Voting as Medicine

Pediatricians and other healthcare staff have a powerful opportunity to promote civic engagement among adolescents and families as part of healthy habits resulting in healthier, more equitable communities. While schools, workplaces, and other pillars of our communities remain closed during the Covid-19 pandemic, health centers are open and essential. How can we reimagine our clinics and hospitals as institutions that empower civic action, especially for patients who need it most? 

  1. Interpersonal engagement

  2. Institutional advocacy

  3. Community-level advocacy

  4. Legislative advocacy

To learn more about how pediatricians and other healthcare staff can promote civic engagement in clinical settings, check out the following resources:

  • A 20 minute primer about civic engagement presented by Dr. Stephanie Fong Gomez and Noor Chadha at the 2020 Advocating for Children Together Conference. 
  • A more in-depth, 1 hour training on how to promote youth and family voter engagement in your practice, originally presented by Dr. Stephanie Fong Gomez and Noor Chadha to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) California Section on Pediatric Trainees.
  • An op-ed with tips for providers written by Dr. Stephanie Fong Gomez and Dr. Annie Kaplan in 2018. 

 

Stay tuned for more information on this page on this page! Have a suggestion for resources we should add? Please reach out to us at [email protected]. We would love to hear from you!