1. Disclosure of Misattributed Paternity: Issues Involved in the Discovery of Unsought Information
2. The vast majority of genetic counselors are women. See, for example, the list of diplomates certified by the American Board of Genetic Counseling. American Board of Genetic Counseling (ABGC). 2006. Updated Jul 2006.Certified Genetic Counselors (Diplomates). Bethesda, Maryland: ABGC. Available at: http://www.abgc.net/English/view.asp?x=1468 [Accessed 14 September 2006].
3. Policy recommendations concerning how to proceed in this situation are old. Ross (op. cit.note 10) cites the 1983 President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research as recommending full disclosure. Ross also cites the opposing recommendation in 1994 of the IOM's Committee on Assessing Genetic Risks, which calls for withholding misattributed paternity from the man when possible. I was unable to locate any more recent policy statements from these committees or from genetic counseling societies.
4. Genetics Providers and the Family Covenant: Connecting Individuals with Their Families
5. There is a third major possibility, which is not to reveal the information at all. Such a course, however, ignores both the circumstances which make misattributed paternity a difficult issue and the general respect for autonomy which generates the problem. Therefore I do not examine non-disclosure here.