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Advocacy and You: Be the Change

Updated: Nov 18


Course Transcript

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[00:00:00] 

Intro


Kate Grandbois: Welcome to SLP nerd cast your favorite professional resource for evidence based practice in speech, language pathology. I'm Kate grant wa and I'm Amy 

Amy Wonkka: Wonka. We are both speech, language pathologists working in the field and co-founders of SLP nerd cast. Each 

Kate Grandbois: episode of this podcast is a course offered for ashes EU.

Our podcast audio courses are here to help you level up your knowledge and earn those professional development hours that you need. This course. Plus the corresponding short post test is equal to one certificate of attendance to earn CEUs today and take the post test. After this session, follow the link provided in the show notes or head to SLP ncast.com.

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Kate Grandbois: specified. We hope you enjoy 

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Kate Grandbois: Welcome everyone to SLP nerdcast we are here today with a whole panel of people to talk about a very timely topic, advocacy and change in our field. The title of this course, advocacy and you be the change. [00:02:00] We are really excited to have this discussion. I am not going to bother introducing everyone because I will do a terrible job.

There are so many people here. So everyone on our panel, why don't we start this conversation by having everyone introduce themselves. Thanks so much for having us. So I am Jessica Linden Holt. I have been a speech language pathologist for 17 ish years and served in a number of settings with both pediatric and adult clients.

Jessica Lenden-Holt: I am currently the chief clinical officer for Sidekick Therapy Partners, which is a private pediatric practice serving school and outpatient clients in Tennessee and in North Carolina. I also serve as the vice president of legislative affairs. For the Tennessee Association of Audiologists and Speech Language Pathologists, also known as TASLP.

Shequria Williams: Hello, my name is Shakiria. I am a school based SLP and I've been in practice for 14 years. I am currently [00:03:00] serving as the SEER representative for the state of Tennessee and the SEER champion for the southern region of the United States, in addition to my role as Senior Director of Clinical Services at Psychic Therapy Partners.

And I'm super excited to be a part of this presentation today. Hi, I'm Casey Hammonds. I have been a school based SLP for seven years and I'm currently serving as the State Advocate for Reimbursement or STAR for Tennessee. I am also a clinical lead for Sidekick Therapy Partners and I am so looking forward to participating in this podcast today.

Kacey Hammonds: Thank you all. Hello, I'm Jennifer Henderson. Thank you for having us today. I have been an SLP for about 15 years working with both pediatric and adults. I am currently a clinical lead at psychic therapy partners as well as I lead our quality assurance team here and I currently serve as the state advocate for [00:04:00] Medicare policy for the state of Tennessee.

Kate Grandbois: I think that's everyone. It's so fun to have such a great group of people here. Before we jump into this presentation, we do need to go through our learning objectives and our financial and non financial disclosures.

I am going to read through them as quickly as possible, and I appreciate everyone bearing with us. Learning objective number one, define advocacy and the importance of state level and national level efforts on the field. Learning objective number two, identify four advocacy roles that exist at a state level for speech language pathologists.

And learning objective number three, outline five ways SLPs can get involved with advocacy at a state and national level. Disclosures, Jessica's disclosures, Jessica received an honorarium for participating in this course. Jessica's non financial disclosures, Jessica currently holds an advocacy leadership role at the state level.

 Shakira's financial disclosures, Shakira [00:05:00] received an honorarium for participating in this course. Shakira is nonfinancial disclosures. She currently holds an advocacy leadership role at the state level. Jennifer's financial disclosures. Jennifer received an honorarium for participating in this course, Jennifer's nonfinancial disclosures.

Jennifer currently holds an advocacy leadership role at the state level. Casey's financial disclosures. Casey received an honorarium for participating in this course. Casey's non financial disclosures. Casey currently holds an advocacy leadership role at the state level. Kate, that's me. Uh, my financial disclosures.

I am the owner and founder of Grand Blot Therapy and Consulting LLC and co founder of SLP Nerdcast. My non financial disclosures. I am a member of ASHA SIG 12 and serve on the AAC advisory group for Massachusetts Advocates for Children. I'm also a member of the Berkshire Association for behavior analysis and the.

Amy Wonkka: Amy's financial disclosures. That's me. Um, I'm an employee of a public school system and co founder of SLP Nerdcast. And my non financial [00:06:00] disclosures are that I am a member of ASHA, I'm in Special Interest Group 12, and I also participate in the AEC Advisory Group for Massachusetts Advocates for Children.

Alright, we have shared our objectives and all of our disclosures. Um, I'm excited to hear. Kind of what brought all of you into your current roles in advocacy, but before we talk about that, what is advocacy? Can you guys define for our listeners just what that means in the scope of speech language pathology?

Jessica Lenden-Holt: Absolutely. Uh, I can give you the Oxford Dictionary definition as well, which is just Public support for or recommendation of a particular cause or policy, and advocacy can look like so many different things. I think most of the time people think of advocacy and they think of the day on the hill events and going to the Capitol and talking to legislators, but it can be so much more than that.

It can be. As simple as having a conversation, uh, with a colleague, with a principal, with an administrator, or with a legislator. It can be writing a [00:07:00] letter, sending an email, presenting information on policies, um, or procedures to others. It can be meeting with state legislators. It can even be helping draft policies and bills.

Serving on committees and so, so much more. And so throughout our career as speech language pathologists, we're going to need to advocate for ourselves, our profession, our clients, our patients, our students, and, and our families. So it's just super important that we embrace our roles as advocates and a speech language pathologist. 

so How comfortable do you feel to advocate on behalf of yourself, your clients, and your profession?

Uh, in a survey of 194 school based SLPs, researchers found that only 15 percent of respondents had received training in advocacy, and only 14 percent had participated in an advocacy event, and 45 percent reported feeling ill equipped to advocate, but viewed advocacy roles as important. So 45 [00:08:00] percent of SLPs saying that they feel ill equipped, I mean, that's almost half.

That's, that's a lot. So a few questions we would like you to ask yourself right now. Have you ever received any formal advocacy training? Do you have resources, or mentors, or even know where to access information if you would like to learn more? Do you consider yourself to be an effective advocate?

