Equity and Inclusion
ConnectMyVariant is committed to being a leader for equity, diversity, and inclusion in hereditary disease prevention. ConnectMyVariant’s goal is to spread awareness among all individuals and families about inherited disease risk. All project staff, participants, and partners in ConnectMyVariant have an equal voice in developing innovative ways to improve hereditary disease outreach and prevention for all people. By fostering a diverse and inclusive community, we can provide knowledge and opportunities that have been historically inaccessible to millions of people.
- We acknowledge that hereditary disease affects individuals regardless of ability, age, sex, gender, gender identity, education, race, ethnicity, nationality, political opinion, professional experience, religion, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status.
- We are committed to making hereditary disease genetic testing, prevention, and treatments easier and more accessible for all people.
- We acknowledge the profound impact of systemic, institutional racism that has and continues to result in unacceptable disparities in access to genetic services, testing, and disease prevention care.
- We are committed to increasing the inclusion of historically marginalized communities in hereditary disease testing and prevention.
ConnectMyVariant will fearlessly:
- Engage and recruit a diverse group of individuals and families with hereditary disease risk with an intentional focus on populations who have been traditionally excluded or marginalized.
- Respect individual decision-making about hereditary disease communication and healthcare.
- Invite representation and feedback from our members to identify gaps and barriers to family communication and genetic testing that are rooted in institutional racism and social determinants of health.
- Cultivate partnerships with internal and external organizations and clinicians that are committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in their own work.
- Lead diversity, equity, and inclusion outreach for hereditary disease prevention by example and by actively encouraging others to develop equity and inclusion roadmaps for their own organizations with clearly stated objectives, targets, and actions.
Our greatest strength resides in the diversity of the individuals and families that join the ConnectMyVariant community, specifically, their fearlessness in helping others learn about genetic disease risk and diligence in helping them prevent disease. We create welcoming and inclusive communities to increase access to a wealth of knowledge and potentially life-changing genetic information. ConnectMyVariant is firmly committed to the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion and have made them foundational elements of our work.