Ruiz Named All of Us Arizona Health Champion for Work With Hispanic/Latino Youth

The All of Us Research Program University of Arizona-Banner Health is honoring Jesus “Chucho” Ruiz Vai Sevoi - Eudeve (Opata) Tlamanalcah, a community leader specializing in youth engagement, as the July Arizona Health Champion award winner.

All of Us UArizona-Banner created the Arizona Health Champion award series to recognize health professionals, educators, community partners and researchers who are dedicated to increasing the quality of health, especially in communities that are traditionally underrepresented.

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An initiative of the National Institutes of Health, the All of Us Research Program, led by University of Arizona and Banner Health in Arizona and Colorado, aims to build the largest and most diverse database of health information of its kind to improve health for future generations. 

Ruiz’s commitment to social justice and dedication to increasing mental health awareness through community partners like Chicanos Por La Causa is vital to developing future generations in underserved communities. Ruiz works to educate and increase engagement among young men through the Emerge! Center Against Domestic Abuse and through programs such as “La Cultura Cura” and “A Call to Men’s Live Respect Coaching Healthy Manhood.”

“I feel it is important for boys to have multiple ways to define masculinity – ways that will promote their overall well-being and that of others,” Ruiz said. “Representation and equitable access to health care and other public programs is community justice – social justice – and is an opportunity for community healing to take place.”

One of the core values of the All of Us Research Program is that participants reflect the rich diversity of the United States. All of Us UArizona-Banner currently leads the country in enrollment with more than 54,000 participants. More than 80% of those participants come from communities that are traditionally underrepresented in biomedical research and more than half from racial or ethnic groups that have been underrepresented.

Once a participant is enrolled, their personal information is separated from the data, which is then made available for researchers to study. There are currently almost 2,000 studies using All of Us Research Program’s data. Researchers are studying how factors such as genetics, environment and lifestyle affect the way in which diseases and medications impact individuals. Study topics include the disproportionate impact of heart disease and diabetes in the Hispanic/Latino community, and the effects of factors such as age and socialization on COVID-19 outcomes in the aging Hispanic/Latino population.

To learn more or enroll, visit AllofUsAZ.org or call 877-268-2684.

The University of Arizona-Banner Health Program is supported under the National Institutes of Health All of Us Research Program funding award OT2OD026549 with previous awards UG3OD023171-01 and UG3OD023171-01S1 and the CEAL funding award OT2-HL156812.

“All of Us” and the All of Us logo are registered service marks of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS).