The residency program supports “The Wisconsin Idea”, which is a principle that education should influence people’s lives beyond the boundaries of the classroom, and the work of the University of Wisconsin extends to the borders of the state. Our physicians take education and advocacy out of the clinics and into schools, detention centers, homes and even the legislature. We are fortunate to be located in the capital city of Wisconsin where we have easy access to legislative sessions. We strive to engage with our community as well as educate our residents to be effective advocates during and after training.
Community Pediatrics and Advocacy eXperience (CPAX)
During the first year of residency, residents will participate in the CPAX rotation with the goal of exposing them to people and programs throughout the Madison area that influence child health. Residents will have the opportunity to see where and how their patients live and better understand the challenges that many of them face on a daily basis. Residents will also learn how to advocate for improvements in the social determinants of health. The images below include links to some of our community partners:
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Besides the CPAX rotation, there are many other opportunities throughout residency to engage in advocacy and continue to build on acquired skills. In addition to the opportunities listed below, residents may use Flex and elective time for advocacy experiences.
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Advocacy Projects
Our residents develop a project with the goal of improving child health. Much of the planning and preparation for the project will be completed during the CPAX rotation intern year, but the project implementation can extend throughout residency. The project may be done in partnership with our community partners, focused in resident continuity clinics, incorporated into quality improvement projects, or many other possibilities! Past residents have applied for CATCH grants from the AAP to fund their projects or presented their projects at national conferences. Examples include:
- Drs. Rogers and Williams Al-Kharusy planned a week-long focus on food insecurity, including faculty Q&A and case examples, a resident-led SNAP Challenge, and discussions with WIC, SNAP, and food pantry representatives in Madison. Their abstract was also accepted to PAS!
- Dr. Condit’s article was featured in the WI State Journal: Hannah Sherfinski and Dr. Paige Condit: Pediatricians should screen for stress from racism
- Dr. Lamers is currently working on an order set for immigrant health, with a focus on new immigrants.
- Dr. Woodring has proposed an updated lactating resident policy to improve the support for lactating residents.
- Dr. Wolf’s op-ed was featured in The Cap Times: Letter | Sex ed needs to include contraception
Advocacy Lead
The Lead Resident for Advocacy is elected yearly by program leadership and is responsible for weekly advocacy PEARLs, coordinating resident involvement in Advocacy Day, liaising residents with faculty and departmental advocacy efforts, and representing the program at state and national AAP meetings.
Committee for Advocacy and Resident Education (CARE)
CARE’s vision is for all pediatric trainees to be effective advocates for children. CARE is a resident-led advocacy group that is open to any and all pediatric residents. It provides extra opportunities to learn about advocacy throughout your time as a pediatric resident and strives to develop even more opportunities for advocacy training and involvement. The group meets in the evenings and is hosted by a resident or an attending. Guest faculty share how they have incorporated advocacy in their respective careers, how they’ve created partnerships, and how they utilize the various forms of advocacy. Our faculty mentors are Drs. Mala Mathur & Laura Houser.
PEARL Conferences
Each year of residency, one half-day is dedicated to teaching residents to be effective advocates. PEARL sessions are modeled from AAP Training Modules and led by advocacy faculty:
- Legislative Advocacy Session
- Working in Partnerships Session
- Advocacy Communication Session
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
Our residents participate in AAP initiatives both locally within the Wisconsin Chapter and at a national level. The residency has an AAP National Program Delegate who educates our program on national child health campaigns, advocacy projects in other programs, and local efforts.
Doctor Day – Advocacy at the Capitol
Wisconsin physicians, residents and medical students meet at the Capitol annually to engage in the legislative process and to educate representatives to better promote the health of our patients.
See our faculty and general pediatrics advocacy pages for more information and resources.