Hopefully you leave today feeling more equipped, as the goal of our presentation is to share information related to local, state, and national advocacy roles. Opportunities and ways to engage in advocacy at a state, local and national level and share advocacy resources in order to educate you as an SLP on advocacy and hopefully improve your perception on being an effective advocate.

And often we stop ourselves from getting involved with advocacy due to feelings of inadequacy or the imposter syndrome. I'll definitely share a personal experience of [00:09:00] mine. Um, We just kind of start to think I can't do that. Or there are people out there doing it better. They don't need me. So we would like to really encourage you all to change that thinking.

I think each of us on this call felt this imposter syndrome when we first stepped into our roles. And so we really want to encourage you to think instead of why me, Ask yourself, why not me? If not you, then who? Um, I know that when I was originally asked to consider the VP of Legislative Affairs role, I did not have any formal advocacy training.

I had not attended a Day on the Hill event. Or let a letter writing campaign before there was so much that was that was new and honestly incredibly intimidating, but I was willing to learn. And so that is what I did. I met with other advocates I networked I researched I asked a lot of questions. And I was passionate about helping our profession and our clients.

And that's all you really need to get started. [00:10:00] So your goal is not to be the person that knows everything about everything. That's impossible, right? Uh, you can't be the person who is best at everything in the room, but your goal can be to be the best learner in the room. So we really want to encourage you to be the change that you want to see in the world.

So if you're listening to this podcast today, then you are already taking the first steps in being the best learner in the room. And we want to share specific ways you can plug into advocacy. So let's get started as Shakira shares more about state associations and advocacy. 

Kate Grandbois: I have a question first. Am I allowed to ask a question?

I'm, I'm wondering, about the feelings that come along with advocacy and some of that imposter syndrome. And maybe while we'll talk about this a little bit later, and I'm jumping the gun, I'm just wondering in your experience, if this requires a tremendous amount of. Vulnerability. I mean, in terms of fear related to [00:11:00] rocking the boat or getting critical feedback or quote unquote stepping out of your lane, right?

We are, you know, stay in your lane kind of feeling. Is that something that you've encountered as, as something that you've had to overcome? 

Jennifer Henderson: I'm, I'm going to say for me personally, that's exactly what I thought, like those questions that Jessica asked at the beginning, my answer was no to all of them before I like got into advocacy, but then, like, I had all this fear and anxiety when right before day on the hill.

And what you find is when you go out there and you start talking with other, like, SLPs and audiologists, like everyone is learning together and they share some of the same experiences and goals and ideas that you have. And I'm telling you, for me, like, just having that experience that day on the on the hill really kind of changed a lot for me because I'm like, oh, we, we all kind of share it.

Some of the same similar goals. And so [00:12:00] stepping out there really is kind of what helped me like get over my fear because you have all these ideas. Like I can't do this. Like, where am I supposed to start? And it really can be just as simple as like sharing your own stories with someone else. Whether it's like, I thought legislators were going to be like big and scary.

They're not, they're like people just like us. And it was so easy to talk to a lot of them, actually. 

Shequria Williams: And I completely agree with everything that, um, Jennifer has said as well. Um, imposter syndrome definitely is, is real. There is definitely fear. Um, anytime you step into something that is new and into something that is different.

But in addition to all the things that Jennifer has explained that actually helps with those things, I think it's also important for you to surround yourself with the right people. Those people that are going to. Going to be encouraging. It's going to be uplifting. Those people that understand the feelings that you're feeling, because they have also felt that way, because those are the [00:13:00] people that you want to surround yourself with, connect with, because they're going to be the people that are going to actually help you to also ease some of that fear that you're experiencing.

Jessica Lenden-Holt: Creating that network. Like I sort of said early on was so key for me. So all of these incredible women, uh, female leaders and advocates on this call, We help each other, right? So there is a level of vulnerability. There is a great learning curve sometimes. And yeah, sometimes you're getting feedback that, that kind of doesn't feel the greatest or maybe, um, you know, you feel like you're just not doing your best.

And so I think surrounding yourself with others, learning from others is really key, uh, in embracing an advocacy role and getting started. And also just like they've said, just jump in and do it and try it. And you'll kind of be surprised with what you can accomplish.

Kate Grandbois: Thank you for answering my question. You're welcome. And so now I am going to share with you the importance of state associations. Um, so let's talk a little bit about why they're important. [00:14:00] So our state associations are important for the advancements of the fields of speech language pathology and audiology.

Shequria Williams: Our advocates are on the ground working to improve matters in the areas of public policy, popular opinion and political action. at a state or local level. Oftentimes, a lot of the changes that we see, observe, and experience as SLPs, um, in our day to day work are the products of advocacy efforts at the state level.

And so some keys to successful advocacy include membership and active participation, which is a topic that we will discuss in detail a bit later. Collaboration, because you will oftentimes have to brainstorm and consult with a variety of individuals that work alongside you within your state organization and other SLPs and audiologists throughout the state.

It requires a lot of patience. Because we, as we've all heard throughout some time about in our lives, slow and [00:15:00] steady wins the race. And then it also requires persistence. There will be times that you will be on the ground advocating for this, you know, something. And it just seems like such a difficult task.

But no matter how difficult the task, May seem, you know, I want to encourage you all to keep trying.

Use ASHA as a resource to learn about what it means to be an advocate for the professions of speech language pathology and audiology, in addition to learning about advocacy efforts at a national and state level. ASHA has many great resources to keep you informed about how you can get started in your advocacy efforts.

And you can find information and websites related to your state association. All you have to do is visit ASHA. org. You can scroll to the bottom of the page and click Become a Volunteer. Under State Association, Volunteer Opportunities, click State Association Member Benefits. This is a website that contains information related to benefits of [00:16:00] advocacy at the state level.

It also contains clickable links under the heading join that allows you to access the websites for each state association. If you wish to become a volunteer or if you're interested in knowing What openings your state organizations are looking to fill, you can do so by clicking open volunteer opportunities with state associations located on the volunteer under the volunteer heading on the same webpage.

