Baylor receives funding for telehealth genetics study for underserved newborns
Summary
Baylor College of Medicine has been awarded $3.5 million by the National Human Genome Research Institute to support the MAGNET program, which aims to enhance genetic services for newborns in underserved Texas communities. The initiative will address challenges in implementing genomic medicine in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) that lack necessary resources.Dr. It plans to adapt Consultagene, an online platform developed by Baylor for outpatient genetic services, for use in NICUs. Seema Lalani, another co-principal investigator at Baylor, highlighted previous successes using Consultagene: We have successfully used the Consultagene platform to improve access to care for Hispanic children with rare diseases at the Texas-Mexico border through Project GIVE since 2022.The program intends to form a consortium of clinical partner sites across West and South Texas NICUs. Providers at these sites will receive training on genomic medicine tools and data interpretation to integrate personalized treatments rapidly.Dr.