Advocacy: First Steps

Instead of saying “I need this”, try to talk about what your problem is. Sometimes, technology personnel or administrators may have better solutions to fix the problem than what you can come up with. Of course, feel free to share your ideas to get feedback!  

Talk with other physicians and clinicians in your practice or specialty. Is this a problem that many others have?  

If you don’t find that your colleagues have similar issues, find the appropriate people that can help fix your problem, such as IT 

If other colleagues have similar issues, this is a good issue to advocate for better changes 

Is this a problem within your department? The entire organization? A state or federal policy?  

In general, it is more efficient and helpful to talk to your health system instead of trying to reach the EHR vendors.  

• Yes, EHR vendors should be working with physicians to improve their technology. But time and resource-wise, you will get more immediate results to help your day-to-day work by talking with your health system.  

Get contact information for this person/people 

Have data on why people should care about your problem 

• See the Data and Statistics for Advocacy page in the Physician Toolkit 

• Talking about the cost (people and money) is helpful at getting people’s attention 

Reiterate that it is a common problem within your department, organization, specialty, etc.  

If you have a specific solution, include information or data on why that solution is effective 

• Cost information – including start-up costs, maintenance costs, time costs, personnel, etc. – is crucial to include  

• Be willing to hear other ideas that could address the root cause of your technology issues 

Money, people, time, and power to make decisions are crucial 

• People do not want to work on their own time. If you want to have physician focus groups or training sessions, ensure that physicians are being paid to attend 

• Have adequate IT personnel dedicated to the project/implementation/initiative