Yale PA students seen here (l-r) Kara Stencel, Trisha Blake, Megan Lampron, Lauren Bloom, Rodrigo Landeros, Brandon Beattie, Caitlin Pray and Kellie Acosta, along with David Brissette, Associate Program Director, attended the AAPA Leadership and Advocacy Summit in Washington, DC this spring.
Despite a major snow storm, the group met with Senator Chris Murphy and his staff to discuss the role of PAs in healthcare and advocate delaying cuts to Medicare reimbursements for healthcare professionals. The group also met with Representative Sam Farr's office staff where they learned more about the legislative process and lobbied for a bill that would allow PAs to provide hospice care throughout the country.
Students gained an appreciation for the need to promote the PA profession. Megan Lampron (Co2016) who serves as a student AAPA representative said, "I am so grateful to have been able to participate in the Summit. It was a terrific experience to learn advocacy skills and apply them on Capitol Hill."
Rodrigo Landeros (Co2015) reported, "What we learned is applicable if you are a PA student or a practicing PA. The bottom line is that if we aren't relaying to legislators how we contribute to patient care, no one else will."