Feel free to utilize websites or reach out to your members of the state organization for which you wish to participate in for more information.

So I have provided some images of what the website that you will access for each state associations webpage looks like. Again, it is the State Association Memberships Benefits page that you can find on ASHA. org. So you can use this site to learn about how to become a member of your state organization or to simply see what [00:17:00] advocacy efforts have been put forth to advocate for SLPs in your state.

Each state association has a name or an acronym that they identify with. So for example, in Tennessee, our state organization is known as TASLA. which stands for the Tennessee Association of Audiologists and Speech Language Pathologists. In Illinois, the state association is known as ISHA, which stands for Illinois Speech Language Hearing Association.

And in addition to visiting the state association sites, I want to also encourage you all to also follow your state associations on their social media platforms. We're familiar with Facebook and Instagram, so definitely check them out there because you can find lots of great information there, too.

So, you may be wondering, does it cost me anything to join my state association? The simple answer there is yes. Each state organization has a fee associated with becoming a member. Your annual dues for membership to your state organization support [00:18:00] payment to lobbyists, and lobbyists are extremely necessary as they keep the organizations up to date with happenings on the Hill in addition to presenting bills created by state organizations to legislators.

Thank you. Your fees are also used to support hosting of the annual virtual or in person conventions where you get the opportunity to network SLPs across the state. In addition to networking opportunities, your fees also give you access to many other perks including discounts on convention attendance, CEU opportunities, updates on legislation and advocacy efforts via the e news and other sources, and so many other wonderful things.

Membership fees and types can vary from state to state. So for example, annual fees for full membership for these states are as follows. In Alabama, the annual membership is 55. But over in California, they're 180. Down in Florida, they're 125. And here in Tennessee, they're 85. [00:19:00] New York actually has a couple of different options.

So for a one year membership, it's 100, but you can buy two for 180. So that's kind of a discounted rate there if you go ahead and purchase the two year membership. In Texas, active membership is 130, but in the state of Washington, they're 70. Many states also offer a variety of membership opportunities, including student memberships, associate memberships, Affiliate memberships.

and lifetime memberships. Information regarding membership fees can be found by viewing state association member benefits on ASHA's website asha. org and you can click the state you wish to view the information for and then you can click membership or join now on your state organization's web page to kind of learn more about those fees.

Now Jessica will start us off with telling you about what advocacy roles exist in each state association.

Jessica Lenden-Holt: So, um, I mentioned earlier, I'm the Vice President of Legislative Affairs. Most states have a VP of Legislative Affairs or a VP of [00:20:00] Advocacy or a similar title, um, so we're sharing some general information about the state of Tennessee's VP of Legislative Affairs role, but please reach out to your state association to ask how this role might be different, um, or similar for your state.

So the VP of Legislative Affairs is a state association. board member role. It is a two year term. Um, you attend monthly meetings and provide updates to the board on any advocacy efforts. You stay up to date with legislation and advocacy, usually using ashes website. Some of the network, um, networking opportunities I've mentioned.

We have, um, state level meetings and national meetings as well. We set strategic plans with the State Association Board, the Advocacy Committee and with our state lobbyists. We organize and attend the State Association Day on the Hill. Ours is typically in February or March. We organize letter writing campaigns for the State Association members and non members, and that is sort of an ongoing effort [00:21:00] throughout the year.

We work on newsletter and social media write ups related to state or national advocacy and connect with ASHA leaders. The Department of Education, the Department of Health, and other organizations as it relates to advocacy. And we connect very often with the state SEAL, STAMP, and STAR representatives.

And Jennifer's going to share a little bit more about the STAMP role. Yes, so the STAMP is the acronym for State Advocates for Medicare Policies. And state, um, stamps basically help provide leadership, guidance, and support on matters that affect coverage reimbursement and the delivery of services under Medicare funding.

Jennifer Henderson: So each month, I basically attend meetings with stamps across the country to learn. More about Medicare related issues that affect the service delivery of speech pathologists and audiologists. Um, we basically discuss the topics that are related to caregiver training codes, value based care and other [00:22:00] Medicare reimbursement related topics.

So now I'm going to throw it right back over to Shakiri to talk to us about the SEALs.

Shequria Williams: Okay, so SEAL is the acronym for State Education Advocacy Leaders. by providing leadership guidance and support on matters that affect funding and delivery of services of SLPs and audiologists in the academic setting. In our state, I am the SEALS representative. I am also the SEALS champion for the southern region of the U.

S. I have had the pleasure of connecting with the SEAL representative across, uh, with SEAL representatives across the country to learn of policies that are currently affecting our professions in addition to learning about all of the actions that the representatives in each state are taking to try to overcome some of those issues affecting our professions in the academic setting.

So each month I attend meetings to connect with others and talk about ways to make, uh, service delivery in the academic setting better. Some topics that we discuss include caseload and workload [00:23:00] caps, which is a big topic of conversation right now. Um, because so many SLPs are experiencing shortages in the schools, that is another topic that we discuss.

We also talk about salary supplements, um, state tests and licensure, um, that, uh, SLPs also require to work in the academic setting. And we even brainstorm ways to increase membership in each of our state organizations. I've had the pleasure of connecting with therapists within our state that seek support and information necessary to learn how to advocate for themselves on matters that affect their ability to provide or supply faith to their students, which is free and appropriate, um, education.

And now Kasey will share with you information about the STAR role. So STAR is the acronym for State Advocates for Reimbursement. STARS aid by providing leadership, guidance, and support on matters affecting coverage reimbursement and the delivery of services [00:24:00] under both Medicaid funding and private commercial pay.

Kacey Hammonds: In Tennessee, I am the STAR representative. So each month I attend meetings with STARS from across the country to learn about Medicaid and private pay related issues as well that are affecting the service delivery of speech pathology. pathologist and audiologist. I have had the pleasure of discussing topics related to developmental coverage, F code issues, habilitation exclusions, and telehealth coverage fee reducing in some states, as well as network adequacy among a bunch of different things.

We touch on a lot in our meetings, they're very informative. And so in this slide, If you're looking on YouTube, we've included a link from ASHA that takes you to the state based advocacy network page. This is a really handy page on ASHA's website because it contains your contact information [00:25:00] for the various state based advocacy representatives, as well as the ASHA liaisons for those advocacy networks.

Kate Grandbois: And for anyone who is listening, all of these links will be in the show notes as well. So most state associations have advocacy committees. These committees are comprised of practicing SLPs and audiologists from various settings. Like in the STARS network, I personally am school based through a contract agency, but we have a lot of private practice owners, some SLPs and audiologists that are medically based, a few other school based SLPs.

Kacey Hammonds: It really varies widely in that network, which is great. The requirements for becoming a state association advocacy member are pretty simple. One is being a member of your state association. So, for instance, in Tennessee, I am a member of the Tennessee Association [00:26:00] of Audiologists and Speech Language Pathologists.

Um, So if you're interested in participating more in your state's advocacy committee, your first step would just be checking on that ASHA link that we shared, like you said it was going to be in the show notes, um, to get in touch with your state's advocacy committee and just emailing them, calling, seeing what positions might be open or maybe what positions need a little bit more help.

So in summary, what does a state advocacy member do? They help with a number of different things, like Jessica and Shakira and Jennifer have already mentioned. Maybe we're doing a letter writing campaign. We're organizing surveys. That's something I'm currently working on now as the star representative for Tennessee.

Maybe we're doing day on the hill preparations, getting ready for your state convention, etc. There are a number of different opportunities based on your availability. your interests, and what motivates you. [00:27:00] If being a state advocate is not something that interests you, just being a member of your state association might be a good alternative.

Active membership in your state association could look like attending your annual conference, which in Tennessee, I really can't recommend enough. If we have any other Tennessee audiologists or speech pathologists listening, the TASLIP convention is wonderful. I loved it last year. Um, it could also look like meeting your legislators on day on the hill or just sharing an advocacy post that means a lot to you on social media, your membership dues primarily go to advocacy efforts and to pay your state lobbyists so that they can advocate for you.

Jessica will now, now share some ways to get involved at the national level. And I just want to say before we move on to advocacy at a national level. I know we hate paying dues. I know we hate paying extra. I feel like we're always paying something. I totally get it and understand it. I will just say that lobbyists are not cheap.

Jessica Lenden-Holt: And a [00:28:00] lot of times we hear all these changes we need to make, all these things we need to do, and it is very hard to do those things without support. a lobbyist. So I promise that your dues go to great things at the state association level. Um, almost all of our dues go straight into paying for our lobbyist.

So just wanted to put that little plug out there. I know we hate paying for dues. It is truly how we get things done. And we're able to take all of the things that you all bring to us at a state level and work, work to get those needs met. So just wanted to put that plug out there. I know none of us want to pay more.

Um, but now onto advocacy at a national level. So ASHA has the public policy agenda that is available to everyone. You, it identifies the public policy issues that are of particular importance to the profession and they send out a survey to members to complete so that you can weigh in on issues that are important to you.

So make sure that you are [00:29:00] responding to those surveys and let your voice be heard. You can view ASHA's public policy agenda on their website. site at ASHA. org backslash advocacy. You can also follow them, um, ASHA advocacy on Facebook. So at ASHA advocacy, you can sign up for ASHA headlines to receive your 60 second advocacy update and learn more about letter writing campaigns that they have going on again at that ASHA backsplash backslash advocacy.

It will get you there. You can learn about ASHA pack. Which is the political action committee for ASHA. And if you are listening right now, we would love for you to take a brief pause in this podcast And go ahead and do an action item so you can already say that you are on your way to participating in advocacy I love this quickly or if you really can't maybe you're driving.

I don't know take a note for later But sign up for the advocacy alerts It takes just a minute and you will stay up to date on advocacy issues. [00:30:00] So again, if you visit asha. org backslash advocacy, it will take you to all of these great links. Um, so take a moment, sign up for those so that you can know what's going on at a national level.

Uh, and Jennifer's now going to share some specific additional action steps that you can take to get started on your advocacy journey. Yes. So we're going to talk about 12 actions that you can take to get involved in advocacy. You're probably thinking, what can you do? Okay, what can you do? The first thing you can do is staying informed about current legislative issues and debates that impact our field.

Jennifer Henderson: You can achieve this by regularly reading news and research articles. Keeping up with the latest studies and reports can provide valuable insights into Everything that's going on, anything that's developing. Casey mentioned earlier, like attending conferences and workshops, that is also highly beneficial because [00:31:00] it does allow you to learn about the latest trends.

And also it just allows you to network with other professionals in our field. So. Who doesn't want to do that? Um, another effective way is just to stay informed by becoming a member of both your state and national organizations and by participating in advocacy committees. These organizations, they do often offer resources and updates on all the important issues that are going on.

So staying updated on state and national level issues is very, very important. Um, you can accomplish these things by just subscribing to your state association's email listserv or the ASHA Advocacy Update newsletter. All right, what else can you do? Well, very important to help others understand the importance of speech language pathologists.

Um, when we share with our friends, family, and our community about what we do and how we are impacting the lives of [00:32:00] others, We can get more support for making important changes. Sometimes people don't really realize just how important our roles are, but when they do, they're more likely to stand with us in our advocacy efforts.

It's also great to just reach out to your legislators. Um, we can share our concerns and show our support for needed changes by writing those letters, making calls, or even taking the time to schedule meetings with some of them. Um, when we talk to legislators. Sharing personal stories when discussing issues and trying to think about potential solutions can really make a difference when we're talking to them.

Very, very easy to find out who your legislators are and keep up with relevant bills. Basically, all you have to do is visit your state government's website to get more information. Now, on our next slide, if you're watching this on YouTube, I am going to give you an example of how, um, to search for that on our state [00:33:00] organization's website.

So, I've gone to tn. gov here. I'm going to go to government, and then I can go down to legislative bill search. That is going to take me to the bill search page. On our government page, you can type in either the keywords. Or if you know the bill that you're searching for, you can type in the bill number, HB just stands for House Bill.

So the bill I'm pulling up here is in regards to extending the interstate compact for the state of Tennessee. Um, on this page, you can see all the actions that were taken for this bill. You can see when the governor signed. You can see when it went into effect. If I want to find out who my legislators are, I just go up to find my legislator, and it brings up the map, the state of Tennessee map, and then I just put in my address there.

And when I put in my address, it will bring up my legislators for my district. And when you go to search for your legislator on our intent in the [00:34:00] state of Tennessee, you can click on the their name, and it will open up a separate page that will give you more information. Um, information about that specific legislator and most, uh, state government websites are similar.

So you just, again, just have to visit your government state website page. All right. So, so far we've talked about staying in the loop, joining advocacy committees, spreading knowledge, and getting in touch with lawmakers. So, what else can you do? Well, one more powerful move is teaming up with other professionals, um, by uniting with OTs.

PTs, other educators, other, like I stated before, just others who share in some of our same goals, we really can make our efforts even stronger. So just remember that working together often has a bigger impact and it does boost our chances for success. So when we team up guys, like [00:35:00] our collective voice is so, so much louder.

Get involved in grassroots campaigns. Also very important. These efforts are a great way to just raise awareness and advocate for the change that we are seeking. It can be just as simple as sharing our needs with our state advocacy leaders. Filling out those surveys that we talked about earlier or taking part in any rallies that might be going on in your area.

Um, also arranging local events or getting involved in advocacy campaigns that are led by your professional state organizations or advocacy groups are awesome ways to get in on the action.

All right. Still chatting about a bunch of ways to advocate. There is still so much more that we can do. We talked earlier about social media. Social media is a huge help. Especially in this day and time. Alright, everybody's online, everybody's on social media. Um, basically it's a great way to help spread info, sharing resources, and getting support for making [00:36:00] laws.

We can join online groups. Plan digital campaigns and use those hashtags to get our messages out there. Don't forget guys, go to your state organizations, um, Instagram, Facebook, whatever, social media, go ahead, like comment, share those advocacy posts from groups like Asha and your state associations, because every, every interaction really does help spread the word.

Another important way to get involved is just doing research and using evidence based practices by doing research or using evidence based practices. It really does help back up our push for the laws that we're wanting to change, right? So, when we show, like, what we find and what we've done, we are able to raise awareness and influence policy decisions with solid evidence.

So, research and evidence can make a strong case for why certain changes are needed. It makes our, just our advocacy efforts. It just makes it more believable when they can see [00:37:00] like what we're doing is working. All right. I know we're still talking about like advocacy actions, right? So I don't know what number we're on.

We're on number nine. Okay. So let's talk about two more important ways to get involved. Um, again, like just sharing personal stories can be super powerful. When we gather and share stories of children and families who have benefited from our services, it really does bring our work to life. These stories can raise awareness, and they also just inspire support for legislative change.

People are really Often moved by like just real life examples. Like, I mean, a legislator that I spoke with during our day on the hill, just talked about the services that he was receiving after, um, having had a stroke. So just like being a part of it and understanding what we do really helped him understand [00:38:00] and really helped him want to advocate for.

advocate for some of the things that we were wanting to advocate for. So that goes down to just building those relationships with policymakers, legislators, and their staff. All of that is very important. If you ever have a chance to just attend a town hall meeting or any committee hearings, um, or other public events, I strongly encourage you to do so because this gives you a chance to meet and engage with your elected officials.

Building those relationships really can help you become a trusted resource and advocate for legislative change when legislators. Like know you and they understand your passion. They're more likely to listen to you and. support your cause.

All right, we've already covered a lot of fantastic ways to get involved in advocacy. Let's just go ahead and wrap all of these up with two final action items. [00:39:00] Join your state and national day on the hill events. These events are awesome opportunities to meet with your legislators and talk about important issues just face to face.

It's a chance to make your voices heard directly. Where decisions are made, but being there in person also shows our commitment and helps us build strong relationships with the policymakers. And again, like this was like a game changer for me, honestly, just attending our own state day on the hill. It was, it was so fun.

It was very important, informative, but it also made the legislators to me, like more human, like I was stating before, like, because to me, for me personally, it was like, Scary people in this, you know, on the hill, right? Like making decisions about things that they really don't understand. But that's why it's important for us to educate them.

And it turns out like, at least the ones that I talked to just, they were so nice and really wanted to listen. So I definitely encourage you to [00:40:00] attend your day on the hill events. Um, and then the last thing, another powerful advocacy tool and participating in state and national level is just participating in state and national letter writing campaigns.

Um, letter writing campaigns are a great way to share our concerns and express support for legislative change. Listen, these letters are impactful, especially when so many people are sending those letters into your legislators. So, By joining your Day on the Hill events and participating in these letter writing campaigns, we really can make significant impact on the legislative process.

And Jessica is going to talk more about what Day on the Hill looks like, but she's also going to talk to you about how you can do those letter writing campaigns. Like I said, I'd never been to a day on the hill. I'd never participated or led. I guess I'd never led a letter writing campaign at this point.

Jessica Lenden-Holt: So there was a lot of mystery behind [00:41:00] it. And mysteries can sometimes be scary and intimidating, and we can come up with all these reasons why we shouldn't do it. So we want to kind of like, Take the veil away and kind of show you a little bit about what it looks like. And this is an example from Tennessee.

Of course, your day on the hill might look a little bit different. Um, but really it's a, just an interactive event. So you heard a little bit about Jennifer and her experience. Um, they're really true. It's just a fun, interactive event where you have a lot of different professionals or graduate students coming together during the legislative session.

To advocate or to share stories. And so again, ours is typically held in February or March. We have professionals and students that, um, that come and we first educate them on what are the current legislative affairs that may potentially affect our profession and our clients. Like what is the background on some of these bills?

What are the things that are on the table that we need to discuss? And we provide members with a one pager that they give legislators. That contain all the talking points regarding [00:42:00] our advocacy agenda and professionals meet with Tennessee legislators, their state legislators to advocate on behalf of our profession and clients.

And these are scheduled appointments that we schedule ahead of time. And during those meetings, the participants will not only review the current issues with the legislator, but also just describe how it impacts our field, what we do, like Jennifer sort of mentioned, like some of them know what we do, some of them have no clue, right?

So you're kind of sharing a little bit about. who we are. Um, and then we just advocate for our desired outcome. And a letter writing campaign typically occurs around the same time as Day on the Hill, but they can also take place throughout the year. Uh, we send ours out via email to all of our members, as well as post them on social media.

Um, and when individuals are not in a meeting for Day on the Hill, we usually ask them to participate in some of our letter writing campaigns. So the day on the Hill concludes with a meeting between all of the participants where feedback from our meetings are discussed, and we just plan for actions moving forward.

And [00:43:00] again, this is, we typically are going around in small groups. There's usually a leader who knows a little bit more about what's going on, who's helping kind of guide the group through. Legislators are just always excited to meet their constituents and especially students. They love meeting students.

Um, and they really just want to learn more about our field. They often share personal stories, like Jennifer mentioned, of how an audiologist or a speech language pathologist has impacted their life or the life of a family member or a friend, so it's truly just a great opportunity to connect with lawmakers and start building a relationship with them.

I did, we've mentioned letter writing campaigns so much, but this is such an easy way to connect You know, in between Netflix shows or whatever you're doing, you can write this super quick letter and participate in advocacy. So we are going to show you just how simple it is. This is another one of those do it along with us.

So if you need to click pause or jot this down as an action item to take letter later, you're going to go to asha. org. [00:44:00] Backslash advocacy. So state associations may send out their own letter writing campaigns and templates. We are going to show you a quick way walking through ASHA's website just because we can all advocate together with this one since we all come from different states, but we would love for you to pull this up and follow along with us.

So when you get to the website, you'll see lots of great advocacy information and updates. If you look on the right hand side, you'll see a box that includes the public policy agenda and right below that there is a take action link. So if you click take action, you're going to be taken to the ASHA take action page where you can sign up for alerts.

Find your legislator, read about all the bills going on. Uh, and if you look on the left hand side, that's where you're seeing all the different advocacy agenda items. Click one that you're interested in learning more about. And once you click on that topic of interest, that's where you're going to see additional information about the issue, any bill information.

You can also download the full issue [00:45:00] brief. And then on the right hand side, You'll see where you can enter your name and information to send a letter to your legislator explaining and supporting the bill. So if you're already signed in, ASHA will automatically include your legislator so you don't even have to look them up.

Um, and they provide a template for you to use. You can choose to make edits or add in personal stories or notes or you can choose to send as is. And that's it. So it literally only takes a few clicks. a couple of minutes to participate in a letter writing advocacy campaign through ASHA. So I would really, really like to encourage you to pause this podcast, take notes, participate in at least one.

Pause it, pause it, pause it. Yes. Pause and come back though. Um, so that you can participate in at least one letter writing campaign today. Um, cause it really is that easy and that simple. All right, Casey, over to you to share more about volunteer [00:46:00] opportunities. All 

Kacey Hammonds: right. Thank you so much, Jessica. So, one of the most fun and rewarding ways to get involved with advocacy is to seek out volunteer opportunities.

So, let's take a few minutes to explore what these opportunities could look like for you and how you can advocate for the prevention of speech language pathology or audiology through volunteering. You can find some of the most fun fun and engaging leadership and volunteer opportunities by, again, attending your state convention.

I mentioned before, and I'll say it again, that I particularly, particularly enjoy the TASLIP convention that's held every September. State conventions in general are a wonderful source of education, connection, and networking. Conventions provide an opportunity to meet SLPs across your state, many of whom will have very [00:47:00] similar advocacy concerns.

For example, the private practice SLPs in your state might be worried about a new private payer in the state that's taking months to authorize treatment and then getting a lot of denials. Maybe your medical SLPs are worried about the new Medicaid or Medicare policies and your school paced SLPs.

Desperately need a caseload cap, let's say, everyone has something to advocate for and your state conventions are a great way to get a feel for what our colleagues across the spectrum of speech language pathology are needing, are wanting. Serving on committees and being involved in your community are both essential for knowing the why behind your advocacy.

I know personally for my advocacy as the state advocate for reimbursement, knowing the why and my recent efforts for trying to get us increased reimbursement for Medicaid in the state of [00:48:00] Tennessee has really just lit a fire under me and trying our best to get those reimbursement rates. Elevated. I'm trying Tennessee.

So again, attending the ASHA convention and your annual state conventions are great opportunities for diving into advocacy. The convention setting gives you that opportunity to meet with your national reps and your state advocacy reps. You can attend sessions related to advocacy, connect with your state association and ASHA leaders.

present and view posters and sessions, volunteer on commit on convention committees and of course, earn CEUs. Just in general, the conventions are a great chance to network with and more importantly, learn from others in our field who might be practicing in different workplaces, settings, or even states.

There is so much that we can learn from one another. And it's [00:49:00] surprisingly easy to serve on committees at both the state and national level. Asha actually has approximately 45 committees, boards, and councils that provide numerous volunteer opportunities for members. The link in the slide that we're showing and that will also be included in the show notes, if you click on that link, it will take you to an Transcribed by https: otter.

ai Extensive list of all the committees, boards and councils that ASHA provides. There are groups for a variety of issues in any in our field, anywhere from infant hearing to multicultural issues. The contact information from members on the committees. is available on the ASHA website. If you're interested in participating in ASHA advocacy, there is surely a committee for you.

If you prefer to advocate for SLPs at the state level, you should contact your state association to learn more about committee opportunities. I'm [00:50:00] sure that they would be happy to have new state association members ready to lend a hand and volunteer. We have discussed naTional and state committee participation, but volunteering directly in your community Is one of the best ways to advocate, advocate for the people who matter most, our clients that we're serving. Personally, one of the most rewarding ways for me to connect with our community and find out what our true advocacy needs are.

Is my participation in the Adaptive Football Camp that we have each year in Elizabethton, Tennessee. I have had the opportunity to connect with our local zoo to provide a presentation about how best to accommodate autistic individuals and adults that come to day camps at the zoo. Jennifer helped me with that and we had a great time there.

