Precision medicine has been a buzzword in health care circles for years now. A federal effort called the Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI) was launched in 2015 to enable a new era of medicine through research, technology, and policies that empower patients, researchers, and providers to work together toward development of individualized care. As a part of the PMI, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) launched a new major research effort that will make precision medicine a reality - the All of Us Research Program.
The National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN) has been selected to be one of the program's community-based partners, bringing diversity and reach to the All of Us efforts. Through the Community and Provider Gateway Initiative (CPGI), NAHN has received funding to increase awareness of the program in Latino communities.
The All of Us Research Program seeks to enroll one million or more participants who will share their health information and begin a new era in medical research and treatment. NAHN will promote the program in Latino communities across the country. The organization has been awarded four grants through CPGI to promote the NIH Research Project.
The All of Us Research Program is not one single health study; it will be a database that researchers can use to run thousands of health studies. The data collected can be used by any researcher in the U.S. and around the world, as long as they follow strict privacy and security rules. We hope that researchers will use this data to achieve a wide range of medical breakthroughs that can lead to individualized care and improve health for future generations of Latinos.
Two major goals set this NIH effort apart from typical medical research, including to have 1) 50 percent of participants from racial and ethnic minority communities, and 2)75 percent of participants from groups that have been historically underrepresented in research. Achieving these goals will require significant effort to build trust, overcome barriers, and work with participants as true partners in research.
All of Us supports community-based researchers in their pursuit of better understanding health and treating disease. Through vigorous research from diverse communities and research initiatives, we can band together in ensuring the benefits of personalized and precision medicine are available to everyone living in the United States.
To learn more about the program, including what it means to be a participant, please visit https://allofus.nih.gov/ .
Phase 1
Community and Provider Gateway Initiative
December 2017 – February 2018
The purpose of Grant 1, also called Latino Provider Influencer Initiative, was to educate Latino health care providers about the All of Us Program in order to build trust and serve as validators and trusted messengers in communities across the country. As an awardee, our role was to facilitate awareness in our Latino communities of interest (specifically health care providers) in participating in the All of Us Research Program.
Health care providers have a critical role to play in this endeavor. Based on our commitment to reducing health disparities and expanding participation in clinical research, NAHN is excited to help spread the word about this program and ensure that our members are educated about its promise and accomplishments over time.
To be eligible to receive funds for NAHN chapters, each chapter was required to attend the P1 Information Session. Funds were ONLY awarded to the chapters who participated in the information session and completed the application process by the due date. The following five NAHN chapters met the requirements:
- Birmingham
- Illinois
- Southern Colorado
- Phoenix
- San Francisco
The All of Us toolkit was available for distribution to health care providers to facilitate awareness of health care providers in the All of Us Research Program.
NAHN, with the All of Us Research Program conducted an All of Us Program Webinar in early February 2018. The national organization conducted the webinar about precision medicine and the All of Us research program. The purpose of this webinar was to provide information about the All of Us research program to multidisciplinary health care providers, discuss the role of providers and the quadruple diversity goals of the program.
Phase 2
Community and Provider Gateway Initiative
March – July 2018
The purpose of Grant 2 was to reach out to the Latino communities to inform them of the All of Us Research Program. NAHN actively reached out to Latinos participated in 31 community events. The 6 chapters were selected based on Launch site of the program. Thousands of Latinos were given information about the program. Chapter leaders participated in webinars and on the radio to support the event.
NAHN was awarded funds to participate in the program's launch. The chapters that were involved in this phase included:
- Birmingham
- Illinois
- Michigan
- Kansas City
- New York
- Western Washington
Phase 3
Community and Provider Gateway Initiative
August 2018 – February 2019
The overall aim of our activities during this funding cycle was to build on the foundational outreach and awareness activities supported through previous CPGI award cycles and to expand this work into two additional DV markets (Washington, DC and San Diego). NAHN leveraged its chapter structure as well as continued activities at the national level. Chapters supported for outreach and awareness activities included:
- Birmingham
- Illinois
- Southern Colorado
- Michigan
- New York
- Western Washington
- Phoenix
- San Francisco
- DC Metro
- Los Angeles
Activities included:
1. Continued outreach and awareness to Latino communities about the All of Us program
2. Using relationships at the chapter/local level, identify key informants in the Latino community to partner with to develop trust in communities
3. Completion of 3 community projects per chapter (health fairs, educational sessions, etc.)
Outcome evaluations will include:
1. Number of educated individuals
2. Latinos reached through events
3. Number of Latinos interested in program (measured through survey)
4. Number of Latinos uninterested in program and why
Phase 4
Community and Provider Gateway Initiative
April 2019 – August 2019
The overall aim of our activities during this funding cycle will be to continue as to build on the foundational outreach and awareness activities supported through previous CPGI award cycles. NAHN leverages its chapter structure as well as promotes continued activities at the national level. Chapters selected for outreach and awareness activities included:
- Birmingham
- Illinois
- Michigan
- New York
- Phoenix
- DC Metro