Advocacy in Action: Equipping Physiatrists to Lead Change

Friday, November 13, 2026

1:30 PM - 2:45 PM ET

Session Director(s)

NK

Nandita Keole, MD

Physiatrist
Mayo Clinic Arizona
Scottsdale, Arizona

Disclosure information not submitted.

Faculty(s)

Evan Zeldin, MD

Clinical Assistant Professor
University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio

Disclosure information not submitted.
AC

Alyssa Cole Mixon, DO

Assistant Professor, Associate Program Director
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia

Disclosure(s): Meta: Content creator (Ongoing); Sage Initiatives, LLC: Ownership or Partnership (Ongoing), Receipt of Royalties (Ongoing)
GW

Greg Worsowicz, MBA, MD

consultant
Mayo Clinic, JAX
Jacksonville, Florida

Disclosure information not submitted.
RS

Ray Stanford, DO

Medical Director PCH Inpatient Rehab, Associate Program Director Honor Health PM&R Residency
Phoenix Children's Hospital
Mesa, Arizona

Disclosure information not submitted.

Disclosure(s):

Alyssa Cole Mixon, DO: Meta: Content creator (Ongoing); Sage Initiatives, LLC: Ownership or Partnership (Ongoing), Receipt of Royalties (Ongoing)

Session Description: Advocacy is a core professional responsibility for physicians and an essential skill for trainees and early-career physiatrists. This session will provide a practical framework for understanding and engaging in advocacy across multiple domains, including individual patient advocacy, practice- and profession-related advocacy, organizational advocacy, and advocacy at the local, state, and national levels. Participants will explore how physician advocacy influences health systems, access to care, and public policy, with an emphasis on the role of physiatrists in shaping policies that impact patients with disability and chronic conditions.
The session will outline concrete pathways for engagement at state and national levels, including collaboration with professional organizations and advocacy groups, and help attendees advance their understanding of how to advocate for their patients, their practice, and physiatry. Emphasis will be placed on scalable levels of involvement, allowing participants to identify advocacy opportunities that align with their interests, time, and career stage.
Interactive, small-group activities will be a central component of the session. Participants will work through patient-centered scenarios, organizational challenges, and current policy issues to apply advocacy principles in real-world contexts. Small groups will be encouraged to identify and present one to two advocacy topics for facilitated discussion, fostering peer learning and actionable takeaways that participants can carry forward into their training and early careers.

Learning Objectives:

Define advocacy in the context of healthcare and physiatry.
Describe practical ways physiatrists can participate in advocacy efforts.
Identify 1–2 actionable steps to engage in advocacy immediately.