So these volunteer opportunities have allowed me to connect with the community and hear from the individuals directly impacted by the bills and laws that we are advocating for. [00:51:00] Shakiria is going to take over now and we'll answer some important advocacy related questions.

Shequria Williams: All right, guys. So just in case you're wondering, does my voice really make a difference? Yes. Yes. Your voice absolutely does make a difference. And I am going to share with you all about how your voice makes a difference. So, of course, your voice matters. There's, of course, power in numbers, which is why we are encouraging you today.

So if you feel it right now, just take another pause. And go ahead and join your state, uh, organization. Um, I will share with you a bit about what TaskLift has advocated for and some things we have accomplished due to our advocacy efforts. So let's dig a little deep in here guys. So in Tennessee, um, SLPs used to pay 400 annually for what we call a professional privilege tax to the state.

I am [00:52:00] pretty sure that every SLP in the state of Tennessee dreaded the month of June because that is when we had to pay this tax. And so our, you know, task force members and SLPs advocated to remove this and we made it happen guys. This passed in 2020 and we couldn't be more thrilled not to have to pay this annual tax every year.

Telepractice approved for reimbursement past COVID emergency. This passed in 2021 and it became a permanent stay in 2022. Tennessee joined the interstate compact and that passed in 2022. SLP licensure timelines, uh, that bill passed to keep processing times at 60 days or less, and that passed in 2023. SLP workloads, we're still working on that, it's a work in progress, um, and guys we can't stress you enough, your membership dues into the state organizations are definitely used to support our lobbyists, and so we are still working on that in the state of Tennessee.

Um, we've [00:53:00] also had a Medicaid rate increase that, um, well, we've not had one, but that's a work in progress. Our STAR representative, who is so fabulous, Casey, she's definitely working on that guy. So again, be patient because she is working hard to advocate for those Medicaid rates. 

Kacey Hammonds: Check your emails, , we've got a survey coming that how the way that Tencare is set up, we, we need your help on it.

Shequria Williams: Yes, definitely. Definitely. So again, your voice matters. Let's hear from you as well. Um, so let's talk about what some other states are doing. So for example, in Kansas, they have actually accomplished a lot of major things as well. So in 2016, the bill for the language assessment program for death. and hard of hearing children was passed.

In 2018, they passed the teletherapy bill. In 2021, um, they opposed cuts to Medicare reimbursement. And in 2021, they passed the air state compact. So lots of things, [00:54:00] lots of amazing things are happening, um, in states across the U. S.

Right, and you can learn more about advocacy efforts across the country, uh, simply by visiting ASHA's advocacy website to stay up to date with advocacy efforts impacting schools and healthcare. Um, you can also learn more about professional practice and workforce issues. patient, client, and student issues, and diversity, equity, and inclusion issues.

You can find ASHA's public policy agenda that Jessica spoke about earlier by visiting the 2024 advocacy priorities for audiologists and speech language pathologists on ASHA. org. In the area of workforce priorities, ASHA is enhancing efforts to help address the shortage of practitioners that often contributes to high workloads, burnout, and dissatisfaction across the work setting.

In the areas of payment and coverage priorities, ASHA's advocacy efforts address policies that limit client patient [00:55:00] access to care due to unsustainably low Payment rates for services provided by audiologists and SLPs and inadequate coverage for their evaluation and treatment services. And in the areas of service delivery and access priorities, ASHA is working to address barriers that impede the ability of audiologists and SLPs to provide robust and inclusive access to care.

So all of the actions that ASHA is taking to work towards meeting their 2024 goals are outlined on the website and instructions for how you can become involved are also located there as well. So now we're going to pass it on over to Jessica to share with you some of our resources. 

Jessica Lenden-Holt: I know we've shared so much with you today.

It might seem a little bit daunting at first, but even if you just take a couple of those key action items, I promise you it does make a difference. Like Shakira mentioned, your voice matters. State associations can't do it alone. Your star rep, your stamp rep, your seal rep, we can't do [00:56:00] it alone. Um, ASHA alone without you.

Pushing and encouraging and answering those surveys. No one is doing this alone. It takes all of us, right? So, really want to encourage you all. Take the one thing that you think you can do, and do it today. Take that first step. I promise it gets so much easier. Um, and once you write that first letter, for example, it doesn't take but a few more minutes to go over and write.

That second, third, fourth, fifth letter, right, Jennifer? I think Jennifer was like, Oh, this is all you have to do. And then she wrote like five. So, I mean, 

Jennifer Henderson: it took me five minutes, maybe to write five. I mean, not even five minutes, you know. 

Jessica Lenden-Holt: It seems so daunting at first and then you get there and you don't you're like, Oh, this is all this is I can do this or a survey, like Casey mentions, we send out surveys all the time and, you know, sometimes it's a little disappointing that we don't get a lot of responses back.

So we know people have concerns, they have issues that need to be addressed, but we need to hear your voice so we can't carry the torch alone, we [00:57:00] need all of us. So just want to really encourage you to. Use some of these resources. We've added different citations and research links and articles as well as all of the great, um, resources we've mentioned today.

You will all have access to these and we're also always available to help answer questions. So you're welcome to reach out to any of us at any time. My Personal email is jlh at mypsychictherapy. com. We've given you lots of resources and ways to reach out to your individual state representatives as well.

Um, and your state seal star stamp, VP of legislative affairs. So we just hope that you take some key things away. That you get involved with advocacy today and that you feel more equipped and have some tools to advocate for our profession, yourself and your clients after today. Um, that's really just the goal of our presentation.

So really hoping that you all take something from this and, and try it out. 

Kate Grandbois: Thank you [00:58:00] so much for sharing all of this wonderful information. I think for me, one of the biggest takeaways from listening to you all speak is related to dues being applied to something that is action oriented. Um, I know there has been a lot of conversation, particularly online and in social media about.

