UNC Thurston Arthritis Research Center to lead Osteoarthritis Action Alliance


Leigh F. Callahan, PhD, will serve as Director for the OAAA

The UNC Thurston Arthritis Research Center has been selected as the new home for the Osteoarthritis Action Alliance (OAAA), the Arthritis Foundation announced on May 28.


The OAAA is a national coalition of concerned organizations mobilized by the Arthritis Foundation and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This coalition is committed to elevating osteoarthritis (OA) as a national health priority and promoting effective policy solutions that aim to address the individual and national toll of OA.
“Under the leadership of Drs. Joanne Jordan and Leigh F. Callahan at UNC, the Thurston Arthritis Research Center is uniquely positioned to take on the OAAA,” said Melanie Thompson, Osteoarthritis Action Alliance manager at the Arthritis Foundation.


“They currently have a National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases-funded Multidisclipinary Clinical Research Center (MCRC) titled ‘Mitigating the Public Health Impact of Osteoarthritis,’ and the OAAA goals are completely congruent with the goals of the MCRC.
The MCRC draws together multiple units and investigators at UNC interested in OA into novel collaborative relationships. Dr. Callahan was also part of the Steering Committee for the National Public Health Agenda for Osteoarthritis and has been involved in the OAAA since the beginning. The Arthritis Foundation remains committed to the OAAA and will provide UNC financial support to lead the OAAA through a cooperative agreement with the CDC,” Thompson said.


Leigh F. Callahan, PhD, the Mary Link Briggs Distinguished Professor of Medicine at the UNC Thurston Arthritis Research Center, will serve as Director of the OAAA. “We are thrilled to be selected to bring this consortium to UNC and the Thurston Arthritis Research Center,” said Joanne M. Jordan, MD, MPH, the Joseph P. Archie, Jr. Eminent Professor of Medicine, Chief of the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology and Director of the Thurston Arthritis Research Center. “Dr. Callahan is the perfect leader for this initiative, which will dovetail beautifully with other efforts we have undertaken to improve the care of people with osteoarthritis or at high risk for osteoarthritis.”

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Awareness Programs in May

May is a busy month for the Thurston Arthritis Research Center and many of of our partner organizations. May is Arthritis Awareness Month, Lupus Awareness Month and Food Allergy Action Month!

The TARC Heels had a team for the Arthritis Foundation's Walk to Cure Arthritis on May 10th (a few pictures from the event can be seen in the slideshow to the right).

The Arthritis Foundation raises funds and awareness to fight the nation's leading cause of disability. We are all helping the millions of people who live with arthritis pain which is painful and can last a lifetime. Tragically, it impacts 1 in 5 American adults and 300,000 children. It's time to find a cure!

 

Our faculty and staff will participate in Put On Purple Day by wearing purple on May 16! This is a special day when local communities rally to bring greater attention to lupus by wearing purple and telling others why they support people affected by lupus. In recognition of Lupus Awareness Month, the Lupus Foundation of America is calling on the public to take action. Lupus is a mysterious and devastating disease that ravages different parts of the body and has no known cause and no known cure.

 

Our faculty and staff will support Food Allergy Research and Education by participating in the #TealTakeover

Teal is the color of food allergy awareness and communities across the country will be decked out in teal to show their spirit. FARE has declared the month of May Food Allergy Action Month to raise awareness and to inspire action on behalf of the 15 million Americans with food allergies. We can improve understanding of food allergy, advance the search for a cure, create safer environments and help people live well with food allergies.

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