Prof. Ainsley Newson1, Ms Isabella Holmes1, Professor Jan Hodgson2, Professor Jackie Leach Scully3, The Target Project Team
1Sydney Health Ethics, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia, 2Department of Pediatrics, Melbourne Medical School, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia, 3Disability Innovation Institute, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
Biography:
Ainsley Newson is Professor of Bioethics at Sydney Health Ethics, University of Sydney. Her research focuses on ethics in genomics and reproduction.
Isabella Holmes is a PhD candidate at Sydney Health Ethics, University of Sydney. Her research interests include reproductive ethics, feminist theory, and the ethics of emerging technologies.
Jan Hodgson is Professor in genetic counselling at the University of Melbourne. Her research focuses on genetic counselling, genetics education and genetics research with a focus on reproduction.
Jackie Leach Scully is Professor of Bioethics at UNSW Sydney. She is a globally renowned bioethicist with expertise in disability and feminist bioethics.
Abstract:
Genomic testing is rapidly expanding in reproductive care, with more tests offered to more people for more indications. A long-held tenet is promoting reproductive autonomy, which at a high level can be said to describe a person’s ability to make independent decisions about their reproductive health. Although offered in the name of reproductive autonomy, expanded genomic testing is a context in which predominant understandings of reproductive autonomy are proving inadequate.
In this panel discussion facilitated by Ainsley Newson, we will synthesize findings from TARGeT (Theories of Autonomy in Reproductive Genomic Testing): a three-year ARC-funded research project that has aimed to develop a better model of reproductive autonomy for the genomic age.
The panel will comprise three 12-minute talks followed by open discussion:
Isabella Holmes will discuss a revamped theoretical account of reproductive autonomy that better articulates autonomous utilisation of prenatal genomic testing.
Jan Hodgson will present findings from 25 interviews with health professionals regarding their views on reproductive
autonomy, and
indicating that genomic information has greater salience in reproductive care than other forms of knowledge.
Jackie Leach Scully will discuss findings from four deliberative workshops with parents, where they articulated what they need to exercise reproductive autonomy. Findings suggest that parents strongly desire information, yet simultaneously struggle to envisage what such information really entails.
Project outcomes will enable a reframing of reproductive autonomy that resists the unreflective pursuit of genomic information in reproductive care and facilitates the beneficial use of genomics in this domain of human flourishing.
Additional members of the TARGeT project team: Dr Kerryn Drysdale, Kitty-Jean Laginha, Dr Kathryn MacKay, Associate Professor Rosalind McDougall, Leila Thy Kint, and Professor Brenda Wilson.