New Faculty Q&A with Meg Menzel, MS, CGC, HEC-C

Welcome to the Division of Ethics, Meg Menzel, tell us about who you are? 

I am Washington DC area native who moved to the NYC area with my family three years ago.  I am also a genetic counselor, health care ethics consultant, mentor, mother, daughter and a recently appointed assistant professor in the department of medical ethics and humanities.

What are you most excited about in joining the Division of Ethics? 

Of course the opportunity to collaborate with and learn from my esteemed colleagues in the department.  I am particularly  excited to contribute to the translation of innovations and research into clinical practice and education.  

What led you to this position, what was your academic/career trajectory? 

As a practicing genetic counselor, I learned the value to both patients and healthcare teams, of  introducing an ethical framework into the multidisciplinary care of patients.  I was a member of my hospital’s Ethics Committee for several before pursuing a Pediatric Bioethics Certificate Program at Children’s Mercy Center for Bioethics and a Healthcare Ethics consultant Certification.  I transitioned from my work as a genetic counselor to solely clinical ethics work when I took a position at the associate director of the Ethics program at Children’s National where I was also co-chair of the clinical ethics committee.  I now work as a certified Healthcare Ethics Consultant at a New Jersey Hospital and teach “Ethical Considerations in Genetics and Genomics” as well as “Clinical Encounters” to the genetic counseling graduate students at Columbia.  

What is one bioethical issue or topic that interests you? 

Communication in Pediatric ethics, in particular how children of all ages are included in conversations regarding genetic testing or treatment options.    

Outside of work, what is something you are passionate about?

Family and friends. My husband and I have three children who are fortunate to have four healthy grandparents.  We all enjoy travel together whenever possible and are also very appreciative of staying in and cooking with a Friday night movie or game of scrabble.