If you’ve ever shaken your head at a policy decision and thought, “Someone should tell them how this affects my patients,” that “someone” can be you, and you don’t need to be a politician or have a big fat checkbook to do it. Most importantly, your specialty society or affiliated medical organizations might have a program to teach you how to do it.
Many clinicians underestimate their influence on important issues in health care. Yet lawmakers routinely say they value hearing directly from constituents — especially those with front-line expertise in health care. Silence is often read as a sign of indifference. Speaking up with a story about your professional experience signals that both you and your patients care. It is important to prepare, have a clear message, and carry yourself with confidence to speak on behalf of patients — you have to be effective in selling your message to busy elected officials.
This summer, I traveled to Park City, Utah to attend The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum (PALF) to learn how to sell my message. We were recorded speaking about our advocacy project while trained, senior reporters intentionally asked difficult questions. Afterward, the video was played and seasoned neurologist faculty/advisors provided constructive feedback. They taught us how to synthesize our pitch and use patient stories to support our cause. Repeated mock interviews were performed with time limits placed: one minute, 30-second, and 15-second scripts. The goal was to impact a broad TV audience — enough that they were moved by your message. This is an art that requires practice to master. Throughout the weekend, our mentors pushed us beyond lectures: we sat in a simulated town hall, witnessed tough questions from a panel of “lawmakers,” who had their “own agenda” and dissected what made some advocacy plans succeed while others fizzled. By the end, I wasn’t just writing an action plan on my core issue — I was pitching it aloud, learning how to hold an official’s attention with both clarity and conviction. By the end of the four days of AAN PALF training, I had learned six lessons about advocacy.
Lesson One: Start with a great first impression. Some examples include: 1) Pronounce their name and title correctly, 2) Offer a brief word of appreciation (“Thank you for meeting with us today”), 3) Frame your cause as aligned with their constituents’ needs, 4) Keep facts simple, relevant, and tied to real stories.
Lesson Two: Know thy audience. Elected officials have their own values, beliefs, and ambitions. Before a meeting, study their background and motives carefully. You need to assess what is important to their voters, their political priorities and party platform, their personal experiences (health care stories resonate most), and any higher office aspirations. Out of all these, the most important is the personal experience. After all, humans frequently form their opinions on health care based on their own personal experience; this can be a strong motivator to listen and take action. If an issue is politically sensitive, reframe it. For example, Arkansas advocates successfully sold Medicaid expansion as “private option health care” to avoid partisan resistance.
Lesson Three: Use storytelling to create trust. Politicians may forget your data points but they rarely forget how you made them feel. Mastering the art of storytelling can stimulate positive emotions that are highly persuasive. Tell them about the rural stroke patient who couldn’t get timely care because of coverage gaps, or the child who avoided a lifetime of disability thanks to an early intervention program. Or in my case, an epilepsy patient who was finally connected with the care they needed because of telemedicine access to an epileptologist. Once you have captured their attention, use it: present facts and expert consensus, allude to polling data for support of the issue, and share your knowledge of the fiscal impact (how much it will cost or save the government to implement). All of this will put you in a great position to advance your issue. Gaining their trust is the most important way to sway elected officials.
Lesson Four: Be patient, persistent, and engaged. Policy change is a marathon, not a sprint. Over time, you can shift from being “a voter” to “their go-to clinician.” It is essentially becoming a trusted advisor for the elected official. Relationships deepen when you: 1) Meet in-person during legislative visits, 2) Follow up with handwritten notes or emails, 3) Volunteer for their campaign or events, 4) Become a trusted source for health care insight, and finally 5) Contribute (money, time, or expertise) to their advocacy efforts.
Lesson Five: Use powerful body language. A small percentage of your message is actually transmitted through words. The impact of your professional and respectful voice is conveyed in accordance to your tone, body language, and passion on the issue. Start with common ground, speak plainly (no medical jargon), and make it clear what action you want. If they’re undecided, your clarity can move them.
Lesson Six: Use multi-modal advocacy tools at your disposal. This is often called the advocacy toolkit. First, one of my favorite tools of influence, is media engagement. This includes writing op-eds, participating in interviews, and intelligently engaging with social media posts to help create urgency and public pressure. Second is engaging in political action committees (PACs) and professional societies. This strategy works because it pools organizational resources, small or big dollar donations, for effective impact and influence. Let’s face it, politicians need money to get elected or re-elected and to fend off challengers. Third, community and professional networks can help mobilize colleagues and patients to call, write, or show up on behalf of your issue by leveraging their power as voting constituents. Endorsements from the right organizations can have a long-lasting impact on a politician's standing in the community. Lastly, do not underestimate the power of polls and data, as this can capture the level of voter intensity. Nothing drives elected officials more than constituents repeatedly showing up in person to advocate for an issue in large numbers.
In the legislative world, the proactive voices get heard, and the silent ones are left out of the conversation. Relationship building and trust are key, but are time intensive. By pairing your professional credibility with authentic stories and consistent relationship-building, you can help shape the policies that shape health care. It’s not about being political — it’s about being present. Your patients deserve your voice in the room where decisions are made.
Dr. Rocha Cabrero (double board- certified neurologist/clinical neurophysiologist, leader, activist, mentor, writer, son, brother, husband, father, he/him) is the CEO/owner of IRD Neuroanalysis Inc. Dr. Rocha is involved in different projects related to clinical medicine, writing, advocacy/policy, mentoring, and leadership across fields. His primary training focuses are epilepsy and neurointraoperative monitoring (NIOM). He also enjoys spending time with his infant son, traveling, dancing, EDM concerts, beach walks, and catching up with friends and family. Dr. Rocha Cabrero is a 2025–2026 Doximity Op-Med Fellow. Hear more about Dr. Rocha Cabrero’s action plan and advocacy project (11:05-12:30) here.
Illustration by Diana Connolly
