Saskia Van Den Berg Email & Phone Number

New York, New York, United States

Greater New York City Area

- Promoted in 2019 to Manager of genetic counseling rotation students and interns. This includes updating rotation tasks and expectations for the laboratory rotation of genetic counseling students in the Icahn School of Medicine genetic counseling program as well as supervising paid genetic counseling interns who assist the genetic counseling team. - Facilitated rotation of ACGME molecular genetics and biochemical laboratory fellows with genetic counseling team- As part of the medical science liaison team, presented in person and remotely to current and potential clients on laboratory offerings and basic genetics and acted as a resource for sales team for client questions and training- Provided scientific guidance to patients and providers by advising on appropriate testing and instructing on proper test ordering- Developed workflow improvements and acted as a liaison between different departments within the laboratory- Reviewed and clarified test orders to ensure appropriate testing and provided provider education as needed- Assisted in marketing initiatives including test launch provider notification letters, updating website content and test requisitions - Facilitated coordination of referenced out testing to other laboratories and coordination of complex cases within the laboratory- Assisted in creation of resources for genetic counseling team including external sendouts resource, post-test telephone genetic consult letters and prenatal diagnostic single gene case tracker - Co-organizer and one of the presenters of 2020-2021 internal CEU education series for genetic counselors and laboratory directors- Provided face-to-face reproductive counseling for varying indications in a busy Maternal Fetal Medicine practice- Provided telephone-based counseling regarding test results directly to patients

Vancouver, Canada Area

BC Provincial Medical Genetics Program, BC Women's Hospital- Experience in general, prenatal and cancer medical genetics clinic serving BC and the Yukon in collaboration with genetic counsellors and geneticists- Participated in over 100 genetic counseling sessions, with the role of lead genetic counsellor in over half of those cases for a variety of indicationsSpecialty Rotations- Observed patient sessions at Olive Fertility, the UBC Clinic for Alzheimer Disease and Related Disorders and the BC Children’s Hospital clinics for Cardiology, Hemoglobinopathies, Biochemical Diseases and Diagnostic Ambulatory program (ultrasound)Laboratory Rotations- Participated in rotations with BC Children's Hospital cytogenetics, molecular and biochemical laboratories involving learning about laboratory techniques, indications for testing and working through case examples- Additional rotations with BC Children's Hospital embryofetopathology unit and the BC Prenatal Genetic Screening programInterprofessional Activities- attended multiple interprofessional events including the 5th Annual Allies in Health Community and Patient Fair and Aboriginal Health & Interprofessionalism workshop- participated in UBC Health Mentors program, where students from various health-care disciplines work together to learn from a mentor living with a chronic condition. The group meets to discuss a variety of topics including patient care, disability and stigma.

Vancouver, Canada Area

- Oral presentation given at Pacific Northwest Genetics Exchange international conference, May 2014 in Seattle, USA- Published manuscript based on fourth year undergraduate directed studies project on genetic counselling and variant validation of a research patient with Direct-to-Consumer whole exome sequencing results- Assisted laboratory members with their projects with minimal supervision on experiments including Sanger validation of whole exome/genome sequencing variants and NSD1 research-grade whole gene sequencing. - Duties include designing primers, extracting DNA from whole blood and saliva samples, preparing DNA samples for Sanger sequencing, optimizing experiment protocols, writing reports and laboratory maintenance

Vancouver, Canada Area

- Coordinated participants for the Comprehensive Characterization of Genetic Disorders of Body Weight study (CCGDBW) study with a team at SFU performing some of the measurements- Trialed NEXTgene program software as a potential investment for the lab and analyzed next generation sequencing data- Accompanied Dr. Gibson, clinical geneticist and Ms. Susan Creighton, genetic counsellor, on Medical Genetics clinic sessions at BC Children's Hospital

Vancouver, Canada Area

- Directed studies project focused on genetic counselling and variant validation of a research patient with Direct-to-Consumer whole exome sequencing results- Reviewed existing literature on estrogen deficiency and flutamide exposure- Validated a mutation in the estrogen gene within a family and determined that the mutation did not co-segregate with the phenotype

Calgary, Canada Area

Calgary Prenatal Genetics Clinic, Foothills Medical Centre- Eight week rotation in a prenatal genetics clinic serving Calgary and Southern Alberta in collaboration with genetic counsellors and geneticists- Direct involvement in approximately 100 prenatal and preconception genetic counselling sessions, with the role of lead genetic counsellor in over half of those cases

Master Of Science (Msc), Genetic Counselling

- MSc. Directed Studies project looking into the workflow of the newly implemented in-house Next Generation Sequencing panel of fourteen.

Bachelor Of Science (B.Sc.), Cell Biology And Genetics