70 years of genetics and genomics in healthcare
Our new timeline infographic illustrates how genetics, and later genomics, has evolved over the lifetime of the NHS
To celebrate 70 years of the NHS, the Genomics Education Programme (GEP) has created a timeline infographic, below, to illustrate the expanding role that genetics and genomics has played in the NHS over the last seven decades.
In 1946, just two years before the birth of the National Health Service, the first genetic counselling clinic in Europe was established at Great Ormond Street, London, to support families affected by rare, inherited conditions.
In the decades that followed, knowledge of the genome and techniques in genetic testing steadily improved, providing patients with answers where in the past there were none. And, thanks to advances in genomic technologies and breakthrough initiatives like the 100,000 Genomes Project, the NHS is now set to mainstream the use of genomic sequencing in patient care, with the introduction of the Genomic Medicine Service this autumn.
As genomic medicine moves beyond specialist clinics, the GEP will continue its role to ensure the workforce has the right knowledge, skills and experience to harness the potential of genomics to bring benefit to patients. Find out more about our work here.
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