University of South Wales visit to learn more about genomics education and genomic healthcare
Emma Tonkin is an Associate Professor of Genomics Healthcare at the University of South Wales. In September 2024, she visited Prof Arja Halkoaho and Nina Smolander from Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK) in Finland as part of a ‘Exploratory, Networking and Collaborative’ mobility in genomics education and genomic healthcare. She’s shared the positive impact of her Taith funded experience.
Hi, I’m Emma Tonkin, Associate Professor of Genomics Healthcare at the University of South Wales. My PhD and early post-doc years were spent as a laboratory researcher identifying genes involved in rare diseases (in the days before we had a completed human genome sequence!). Understanding the huge potential of genomics to improve individual as well as population health for common conditions as well as rare disease, I moved into education and non-lab research. My work now focuses on supporting nurses, midwives and other health professionals to learn more about genomics and how they can use it in their everyday practice. I am also interested in how health services are building genomics into routine services.
The purpose was primarily networking and to develop collaboration for future academic and research activities. The UK has been one of the leading countries in genomics education and genomic healthcare for several years. Many countries are now developing their own education and services. Sharing experiences enables us to learn from each other, reduce duplication of effort and hopefully accelerate what we are trying to do by minimising or avoiding the pitfalls and challenges that each other has experienced. I was fortunate to be supported not just for the trip to Finland but also for a reciprocal ‘inward mobility’ visit for Prof Arja Halkoaho and Nina Smolander from TAMK to come to Wales early in 2024.
The visit was an ‘Exploratory, Networking and Collaborative’ mobility and so I was able to meet with a range of individuals and organisations. Outside of the university this included staff at a genetic testing laboratory, the regional biobank and the Tampere regional development agency who are very interested in supporting small and medium enterprise working in the field of precision medicine. I also taught some of the final year nursing students and spoke with senior faculty and teaching staff about how pre-qualification nursing curriculum can (and should) be developed to incorporate genomics content.
Sharing my enthusiasm for genomics with the nursing students was a highlight. Because the topic is relatively new, students often don’t have much prior understanding and can find it a difficult subject, particularly as genomics has its own scientific terminology. Although many students in the class had excellent English (infinitely better than my Finnish!), the session really made me think about how I taught and communicated with them. Their feedback and questions at the end suggested that I didn’t do a bad job!
A non-work highlight was having a wood-fired, lake-side sauna and swimming in the lake at sunset.
Yes! This Taith exchange has already resulted in the submission of a European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) funding application to develop an international research network and I am currently writing an e-book chapter for a nursing and genomics project that Arja is leading on.
The Taith exchange was a very positive experience. It gave me the space and time to focus in on specific areas of my academic work; think about things in hopefully a more creative way and energise me to grow my work both within Wales and internationally.
An international mobility might feel daunting, especially if it is for an extended period and you have lots of ‘things’ that you need to put in place to make it happen. Think about all that you could achieve by participating and know that there will probably be lots of other ways that you will benefit that you won’t have thought about. Seize the opportunity as it may not come around again!
