Meeting Members of Congress: Be prepared, be succinct
Florida’s Lois Adams knows how to “make minutes
count” in conversations with lawmakers.
If you’re getting ready for an August visit with one of your
Members of Congress—like all your pharmacist colleagues hope you
are—Lois Adams, BPharm, MBA, of Orlando, FL, has some tips for
you. They’re based on several contacts she has had recently with
Members and their staff about health care reform—and a long
history of involvement in civic and professional organizations at the
local level.
In an interview with pharmacist.com, Adams, CEO and President of HHCS
Health Group’s Freedom Pharmacy & Wellness Center, stressed
the importance of proper planning. “Take the time, in advance, to
outline what you wish to discuss,” she advised. “Do not
assume that they already possess all the pertinent details. Most
legislators don’t have a clue what medication therapy management
is, so you have to begin by asking them questions and then be ready with
a short, concise explanation.”
Adams added that legislators have limited time in which to
“digest a great deal,” and it is essential to make points
“quickly, concisely and very sharply. If you use concrete
examples, describe the patients who suffer the most and who lose the
most in terms of quality of life. Make your minutes count.”
For those eager to procure additional time in front of lawmakers, Adams
suggests becoming politically active on an ongoing basis in order to be
well known to legislators. “Join a party, and work for a candidate
you believe in,” she advised. “Become a precinct
chairperson, and walk the precincts in favor of your candidate(s). When
you are known as a ‘worker bee,’ helping to get candidates
elected, most legislators will open their doors to you and will listen
to what you say, once they’re elected.” Regarding that first
foot in the door, Adams prescribes persistence. “Don’t be
put off by the fact that most [legislators] seem too busy to see you at
first,” she told pharmacist.com. “Keep trying. You’ll
get that appointment eventually.” Above all, Adams believes that
successful pharmacy advocates are those who can convince lawmakers that
the issues of health care reform affect “all Americans–not
just the pharmacy industry.”
Related resources on www.pharmacist.com
Beth Farnstrom, (bfarnstrom)
Posted August 6, 2009, 5:00 pm EDT
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