Thomas Valente, Psychiatrist
“GeneSight is a way for me to help transition people from sickness into health.”

I think it’s important that we start changing the language that we use in identifying patients who are suffering with mental health conditions. And I would really like to see us focus more on how do we become healthier in GeneSight is a way for me to help transition people from sickness into health. My name is Thomas Valencia, and I’m a psychiatrist.

I practice in central Florida in a community mental health center.

Physical and mental health cannot be separated. Having a mental health condition and it being untreated is going to worsen all of your physical health and vice versa. The two go hand in hand. I really wish we stopped calling mental illness, mental illness. I do think we need to change the conversation to, a discussion of mental wellness. What does it take to be well?

As an agency, we looked at using genetic testing of varying types, but GeneSight became more popular with us once in insurance companies agreed to pay for it. We really ramped up our use of genetic testing.

Anybody who’s tried and failed more than one medication in my mind is an appropriate candidate. Really, anyone who asks for this test, it’s an appropriate test to do. And most patients are very appreciative of the fact that, not just randomly choosing a medication that we’re, choosing a medicine based on science and how it might work better for them. And invariably, a hundred percent of the patients that I’ve tested are grateful that we did the test. I’ve not had a single complaint about the test, the test procedure, even the cost, most patients are very, appreciative that we did the test and appreciative of the outcomes.