Familiarity with Psychiatric Pharmacogenomic Testing in Physicians and Advanced Practice Providers: Educational Opportunities

Introduction Pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing identifies individual genetic variation that may inform medication treatment. Lack of awareness and education may be barriers to implementing routine PGx testing. To characterize current PGx testing utilization and educational needs we conducted a survey of various provider types. Methods Healthcare providers in the primary care setting were targeted between November 2022 and February 2023 via the Medscape Members paid market research program. The survey included 5 demographic, 5 multiple-choice, and 4 multi-component five-point Likert scale questions to assess PGx sentiments, use, and education in mental health (e.g., depression) and primary care (e.g., cardiovascular disease) conditions. Responses were descriptively compared. Results Of 305 U.S. provider respondents [40% nurse practitioners (NPs), 33% frontline MDs/DOs, 3% physician assistants (PAs), 24% other], most indicated that they “don’t use” (44-49%) or “have never heard of” (19-20%) PGx testing for mental health conditions. The most helpful sources to learn about PGx testing were accredited CE/CME activities (55-61%) and peer-reviewed publications (57-59%). Most NPs/PAs preferred webinars (62%) or online learning portal (57%) formats. MDs/DOs had no preference for webinars or learning portals over conferences, written materials, or academic presentations (45-47%). NPs/PAs were more interested in learning about PGx testing than MDs/DOs (4.29/5 vs. 3.96/5 average score). Conclusions These data reveal awareness level and desired learning opportunities for PGx testing between types of healthcare providers. Education should be tailored to meet providers’ preferred learning formats and information sources, such as offering CE/CME through an online learning portal. Funding Myriad Genetics, Inc.