Advocating for advocacy in pediatrics: supporting lifelong career trajectories.

As called for by Dr David Satcher, former US Surgeon General, pediatricians should be advocates to address both individual and community health issues. Child advocacy represents actions that promote child health and welfare on a population level, distinct from individual-patient advocacy. Pediatricians could advocate by collaborating with community groups to advance child health and updating legislators to enable more educated decisions regarding laws these policy makers consider. Less than 40% of pediatricians are involved in community-health activities, representing a downward trend from nearly 60% in 1989. Pediatricians feel responsible for the broader context of their patient’s health; however, personal and work-related matters may limit their involvement. To address this lack of engagement among the remaining 60% of pediatricians, as well as encourage future pediatricians to help sustain an advocacy mission, we propose the following: