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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

George L. Askew, MD, Docs For Tots, 1522 K Street NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20005, 240 354 6460, gaskew@docsfortots.org

Given the necessary tools of advocacy and support, children's doctors can be very effective in helping to leverage public opinion and policy change for the betterment of very young children. Docs For Tots (DFT) is a nonpartisan, advocacy organization formed to encourage more doctors to fulfill their important role as active advocates for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers on the national, state and local level. We are committed to making it as simple as possible for doctors to become initially involved in advocacy or to increase their current advocacy activity. There are nearly 500 in the Docs For Tots network nationwide, made up of children's doctors from multiple specialties in child health care including pediatricians, family practitioners, psychiatrists, surgeons, obstetricians, and more. DFT has successfully built bridges between local and state organizations and doctors that serve to promote the pursuit of social justice in health and development for young children through social and health policy change and sets about changing the nature of professionalism for children's doctors through increasing their civic engagement beyond clinical practice walls. Examples of the nationwide efforts of DFT and its network of doctors to engage with community and state based organizations in advocacy efforts will be presented.

Learning Objectives:

• 1. The information in this session will provide specific examples and general guidelines for engaging doctors with local and state organizations in health and social policy advocacy work.
• 2. Participants will leave with a better understanding and be able to clearly articulate some of the barriers to active advocacy engagement and most importantly how to overcome these barriers.
• 3. They should then be able to immediately apply this knowledge in the development and evaluation of their own advocacy efforts.

Keywords: Advocacy, Child Health Promotion

Related Web page: www.docsfortots.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation