Advocate Spotlight: Alex Brown, PhD
Alex Brown, PhD, has been a long-time advocate for health care access and civil liberty protections in New Hampshire.
As the Associate Program Director for one of the state’s family medicine residency programs, Dr. Brown wanted to expose residents to the vital role of advocacy in community health, a core value of family medicine. Five years ago, he introduced an educational experience in legislative advocacy for physicians in training. This curriculum was developed in response to concerning legislative trends that had the potential to negatively impact the health of vulnerable populations that physicians care for.
When Dr. Brown was developing the curriculum, a colleague introduced him to New Futures and its advocacy training program. “New Futures was extremely supportive of the goals and objectives of the experience I was creating,” Dr. Brown recalls from when he first reached out. “Their expertise in leading this sort of training was far beyond what I could have achieved alone at that time.”
New Futures hosted the first advocacy training with this particular family medicine residency program in 2019. Residents learned about the New Hampshire Legislature, ways to advocate, and current legislation affecting the health and well-being of Granite Staters. They also had the opportunity to tour the New Hampshire State House. “The goal was to demystify the legislative process and make advocacy accessible to physicians early in their careers,” Dr. Brown explains. “By understanding how to engage in legislative advocacy, these physicians can use their expertise to make a meaningful impact on policy decisions.”
The advocacy training with New Futures and the residency program has since become an annual partnership and a consistent part of the program’s curriculum, growing and evolving each year. Since its inception in 2019, residents in the program have submitted over 8 written testimonies, delivered seven in-person testimonies, published three op-eds, and circulated two legislative petitions. “I am proud of these accomplishments and have positive memories about each one,” says Dr. Brown.
Dr. Brown encourages others to get involved in advocacy and offers helpful advice in today’s political climate: “Advocacy is about relationship building, not about making someone else feel like they are incorrect or unintelligent,” he explains. “When someone is on the fence, pushing them does not help them get to the side you're standing on.”
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