How many dues we have to pay, licensing fees, ASHA dues. And there's a lot of frustration around financial transparency or transparency with which, you know, what is our money actually doing? What are we getting out of it? And, um, I think on the tail of that, this, you know, there is a difference between what a state association is capable of doing and what, uh, what ASHA is capable of doing, right?

So I, I really appreciate. Just highlighting the impact that dues at a state organization can have in terms of [00:59:00] action oriented outcomes. I hope I, I hope that makes sense. And I hope you agree. And I didn't get something completely wrong. 

Jessica Lenden-Holt: We are all volunteers. Board members are not paid. They're not paid positions on our state board.

Uh, we don't have, um, a big fancy building. We don't have, you know, we, we're really operating on a very, very tight budget here. And so the dues are so important because like I mentioned earlier, lobbyists are not cheap, thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars a month. And that adds up across the year.

And so it is, um, it is really key to have a large membership. Tool in order to pay for a high quality lobbyist. So definitely need our lobbyists to continue to help us advocate throughout the year. And that is really the bulk of what our dues go to. 

Jennifer Henderson: Yeah, and I just really encourage you, if you want to know what your dues are going to, like, go to your state association websites, go to the ASHA Advocacy Action site, like, those sites will tell [01:00:00] you exactly what, um, ASHA and your state, um, Organizations are working on.

So I just encourage you again to just go to those websites to find out

Amy Wonkka: for all of you who have been involved in this level of advocacy for so long. What are some of the benefits that you've experienced through being part of this process that might be something that would help somebody who's sort of on the fence and a little bit intimidated. I 

Jessica Lenden-Holt: love I love that you said so long.

So I would love to point out everyone on this call, we have been in our role three years or less. So we are all newbies, which is why we thought we were the perfect people to come out here and like, tell you, like, you don't have to know it all. Just give it a shot. Just try it. Connect with that. You sound like you know it all.

You sound, you sound like you're lying. 

Kate Grandbois: I think you're all lying. I think you know everything. We most definitely 

Jessica Lenden-Holt: do not. Um, but we can [01:01:00] network and we can ask questions and we can research. And so I think that's actually my biggest takeaway. Like you don't have to have been in the field 25 plus years. You don't have to have been involved in advocacy for five plus years.

You don't even have to have been a member of your state association for 15 plus years. Like Where you're at today is 

Announcer: a great place to get started.

I'm not going to 

Jennifer Henderson: jump in and agree with what Jessica said as well. Like, just don't be afraid to get involved in advocacy. We definitely don't know it all. Like I need all the people that I surround myself with to like, encourage me, or I needed them to encourage me and let me know that I can do this because I didn't realize how easy advocating really could be just like those simple, just answering those surveys, like Casey.

Mentioned that come through the email or going to the, um, ASHA action site to writing those letter campaigns. And again, I, Shakira mentioned just surrounding yourself with people who have similar goals and sharing your [01:02:00] stories and, um, just encouraging each other because we all need each other because again, we don't know everything.

We, we ask all the questions so that we can learn together. 

Shequria Williams: And I'd also have to add in that. It's also very rewarding. Um, when you are working hard to advocate for this thing and you see it come into fruition, that's very rewarding. When you get an email from an SLP that wants to know more about how to advocate for themselves and their students, and you give them advice, and they actually take the advice and use it, and they email you to say, hey, this actually worked.

I was able to advocate for myself because of all the tools that you gave me to feel confident enough to do so. It is extremely rewarding.

Kate Grandbois: You all have shared so much. I feel very inspired. I've been sitting here looking at the Massachusetts State Organization website on the side browser. Thinking about all of the ways I feel a little bit of shame that I'm sitting here hosting you all with Amy, and [01:03:00] I'm not a member of my organization.

Don't be ashamed. Sorry. Sorry, Masha. I'm getting on it. I swear. I swear. Don't be 

Jennifer Henderson: ashamed. Don't be ashamed. That's what we're here for. There's no shame and blame. 

Kate Grandbois: There's no shame and blame. Um, you've just shared so much, and I feel very inspired to at least, Join my state organization and contribute funds that are going to go to helping with workload and, you know, licensure and things that genuinely impact our jobs.

I think that's very powerful. In our last few minutes, do you have any, any additional last words of advice for anyone listening?

Announcer: You can do it. We all believe 

Jessica Lenden-Holt: in you. You can do this. You've got this. Just go out and do that one thing. Just go out and do that one letter. Just go out and research, um, your state association website. Do that one thing. 

Jennifer Henderson: One thing. I'm just going to jump on what Jessica just said, just because I already kind of gave my little tip [01:04:00] earlier, but that one thing, remember your voice really does matter.

It does make a difference. We need everyone. 

Shequria Williams: I agree. Today is the day. Take action, guys. We're looking forward to seeing all of the wonderful things that you are going to do in your venture in advocacy. 

Kacey Hammonds: I'll jump into to say when you do take that one step and reach out, please don't be afraid. We like the advocates at the state level are just normal people.

All the stars in the ashes stars meeting are just regular SLPs. Who knew when I first started in those, I was like, Oh, these must be, I don't know, experts in the field, which they all are, but they're great. They're so sweet. They're so nice. They've helped me so much. So take the first step and don't be afraid to reach out and ask any question that you need.

Kate Grandbois: I love this. Thank you all so much for being here. This was really wonderful. We so appreciate your time, your expertise, your enthusiasm. This was so great. Thank you again so [01:05:00] much. 

Jennifer Henderson: Thanks so much for having us. Thank you so much. Thank you. Awesome. 

Amy Wonkka: Thank you so much. This was great. I'm going to go do the one thing.

Jennifer Henderson: Yay. 

Kate Grandbois: Thank you so much for joining us in today's episode, as always, you can use this episode for ASHA CEUs. You can also potentially use this episode for other credits, depending on the regulations of your governing body. To determine if this episode will count towards professional development in your area of study.

Please check in with your governing bodies or you can go to our website, www.slpnerdcast.com all of the references and information listed throughout the course of the episode will be listed in the show notes. And as always, if you have any questions, please email us at info@slpnerdcast.com

thank you so much for joining us and we hope to welcome you back here again soon.

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