Genetic testing and services in Argentina
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Genetic testing and services in Argentina Victor B. Penchaszadeh
Received: 26 November 2011 / Accepted: 21 March 2012 # Springer-Verlag 2012
Abstract Argentina is a middle-income country with a population of 40 million people. The structure of morbidity and mortality approaches that of more developed nations, with congenital and genetic disorders contributing significantly to ill health. The health delivery system is mixed, with public, social security, and private sectors which together spend close to 10 % of the GNP. Health subsectors are decentralized at provincial and municipality levels, where health planning and financing occurs, leading to fragmentation, inefficiency, and inequities. There are about 41 clinical genetic units in major medical centers in large cities, staffed by about 120 clinical geneticists, although only a few units are fully comprehensive genetic centers. Duplications, deficiencies, and poor regionalization and coordination affect health care delivery in general and in genetics. Funding for genetic services is limited due to poor understanding and lack of political will on the part of health authorities. Recently, however, there have been some interesting initiatives by national and provincial ministries of health to improve genetic services delivery by increasing coordination and regionalization. At the same time, training in genetics of health professionals is occurring, particularly in primary health care, and registries of congenital defects are being put in place. These developments are occurring in conjunction with a new awareness by health authorities of the importance of genetics in health care and research, a heightened activism of patient organizations demanding
V. B. Penchaszadeh (*) Argentine Centre of Genetics and Public Health, Department of Health Sciences, Universidad Nacional de La Matanza, República de la India 2873, 1425 Buenos Aires, Argentina e-mail: [email protected]
services for neglected conditions, as well as of women movements for the right to safe abortion. Keywords Genetic services . Genetic testing . Argentina . Developing countries . Ethical and social issues . Genetic research
Introduction Argentina is a middle-income country, with a per capita gross national income of 9,126 USD in 2008 (or 7,190 international dollars/purchasing power parity). It is situated in the southern tip of South America, with a population of 40 million, 90 % of whom live in urban areas. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived to what is now Argentina at the beginning of the sixteenth century, the territory was inhabited by millions of Amerindians of at least 30 different ethnicities. Spaniard colonization took place in the next two centuries and, while extensive admixture occurred, a sizable native population remained in the region. In the late nineteenth century, most remaining Amerindians were decimated by military extermination campaigns, and currently number less than 400,000 persons concentrated in the northwest, northeast, and the south of the country
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