Tim Curry, M.D., PhD., director, Education Program, Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, delivered several talks on pharmacogenomics to physicians and other clinicians at the Hospital and later before a group of benefactors at the Duquesne Club in Downtown Pittsburgh. Pharmacogenomics looks at the role of the genome (genetic makeup) in prescription drug response and analyzes how a person’s genetic makeup affects that person’s response to a drug or drugs. The intent, said Dr. Curry, an expert in pharmacogenomics, is to optimize drug therapy so a patient receives the maximum benefit of a drug, with minimal side effects.
Pharmacogenomics is just one of the many advances in medicine that St. Clair physicians and other clinicians have access to through St. Clair’s clinical collaboration with the world-renowned Mayo Clinic. In fact, St. Clair patients are reminded that through this clinical collaboration—unique in western Pennsylvania—that their St. Clair physicians have direct access to the expertise of Mayo Clinic to assist with challenging medical cases, at no additional cost.
St. Clair physicians and other clinicians communicate with Mayo Clinic specialists on a day-to-day basis to enhance patient care and clinical outcomes. The relationships includes the exchange of best practice information, collaboration on the advancement of clinical programs and direct consultation. For example, patients are able to receive a second opinion (eConsult) for a complex medical condition from a Mayo Clinic specialist. Patients seeking a second opinion need only confer with their St. Clair physician to begin the process.
To learn more about the benefits of the clinical collaboration, visit stclair.org/mayo [1].
