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Message from the Executive Director Heading link

Welcome to the Institute for Minority Health Research (IMHR) at the University of Illinois at Chicago. IMHR was established in 2012 as a campus-wide unit committed to promoting interdisciplinary research, training, policy, and community partnerships to improve the health of vulnerable minority populations living locally, nationally, and internationally.

I am excited to be the inaugural Executive Director of IMHR. We will collaborate with the many talented and dedicated faculty and staff across the University of Illinois at Chicago campuses, colleges, institutes, and centers, as well as state agencies, other universities, and community organizations with the goal of working towards eliminating health disparities in vulnerable populations. IMHR will also collaborate with academic programs in order to foster interdisciplinary research and assist, train, and support investigators to successfully compete for external funding in minority health research.

The IMHR faculty and staff, I look forward to working with you.

Contact Us Heading link

1819 West Polk Street, CMWT Suite 246, MC 764, Chicago, Illinois 60612

UIC Cohort of Patients, Family, and Friends Heading link

The UIC cohort focused on men and women ages 18+ who had a diagnosis of one or more chronic diseases/conditions (excluding cancer).

The cohort consisted largely of persons from racial/ ethnic minority groups (70% Hispanic or African-American). Participants were drawn from the UIC Medical Center inpatient/outpatient population, and their family and friends.

This study began in July 2012 and completed the recruitment and clinical examination of 3800+ participants in June of 2015.

This comprehensive clinical examination included assessment of:

  • Medical history
  • Demographic and socioeconomic factors
  • Lifestyle factors
  • Anthropometric and biological risk factors
  • Biomarkers
  • Nutritional factors
  • Cognitive function
  • Physical performance
  • Dental health.

Data collected from the UI cohort will serve as a useful resource to examine the effect of numerous individual, socioeconomic, and sociocultural factors on chronic disease management and outcomes in racial/ ethnic minority groups.

Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL) Heading link

A multicenter community-based cohort study of Hispanic/Latino populations in the United States, this program aims to identify risk factors that may have a protective or harmful role in the development of cardiovascular disease and other chronic diseases among Hispanic/Latino adults. It also seeks to determine the role of acculturation in the prevalence and development of disease.