Alexandra Adams, MD, PhD, Profiled By Influential Women, Advances Health Equity Through Partnership And Storytelling

BOZEMAN, MT, UNITED STATES, October 27, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Emeritus Director of the Center for American Indian and Rural Health Excellence at Montana State University Brings More Than Three Decades of Experience in Medicine, Public Health, and Community-Engaged Research

Bozeman, Montana – Dr. Alexandra (Alex) Adams, MD, PhD, is a physician–scientist, storyteller, and speaker whose work explores the powerful connection between belonging and health. For more than 27 years, she has partnered with Native American communities to support family and community wellness by blending scientific rigor with Indigenous knowledge and community wisdom. Dr. Adams is the Emeritus Director of the Center for American Indian and Rural Health Excellence at Montana State University, where she led research and outreach to improve health in Indigenous and rural communities for the past ten years. Through land-based learning exchanges with Māori and Native American communities in the U.S. and New Zealand, she has deepened her understanding of how connection to people, place, culture, and the natural world shapes healing and well-being. A physician and scientist with more than three decades of experience in medicine, public health, and academic leadership, she is a member of the National Academy of Medicine. Her specialties include health and wellness promotion with Indigenous and rural communities, building community partnerships, and mentoring junior investigators. She also uses storytelling and film to share these lessons and inspire healthier, more connected communities.

Alexandra earned an MD and a PhD in Nutritional Sciences from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and part of her medical training took place on the Rosebud Reservation. She completed her residency in Family Medicine at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is a Professor Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

Alexandra specializes in community-based participatory research, particularly with Native American communities, partnering with community members at every stage of research. She has directed numerous community-engaged clinical trials, secured more than $40 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health and philanthropic organizations, and authored more than 65 peer-reviewed publications. Her research spans family wellness, obesity prevention, chronic disease, climate change, cancer prevention, and the long-term effects of trauma on community health. She also co-directs HOPE and CAIRHE 2gether with the University of Utah’s Huntsman Cancer Institute, an initiative focused on cancer prevention and health equity in persistent-poverty regions of the Mountain West. Her work has helped shape how researchers partner with tribal nations and rural communities to design programs that reflect local priorities.

Alexandra uses storytelling, filmmaking, and community outreach as tools for health education, recognizing that meaningful change often begins with stories that resonate. As she transitions out of university leadership, she continues her family and classroom wellness program, consulting, and film production work with her small company, Turtle Island Tales LLC, and is developing new projects focused on belonging, community connection, and healing. Her storytelling work reflects her belief that health is shaped not only by medicine but also by culture, connection, and a sense of belonging. She has found that stories can carry health messages across generations in ways statistics alone cannot, and they can help communities reclaim their own narratives about wellness and resilience. She also serves as Board Chair of the American Indian Institute, a non-profit dedicated to promoting the importance of Indigenous wisdom.

For young women entering science and academic medicine, Alexandra acknowledges that science is facing a difficult period, with many challenges coming from outside the field, but she believes this moment will pass. She advises them to stay the course, support one another, and remain committed to their mission. She encourages them to find strong collaborators, both senior and junior to themselves, because science is a team sport. Working together, she notes, supports mental, emotional, and physical health during times of change. She also urges them to be ready to pivot when circumstances require it. She remains dedicated to mentoring the next generation of health investigators.

Through decades of partnership with Indigenous and rural communities, Alexandra has shown how research grounded in respect and collaboration can improve lives. By pairing rigorous science with the power of story, Alexandra Adams continues to advance health equity and inspire the investigators who will carry that work forward.

Learn More about Alexandra Adams:

Through her Influential Women profile: https://influentialwomen.com/connect/alexandra-adams or through Turtle Island Tales, https://turtleislandtales.org/ or through https://www.alexandraadamsmd.com/

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