About this session
A family health history records health conditions affecting biological relatives across different generations.
It can reveal patterns involving heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, some cancers and other conditions, helping healthcare professionals assess whether someone may have a higher-than-average risk.
Family history reflects more than genes alone. Relatives may also share environments, behaviors, cultural practices and access to healthcare, while people from the same family can still have very different health outcomes.
A family pattern indicates increased possibility, not certainty that the same condition will develop.
This session helps participants gather useful information without turning family conversations into an investigation or assuming every illness is inherited.
They learn which details are most informative, how to handle incomplete or unavailable histories and how family information may shape screening, prevention or referral discussions.
What your people take away
- Identify which relatives, conditions and ages of diagnosis are most useful to record
- Recognize family patterns that may justify earlier or more focused healthcare conversations
- Distinguish increased risk from a guaranteed future diagnosis
- Gather health information respectfully while accepting that some histories remain incomplete
- Create a clear family-health summary to share with an appropriate professional
Shared with you
See the full session
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- What each length covers, 30 minutes to full day
- Everything that’s covered, part by part
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What each length covers
30 minutes
30 Minutes — Key Points: Build a Useful Family Health RecordA focused 30-minute session on three key points from Build a Useful Family Health Record: start with close biological relatives, capture the details that change the picture and include both sides of the family.
- Start with close biological relatives
- Capture the details that change the picture
- Include both sides of the family
Covers 3 of 4 points in Build a Useful Family Health Record.
60 minutes
60 Minutes — Module 1: Build a Useful Family Health RecordThe 60-minute session focuses on immediate practical application. Participants identify the relatives and conditions to include, record key details and prepare a concise family-health summary.
- Module 1: Build a Useful Family Health Record
- Live Q&A
Covers 1 of 3 parts: Build a Useful Family Health Record.
90 minutes
90 Minutes — Modules 1 and 2: Spot Patterns and Connect Them With PreventionThe 90-minute session adds deeper exploration of age at diagnosis, repeated conditions, inherited and shared environmental influences and the questions family history may raise about screening or prevention.
- Module 1: Build a Useful Family Health Record
- Module 2: Spot Patterns and Connect Them With Prevention
- Live Q&A
Covers 2 of 3 parts: Build a Useful Family Health Record and Spot Patterns and Connect Them With Prevention.
3 hours
Covers all 3 parts.
Full day
Full Day — Modules 1, 2 and 3: Navigate Risk, Screening and Genetic SupportThe full-day session combines practical family-history mapping with accessible education about inherited risk, professional assessment, genetic services and the limits of family information. Participants leave with a clear and proportionate next-step plan.
- Module 1: Build a Useful Family Health Record
- Module 2: Spot Patterns and Connect Them With Prevention
- Module 3: Navigate Incomplete Histories, Screening and Genetic Support
- Live Q&A
Covers all 3 parts, in more depth, with more time to practice.
What’s covered
Build a Useful Family Health Record
Every length- Start with close biological relativesParticipants record relevant information about parents, siblings, children and grandparents before expanding to aunts, uncles and other biological relatives where useful.
- Capture the details that change the pictureParticipants record the condition, the relative affected and the approximate age at diagnosis, alongside causes of death where known and comfortable to discuss.
- Include both sides of the familyParticipants map information from maternal and paternal relatives rather than focusing only on the side of the family that is discussed more openly.
- Create a summary you can actually useParticipants condense the information into a clear personal record that can be stored, updated and taken to appointments.
Spot Patterns and Connect Them With Prevention
90 minutes and longer- Look for repeated conditions across generationsParticipants examine whether the same or related conditions appear among several biological relatives.
- Separate family risk from inevitabilityParticipants explore how family history may increase likelihood without determining the future.
- Turn information into preventive questionsParticipants prepare questions about whether their family pattern changes the timing or type of checks they may need.
- Focus on what can be influencedParticipants identify practical areas such as screening attendance, smoking, movement, food, alcohol, blood-pressure checks or diabetes prevention that may be relevant to their own risk picture.
Navigate Incomplete Histories, Screening and Genetic Support
3 hours and longer- Work with the information availableParticipants consider adoption, estrangement, bereavement, donor conception, small families, uncertain diagnoses and relatives who prefer not to discuss health.
- Ask relatives without creating pressureParticipants prepare respectful ways to explain why they are asking and allow relatives to choose what they share.
- Know when specialist genetic advice may be relevantParticipants learn that certain patterns—such as multiple relatives with the same condition, unusually young diagnoses or a known inherited condition in the family—may lead to referral for specialist risk assessment or genetic counseling.
- Keep the record currentParticipants create a simple routine for updating their family history when a relative receives a new diagnosis or further information becomes available.
Who it’s for
- Employees who want to use family health information for preventive planning
- People preparing for screening, health checks or risk conversations with a clinician
- Anyone with incomplete family information who still wants a useful starting record
- Teams supporting health literacy and preventive wellbeing campaigns
- Workplace wellbeing programs focused on early detection and informed healthcare conversations
How booking works
- Book online. Create a free Workbliss profile, then pay with session credits, by card or by invoice.
- Pick a date. Choose a date at least 14 days ahead, or book now and set the date later.
- Choose your expert. Within 3 working days, we send you profiles of the experts available for your date.
- We deliver it. Your expert is briefed on your people and goals, then runs the session live online or at your site.
Questions about Family Health History: What It Can Tell You
How long is Family Health History: What It Can Tell You?
Family Health History: What It Can Tell You runs as 30 minutes, 60 minutes, 90 minutes, 3 hours or full day. You choose the length when you book. A 30-minute session covers three key points from Build a Useful Family Health Record: start with close biological relatives, capture the details that change the picture and include both sides of the family. A 60-minute session covers Build a Useful Family Health Record in full, with a live Q&A. A 90-minute session adds Spot Patterns and Connect Them With Prevention. A 3-hour session adds Navigate Incomplete Histories, Screening and Genetic Support. A full-day session covers everything, in more depth, with more time to practice.
Can Family Health History: What It Can Tell You be delivered online or in person?
Yes, both. It runs live online, so every office can join at the same time, or in person at your site, in any country.
How do we book Family Health History: What It Can Tell You?
Create a free Workbliss profile with your work email, then open Family Health History: What It Can Tell You to see the price for each length and book it. You can pay with session credits, by card or by invoice, and choose a date at least 14 days ahead, or set it later.
Who leads the session?
A vetted Workbliss expert, briefed on your people, culture and goals before the session. After you book, we send you profiles of the experts available for your date within 3 working days, so you can choose who leads it.
Can it be tailored to our company?
Yes. Every session is shaped around your goals, your people and the benefits you already offer, and delivered by experts in your people’s languages.