So that you can really engage with the subject material, we have designed a Personal Learning Log (PLL) that can be used for every case study you look at. You can save a copy of the log on your computer or a disk and then you can print out as many copies as you need. Alternatively you may keep an electronic version of the log.

To get your PLL as a Word document - click here.

To access a pdf file (you will need Adobe Acrobat) - click here.

Save a copy to disk or your computer's hard drive.

The PLL gets you thinking about what is going on in the case study, it gets you to focus on your own learning needs with reference to genetics theory, practice integration and the social, legal and ethical issues surrounding genetics in healthcare practice.

To use the PLL effectively first you must carefully read each case study. After reading, you may then fill in the first six boxes, paying special attention to the specific Theory and Practice issues YOU think are covered in the case study.

When this has been done, you can then move on to planning the next stage of your learning. You will notice that there is a navigation bar below each case study with the buttons "Theory", "Issues", and "Practice". If you click on any of these buttons, you will be taken to a page where the case study is explored in the context of either its genetics theory or its relevance to healthcare practice, or the various social, legal or ethical issues that may be involved. By looking at these pages, you can check whether your perceptions of the case study you entered in your PLL were correct.In addition you can find out which areas you need to cover in further detail. To help you plan this further study you can fill in the rest of the PLL.

The link labelled "Learning" will take you to a page where the case study will be explored in the context of each competency it is linked to and which learning outcome(s) you will be able to address using this example. You may also be directed to a number of questions which will test your learning of the case study and its associated theory and issues.

So each of the GeneSense case studies will allow you to explore not only the biological, psychological and sociological aspects of human genetics, but how genetic issues are encountered and dealt with in healthcare practice.

Click on any of the labels in the navigation bar below to see the GeneSense case studies.