1. Advocacy in Arizona For Residents and Beyond Joanna Campodonico MD MPH
University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix
Family Medicine Resident PGY2
AMFRD presentation Submission

2. Advocacy What is advocacy? Why it matters
Helps support our patients and communities
Improve access to high quality comprehensive continuous healthcare
It is a part of the Job of a family medicine physician to advocate for their patients
According to Merrium Webster: Advocacy definition: "the act or process of supporting a cause or proposal" (1).
Helps support our patients and communities-helps vulnerable populations have a voice. Advocate for policy that helps access to high quality health care.
The Patient Care number three milestone: Partners with the patient, Family, and community to improve health through disease prevention and health promotion. Level five is attained when a "physician integrates practice and community data to improve population health and partners with the community to improve population health "(2).
SBP-3 Milestones Advocates for individual and community Health
-level 4 notes "collaborates with other practices, public health, and community based organizations to educate the public, guide policies and implement and evaluate community initiatives. Seeks to improve the health care system in which he or she practices."
-Level 5 notes " Role-models pactice involvement in community education and policy change to improve the health of patients and communities“ (2).

3. Staying informed
In order to advocate it is imperative to stay in formed on the issues relating to family medicine:
Healthcare issues
Public health
Research
It is helpful to sign up for legislative updates through the AAFP and others websites (4).
It is important to understand the policy that affects our practice. The AAFP has a website that helps with staying informed on the issues relating to healthcare, public ehalth, research, etc which can be found on (3).
AAFP has a congressional bill tracker that lets you see the current legislation that affects primary care. ARMA and AzAFP has legislative updates.

4. Action Local State National
To advocate means to act. This means helping inform and changing policy on the local, state and national levels

5. Action –local level
Quality improvement within one’s own healthcare delivery system
Policy on a municipal level
Action on a local level involves local community involvement. This could be through your own healthcare system through the clinic or the hospital.
There could be local policy that affects patients and their health.

6. Action-State level
Joining with your state level organizations to advocate for policy that furthers family medicine and healthcare delivery
AzAFP
Arizona Medical Association
Going to the capital to speak on issues relating to healthcare
Calling, writing or meeting/lobbying with members of the Arizona house of representatives and the senate to inform them on healthcare issues
Creating relationships with state level representatives to help inform and advocate for healthcare policy
Action at the state level is multifaceted. It means joining some local organizations such as ARMA and the AzAFP. It means going to the state capital to speak on healthcare issues, meeting and building relationships with state level representatives.

7. Action-National level
Joining national level organizations for advocacy
Attend advocacy conferences
Write, call or lobby with your congressmen/women and senators in Washington to help inform and advocate for healthcare policy
Create and sustain relationships with those aforementioned representatives to help inform policy.
Support Research organizations.
Action on a national level is very similar to action on a state level. It means supporting national research organizations, and meeting and forming relationships with congressmen/women and senators.

8. Other Action areas Social media Op-Ed submissions
Exercising your first amendment rights-protesting
Currently there are so many ways to advocate for our patients and healthcare policy.
On social media: facebook, twitter, Instagram. This could be used both to inform the community, but also to engage and inspire others in to action!
Op-ed submissions: on issues regarding healthcare
It could mean going out into the community and protesting on certain issues

9. Be a leader in the community
Once you are informed and advocating it is important to engage the community.
This could be through your residency program and other community organizations.
Run for positions of leadership in organizations that practice advocacy.
You could engage other residents in your program or collaborate with residents from other programs to form a cohort of advocates.

10. Donation-
Donation- to support organizations that support causes to promote healthcare.
Local-there are local organizations and NGOs that need support
State level-AzAFP
National level- AAFP, AHRQ, CDC, etc.
Need to donate to organizations that support your cause
Able to provide funding for lobbying and organizational support.

11. References
Merriam-Webster. Advocate definition. Retrieved from
Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and the American Board of Family Medicine initiated the Family Milestone project. Family Medicine Milestone Project. Retrieved from eMilestones.pdf.