, communication disorders, and among others.
Others have already stated what to do for a clinical genetics career path.
With genetic testing gaining a strong hold in medical care, we will be seeing more and more people offering genetic testing (drug companies are going to sell genetic tests soon) and interpreting the information (family history and test results) that are not trained to perform these very complex objectives. Many physicians will start offering genetic testing and telling a patient they have this type of cancer based on the genetic test (without the patient seeing a genetics expert..i.e, genetic counselor). This could result in errors for patients that need to be seen by experts to know if they need the testing done, what management should be given (non-directive of course), and what the risk of recurrence is and whether the disorder they have is actually a result of their genetic material. For example, how many non-trained genetic professionals will be able to tell when a couple with no previous family history of a genetic condition that has two children affected with the same genetic condition tell if the family history shows an autosomal recessive or autosmomal dominate with one of the parents being a germinal mosaic? Would the average physician even understand what the example means that I just gave?
So if patients are diagnosed with a genetic condition based on a genetic test and a family history was done, if the family history interpretation is incorrect, this will result in MAJOR ERRONEOUS RISK CALCULATIONS FOR FUTURE OFFSPRING. If insurance companies were able to use your genetic information and an error occurs in the example I provided, then a person could get denied health coverage, or taken off a certain policy because they are high risk when in fact they are at low risk.
*waits patiently while Genetics attempts to pull a non-existent article supporting his contention out of the dark and cluttered recesses of his distal colon*
