Fast facts to help explain GenV

While GenV is engaging with all Victorian maternity hospitals—as this is where we invite participants to join via a GenV staff visit shortly after birth—health professionals supporting families may still be asked for more information on GenV.

Prior to this, we will provide information to expectant parents in their prenatal information packs.

Additionally, we will provide health professionals in and outside of hospitals (including GPs) with information to refer to if the need arises. While we hope you will support GenV, we do not expect you to be experts in GenV.

Fast facts to help explain GenV

Aside from printed resources and information found on this website, here are some key points that you may find useful in explaining GenV:

• GenV aims to be as low burden on families as possible. The GenV visit shortly after birth will last 15-20 minutes. We will: explain GenV; go through all the important information about what taking part involves; and answer any remaining questions that families have, before inviting them to join us.
• After consenting to join GenV, we would like to contact them a few times a year to check in on the health and development of their child and their own well-being. While we hope for the most complete picture possible, parents can opt out of any follow-up or withdraw from GenV if and when they choose.
• Much of the information that GenV needs from families is already collected by various services. Their consent gives us permission to join together existing data and biosamples from various sources to build a more complete picture of children and their families.
• Information we have on families is stored in secure, purpose-built data systems which undergo regular security testing. GenV also protects participant’s privacy by removing personal information, like their name and contact details, from the research information that is used by approved researchers. Anyone accessing data has to pass a stringent review process to make sure data is secure and that their work is to the benefit of similar participants or families.
• GenV isn’t a typical study or research project. Its focus is not just on understanding but on better, faster solutions. These solutions will help prevent, predict and treat problems for all children and adults, now and tomorrow.
• Parents will receive prenatal information packs giving them the opportunity to read about GenV, and be directed to the GenV website to answer more questions. Beyond that, we welcome parents to contact us directly with any questions they have.
• GenV is run from the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute at The Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne. It has been developed by senior clinicians and researchers from across Australia, with support from the Victorian Government.

We hope you support GenV and talk to your patients about the universal benefits that come from their participation. If you—or your patients—still have questions that cannot be answered by this website, please contact us.

Where to find more information

More information—helpful both for parents and health professionals engaged with, or interested in, GenV—can be found in the For Parents section, and throughout our website.