How to be a Firearm Legislative Advocate

Clinicians have an important public health role as advocates for our patients and for our communities. This includes working to preventing firearm injuries and deaths, which constitute a public health crisis in the United States. Clinician involvement is crucial for efforts around firearm injury prevention and can be conducted with advocacy at the state and federal levels. Professional medical societies and healthcare institutions are important resources for clinicians wishing to engage in advocacy. This chapter will describe the role of clinicians in health advocacy, include specific examples of clinician involvement in federal and state-level advocacy, and provide resources for clinician engagement in advocacy for harm prevention related to pediatric firearm injuries and deaths.