WellSpan Health is looking for a bunch of good folks - conscientious people, proactive people, big-picture people.

The health care system is encouraging individuals to participate in a transformative study called "The Gene Health Project." It's a project that can change the direction of participants' health, as well as help others.

"The opportunity to do prevention is tremendous," said Dr. David Kann, medical director of genetics and precision medicine for WellSpan Health. "We can prevent certain diseases. Most people who participate really want to advance research, more than help themselves. Obviously, preventing a heart attack is better than treating one."

The Gene Health Project is an immense undertaking that involves multiple health care systems from all over the nation. The study collects samples of individuals' genetics, stores the data and examines it. From those examinations, the study can predict an individual's likelihood for certain illnesses and diseases.

In six to eight weeks, participants are notified of the results of their studied samples.

But the project needs samples to study. Interested individuals over the age of 18 can request blood draws or saliva kits through their Wellspan Health internet portals or by visiting the health care system's website at http://www.wellspan.org.

There are no costs involved with participating.

WellSpan Health operates 12 hospitals and more than 250 patient care facilities in central Pennsylvania and northern Maryland, including locations in Ephrata, Lebanon, Mount Gretna and York.

"It's a very large research project, and we will be collecting an enormous amount of data," said Dr. Kann. "We're also working with 15 to 20 hospital systems across the country. Soon we will have the largest data bank in the world. People who participate can learn some of the characteristics about themselves. The benefit to volunteers is that they learn about these problems and then they're in position to prevent serious problems.

"If volunteers have a family history of any problems, we can tell them their risks for those problems," added Dr. Kann. "We store all of this data digitally. If a question ever comes up in the future, we just have to ask the computer for the details."

The Gene Health Project was initiated three years ago, and to this point the study has collected more than 6,000 genetic samples from volunteers. The goal for the project is to collect another 4,000 samples, but the research won't stop there.

"After that, the hope is to continue the project," said Dr. Kann. "We've already probably saved 1,000 lives and made 1,000 diagnoses. It's the most remarkable way to do precision medicine.

"Each of us has 23,000 genes," continued Dr. Kann. "These genes are responsible for making proteins, and these proteins make us who we are. They determine things like the color of our eyes or the color of our hair. Basically, they make us who we are and allow us to be able to survive in most environments."

Spreading the word is one of the biggest challenges currently being faced by the Gene Health Project. Like any research, the bigger the sample size, the more accurate the findings.

"The more you spread it, the more you're able to help people," said Dr. Kann. "I would encourage people to sign up for the Gene Health Project and see what you can learn about yourself. It's just a win, win, win.

"Up until now, health care systems have been mostly reactive," concluded Dr. Kann. "Now we're putting a lot of effort into who's going to get sick and how they're going to get sick."