A 2 minute read
Did you know that Hispanics are one of the fastest growing populations in the United States and yet they are underrepresented in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)?
A recent report from Pew Research, mentions that Hispanic workers represent 17% of total employment in all occupations, but only 8% work in a STEM field. This means there is a lower representation of Hispanics in jobs related to health, life sciences, mathematics, physical sciences, computer science. Moreover, this also equates to less participation in health research.
It is important for Hispanics to be represented in different areas of science, including health research, so that the community as a whole can be better represented in decision-making and medical advances. If we want a better quality of life, better treatments, and disease prevention for ourselves, our families, and the community, it is important to participate in health research.
Curious about health research programs you could participate in? The All of Us Research program, created by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and is working to improve health care through research. Unlike research studies that focus on one disease or group of people, All of Us is building a diverse database that can inform thousands of studies on a variety of health conditions.
All of Us aims to create the largest health database in history by enrolling one million volunteers across the United States regardless of race, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation, without discrimination. By looking for common characteristics utilizing this information, researchers could better learn what affects people’s health. The goal is to help researchers better understand why people get sick or stay healthy. With your participation, this can be possible!
Currently, the program has more than 500,000 participants currently enrolled, however, of these participants, only 16.5% of Hispanics/Latinos have completed the initial steps of the program – we still have a long way to go to grow represention in health research.The steps have included filling out an informed consent form, agreeing to share electronic health records, completing surveys, providing physical measurements, and donating at least one biological sample for storage in the biobank. .
In addition, the program developed a Research Hub, which connects a broad research community with a diverse set of research participants. The Research Center houses one of the largest, most diverse, and widely accessible data sets ever assembled. Users can explore aggregated data, including survey responses, physical measurements, electronic health record information, and data from wearable devices. The data is secure and is not shared with external entities.
Registered researchers can access and view detailed data and a variety of research tools to conduct a wide range of studies through the Researcher Workbench. The All of Us program has a Project Directory that uses participant data for research purposes. Right now, they have a total of 2,473 active projects and currently, 35 active projects are related to Hispanics and Latinos.
Such projects are important to the Hispanic and Latino community, as the diverse data provided by participants can help facilitate new studies that could help lead to new knowledge, treatments, and strategies for the prevention of health conditions that are tailored to Latinos and Hispanics.
By engaging people and communities that have been left out of health research in the past and making their data available to a diverse set of researchers, the program seeks to improve understanding of health and disease and reduce health disparities, childinjuryfirm.com/strattera-atomoxetine.
Hence the importance of being part of this initiative: over time, the participation of Latinos and Hispanics in this research will be crucial for medical advancement and the treatment of different diseases and conditions in the community. This will help to provide more precise treatments that can ensure a better quality of life for future generations.
Do you want to be part of history and play a role in increase Hispanic and Latino representation in health research?
Join the All of Us Research program at: www.joinallofus.org/Together and www.joinallofus.org/TodosJuntos (in Spanish version).
Remember, it is in your hands to shape the future of your health!
Don’t wait and join the All of Us Research Program!
Recent Comments