And, while many first-time Hill Day attendees get nervous about trying to impress the Beltway, Dr. Walpole views it from the flip side.
“Any time you get to have face-to-face time with one of your Congressional leaders, whether it be a representative or senator, you talk to the people that actually directly influence and impact not only the work that we do, but the work that we do for our patients,” he says. “In that regard, we represent a voice for them, to explain to them who we are and what we do and what our patients’ needs are.
“They depend on us.”
That’s the message that Stephanie Vance, who founded Washington-based Advocacy Associates LLC, pushed as she prepped the laymen lobbyists for more than an hour before sending them off to their meetings. Vance, a 25-year veteran of the political scene, reminded hospitalists during the breakfast prep session that those in Congress are elected to serve—and that means they’re elected to listen.
Hospitalist Gordon Johnson, MD, FACP, FHM, got the message. He’s president of the SHM’s Oregon Chapter, but he had never done a lobbying trip like this before. The appeal was simple and effective to him.
“The more of us that are involved, the more meaningful it is,” he says. “When [members of Congress and their staffs] have people coming from their constituency, that carries a message. It does carry a stronger message.”
But, as with patient discharge, the message is always strongest with good follow-up. Vance, known to many as “the advocacy guru,” urged hospitalists to follow up after their meetings—an occasional phone call or e-mail to let the person know that, should they have any questions, a hospitalist is standing by to provide answers. To Dr. Walpole, a connection like that can be worth more than hiring a white-shoed lobbying firm.
“When you put a face with someone—‘Oh, I know Chip, I know Richard from back home,’—they make a connection with someone that is real and personal to them,” he says. “And, ultimately, that can probably make a bigger difference in influencing how they represent us than anything else.”
Richard Quinn is a freelance writer in New Jersey.