MOBILE, Alabama (May 27, 2026) — Janel Lowman, senior manager of community outreach at USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute (MCI), recently presented at the On Aging 2026 conference hosted by the American Society on Aging in Atlanta, where she joined a national panel discussion focused on improving care for older adults in rural communities.

The session, developed in collaboration with AARP, and the National Rural Health Association (NRHA), explored challenges facing rural aging populations, including chronic disease, limited access to care, transportation barriers, food insecurity, and social isolation. Lowman discussed how community health workers (CHW) can help bridge those gaps by connecting patients with resources and supporting more personalized, age-friendly care.

“Community health workers play an important role in helping patients navigate care and ensuring their needs are heard,” Lowman said. “It was an honor to share the work happening in our communities and learn from others across the country who are addressing similar challenges in rural health.”

The presentation highlighted the Age-Friendly Health Systems 4Ms Framework — What Matters, Medication, Mentation and Mobility — and how CHWs can apply those principles in clinics, outreach programs, senior centers, and patients’ homes. Lowman also shared insights from her participation in the National Community of Practice supported by AARP that focused on improving communication between patients, caregivers, and providers.

Lowman’s work in rural health spans more than a decade. She began training community health workers in 2012 following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, when the University of South Alabama received grant funding to expand community-based health support across Alabama, Mississippi, the Florida Panhandle and Louisiana. As a certified CHW trainer, she trained 74 workers across four states, along with 391 community members who served as peer health advocates.

Today, she continues that work through community outreach initiatives at USA Health, the academic health system for USA, and MCI, and as one of three trainers for the Center for Healthy Communities’ CHW training program.

Her efforts also include expanding access to preventive cancer care across southern Alabama. Through a partnership with the Alabama Department of Public Health’s Prostate Cancer Prevention Program, MCI provides free prostate cancer screenings for uninsured and underinsured men in the region.

In addition to presenting at the conference, Lowman was recently selected for the 2025-2026 Rural Health Fellows Program through the NRHA, a national leadership program focused on strengthening rural healthcare access, advocacy, and policy development.

Lowman has been with USA Health for more than 25 years, focusing much of her career on improving healthcare access and outcomes in underserved communities.

Learn more about USA Health’s Center for Healthy Communities at usahealthsystem.com, or learn more about the outreach efforts of MCI’s Cancer Control and Prevention team at usamci.com.