Welcome Rana!

Introducing our new Health Visits Coordinator

10,000 Families welcomed Rana (Pronounced "Ray-na") Leonhardi, to our team in 2022.  Rana comes with fantastic experience to shape our Health Visits and make the process smoother for our participants. We decided to interview Rana and learn more about her, her passions and her new job.  We hope you enjoy getting to know our new Health Visit's coordinator!

Rana, can you tell us about yourself?

I am originally from Illinois, but moved to White Bear Lake, MN when I was 9 (just a few blocks from Cup n’ Cone, where I have enjoyed many chocolate vanilla swirl crunch cones). I now live in Bloomington with my husband, our two kids and two dogs.  As a family, we really enjoy biking, traveling, and spending time outside together. 

My background is in psychology, and I got involved with social psychology research during my undergrad years. I quickly discovered how much I enjoyed being involved in research and continued on that path after graduating from the University of Minnesota in Spring 2021. My primary research interests are in biopsychosocial health, which is the intersection between biological factors like genetics, social psychology, lifestyle, environment, behavior, and health.

Talking about your work with the 10,000 Families Study:

1. When and How did you begin to work with the study?

I started working for the Study in April. I was really excited to find this position, as I am passionate about understanding the relationship  between genetics, lifestyle, environment,  health and cancer risk (particularly hematological cancers- as my Dad had multiple myeloma).

2. Could you tell us about your role?

I am the health visit coordinator for the study, so it is my job to bring health visits to our participants, make sure they run smoothly, and identify new opportunities for growing and improving health visits. There is a lot to my role that participants don’t see, a majority of what I do happens in the background, though I can be found working at health visits, too.

3. What is your vision for this part of the study

My vision is for all our participants to be able participate in health visits in a way that is as convenient as reasonably possible, for our staff to connect with our participants and engage with them in a meaningful way, and for the study to build strong relationships with the communities we engage with.

What are your plans for urban, suburban and rural Minnesota communities to be able to attend Health Visits?

Broadly, my plans involve bringing health visits to as many communities in Minnesota as possible, as often as possible, to make it as convenient as possible for all of our Minnesota families to participate in a health visit. I hope to engage in many partnerships to facilitate this, such as our relationship with the Hormel Institute in Austin. 

1. What exactly happens at a health visit? Could you walk us through?

Sure! When you come to a health visit, you will check in and verify your medical history before going and having your biometrics recorded and biospecimens collected. For biometrics, we collect information like height, weight, hips-to-waist ratio, blood pressure and pulse. This process is not unlike a regular clinic visit, though we do take these measurements multiple times to ensure our results are as accurate as possible. For biospecimens, we will collect hair, nail clippings, blood, and urine. Children under the age of 12 will give saliva instead of blood, and children between 12-17 can opt for a blood draw or saliva collection. Once you have completed all of these collections, you will be given a microbiome (stool) kit to take home with you and a silicone wristband kit. These kits are an important component of what we collect, and you will be sending them back to our lab after they have been completed at home. Once you have completed your specimen collections and received your take-home kits, you are free to stop by our refreshment area on your way out.

2. What are your major challenges with these events

Cancellations are a major challenge to us.

 

• We do not function like a normal clinic, our structure is completely different. We are set up in a large conference room that we need to reserve and set up specifically for families who are coming into health visits. We set up the day before, which means we need to reserve the room for multiple days.
• When someone cancels, we often end up with a gap in the schedule that we cannot fill with another participant because of all the steps needed to be completer for participant-prep.
• We set up these events for you or your family and participant cancellations can drastically impact us financially and prevent families that could be ready to attend.

3. What are your short term and long term goals for Health Visits

My short term goal is to bring health visits to greater Minnesota in 2023 with mobile phlebotomy. My long term goals are to establish strong relationships with clinics and communities in greater Minnesota to have even more options to schedule health visits in these areas.

Can you tell us a bit what mobile phlebotomy is?

• Because many participants do not live near the Twin Cities or Austin, Minnesota, mobile phlebotomy is how the study can bring health visits to where our participants are at. This is really exciting for the study and for our participants!  
   
• In order to take advantage of this option, participants will need to fill-out a short survey that will be emailed to them if they are eligible. The company we are using, Minnesota Mobile Exams, will contact you directly to schedule your visit. After you have scheduled your appointment, you will receive a self-collection kit containing everything you need to collect your specimens (such as hair, nails, etc.) ahead of your visit. The kit will be delivered via FedEx. 
   
• A trained phlebotomist will visit you at your scheduled appointment time to collect your blood sample and pick up your self-collection kit for delivery to our lab.

What would you say to a parent like yourself about the study?

I would tell them that this study is important because it will help us understand the health of Minnesota families and the variables that may impact health outcomes. Having participants from multiple generations can really help us see genetic factors more clearly, which is why we encourage parents and their children to participate. 

1. Do you have any recommendations for parents and other participants that want to help science?

Read books about science and research with your kids! One of my favorites is about Eugenie Clark, called “Shark Lady” by Jess Keating. Another great book is “11 Experiments That Failed” by Jenny Offill. 

I would also recommend talking to your kids about science and about research in an age appropriate manner. I think it is especially important to talk about how science and research are always an ongoing, dynamic process and why being involved in research is important.

Do you have any needs for staff, volunteers, partner organizations to help with health visits?

Yes, of course! I would love to network and make strong connections with different community organizations, with those in leadership roles at clinics across Minnesota, and rural partnerships. In particular, it would be great to work with different community members outside of the Twin Cities to help with our staffing and location needs.

Do you have any last things you want our audience to know?

Firstly, if you previously went to a health visit for this study, you should know that the health visits for this phase of the study look very different to what they did before. Visits are much shorter and more streamlined. Because of this, all family members scheduled to come in for a health visit must have completed their pre-work (e.g., updated questionnaire, re-consent if needed, HIPAA) prior to arrival. Secondly, if you haven’t already come in for a health visit, I encourage you to sign-up promptly when we send out email invitations, as spots do tend to fill up quickly when we release them! Lastly, I look forward to connecting with you at your health visit!

Please remember that any families in Minnesota (including those with members in neighboring states - Iowa, Wisconsin, South Dakota, North Dakota -  no matter their age and health state) can participate in the 10,000 Families Study regardless of their health. It is important to contribute to science so future generations can benefit from new discoveries. 

You can check if your family qualifies for our Study here - Join the study