Michelle Merrill, MS, who is a board-certified and licensed genetic counselor, is the Director of Clinical Training for the Genetic Counseling Training Program and a clinical instructor in the Department of Genetic & Genome Sciences. Michelle is also a senior genetic counseling supervisor in the Center for Human Genetics at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center. She joined UH in January 2012 and brings with her over 15 years of clinical experience counseling patients and their families at risk for hereditary cancer. Michelle earned her master's degree in genetic counseling in 2002 from ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½. She worked at MetroHealth Medical Center until 2012 and founded their Hereditary Cancer Clinic. At MetroHealth, Michelle also directed the clinical rotation experience for genetic counseling students, residents, and fellows during their time seeing patients in Clinical Genetics. She was a member of the Breast Cancer Leadership Committee and the Palliative Care team. In addition, she participated in clinical research involving the utilization of cancer genetic testing services among patients diagnosed with breast cancer. She has given numerous professional and community educational presentations involving hereditary cancer syndromes, ethics and genetics, and careers in genetic counseling.
In 2012, Michelle came to University Hospitals where she has continued counseling patients and families at risk for hereditary cancer, and supervising clinical rotation experiences in the Cancer Genetics Clinic for genetic counseling students, residents and fellows. She also continues to give numerous educational presentations about cancer genetic testing and the impact of testing on family members. Michelle has participated in the initiative to bring Telemedicine genetic counseling services for inherited cancer risk assessment at University Hospitals, and has piloted genetic counselor billing.
Michelle became Director of Clinical Training in the Genetic counseling Training Program in 2018. In addition to her activities as Clinical Training Director, she helped develop and has been the course director for the Clinical Cancer Genetics course; is a member of the Admissions Committee and sits on a number of student research committees and oral examination committees.