Authors: Martin E. Blair, PhD and Kaitlyn P. Ahlers, PhD Candidate

Movin’ On in Montana was a post-secondary education campus-based experience for Pre-ETS-eligible youth. Beginning in 2015, several state and federal funding sources, including funding from the required 15% Pre-ETS set-aside, supported a four-day, three-night on-campus experience for high school students. The overarching purpose was to introduce high school students with disabilities to the college experience and to help students recognize that college (e.g., university or technical college) is a possibility if they choose to pursue postsecondary education.

All of US research project wants to bring precision medicine to every American. But what is precision medicine? Precision medicine is a revolutionary approach to treating and preventing disease that is personalized instead of a one size fits all approach.

By gathering data from 1 million people, our country’s best researchers will be able to develop treatments that are as complex and unique as we are. Not all people are the same. Yet when we visit the doctor all treatments look the same. Why is that? We just don’t have enough information to do it better, until now. Click on the following link for more information on precision medicine and how to enroll in the All of Us research project.

https://allofus.nih.gov/about/about-all-us-research-program

In order for medical research to benefit us, we need to be included in the data that research is based on. This simple idea inspired the All of Us Research Program, the research initiative from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). By gathering health data about one million or more people living in the United States, especially from those historically underrepresented in biomedical research, All of Us will usher in a new era of precision medicine. The goal is to help doctors choose the most effective treatments based on an individual’s background, genetics, and lifestyle. But what does precision medicine look like in real life? What does it look like for Montanans?

There are many things we treasure about living in the Last Best Place. Wide open spaces, pristine wilderness, a slower pace of life, and knowing our neighbors. These are benefits we enjoy here, all of which contribute to our quality of life. But there are downsides to living off the beaten path. People in rural states are often overlooked by experts when major health and wellness studies take place. And when data about us is missing, it can't drive the policies and protocols that affect our lives.