Navigating the evidentiary turn in public health: Sensemaking strategies to integrate genomics into state-level chronic disease prevention programs.

In the past decade, healthcare delivery has faced two major disruptions: the mapping of the human genome and the rise of evidence-based practice. Sociologists have documented the paradigmatic shift towards evidence-based practice in medicine, but have yet to examine its effect on other health professions or the broader healthcare arena. This article shows how evidence-based practice is transforming public health in the United States.

Understanding the potential of state-based public health genomics programs to mitigate disparities in access to clinical genetic services.

Purpose: State health agencies (SHAs) have developed public health genomics (PHG) programs that play an instrumental role in advancing precision public health, but there is limited research on their approaches. This study examines how PHG programs attempt to mitigate or forestall health disparities and inequities in the utilization of genomic medicine.

Methods: We compared PHG programs in three states: Connecticut, Michigan, and Utah.