USA Hosts Southern All of Us Network Regional Meeting

From left, are Dr. Bruce Korf, professor and chair of genetics and director of the Heflin Center for Genomic Sciences at the University of Alabama at Birmingham; Dr. Errol Crook, professor and Abraham Mitchell Chair of Internal Medicine at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine, director of the USA Center for Healthy Communities, and principal investigator for the All of Us Research Program at USA; Dr. Mary Townsley, senior associate dean of the USA College of Medicine; and Dr. Beth Lewis, professor of preventative medicine and chair of epidemiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Not pictured are Dr. Allen Perkins, professor and chair of family medicine at the USA College of Medicine, a family medicine physician with USA Physicians Group, and co-principal investigator for the All of Us Research Program; and Dr. Martha Arrieta, director of research at the USA Center for Healthy Communities and community engagement lead for the All of Us Research Program. 

The University of South Alabama recently hosted the second regional meeting of the Southern All of Us Network (SAoUN) at the Strada Patient Care Center. Comprised of 11 universities and medical facilities in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, the SAoUN is part of the All of Us Research Program.

All of Us is a nationwide research program from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with the goal of advancing precision medicine, which is the individualized prevention, treatment and care for people of all backgrounds. While health care is often one-size-fits-all, All of Us aims to change the future of health by tailoring care to the individual.

The All of Us Research Program seeks the participation of 1 million people or more to reflect the country's rich diversity and to produce meaningful health outcomes for communities historically underrepresented in biomedical research. Over time, participants will share information about their health, and all identifying information will be protected. Researchers will use this data to conduct thousands of studies on health and disease, and what they learn could improve health for generations to come.

In October, USA Health expects to begin recruiting for the All of Us Research Program at three locations: USA Stanton Road Clinic, USA Family Medicine Center, and USA Mastin Clinic.

To learn more about the All of Us Research Program, visit www.JoinAllofUs.org.