First things first: We need members! Please help us by maintaining your membership and encouraging your colleagues to join. Membership dues allow us to do the great things detailed throughout the website. Specifically, more members means a stronger voice for children and pediatricians in Olympia as well as giving the WCAAP a greater ability to support current and future member opportunities.

The WCAAP has quarterly Board meetings on select Friday evenings in the SeaTac area. We welcome interested members to attend so you can see what we’re up to. This is a great way to help decide if you may be interested pursuing a leadership position with the Chapter. If interested, let us reserve you a spot. We can attempt to arrange for travel with your local trustee.

The WCAAP offers an array of tools to help you voice concerns for child health care and issues that affect your day-to-day practice. We make it easy for you to reach out to your legislators to share your expertise.

Pediatrics experts across the state lead many educational and research efforts. Look over our list of key contacts and committees and send us an inquiry to see how you can pitch in or start a project of your own in your area of interest.

In order to ensure a voice for children and pediatricians is heard, we have developed a program that connects area pediatricians with their district representatives. This program helps members establish and foster relationships with their local representatives and is an essential part of our ability to have WCAAP priorities heard in Olympia. This does not need to be major time commitment, and you will be given advice and support by others already involved. If you’d like to get more information or become a liaison for the chapter, let us know.

WCAAP sponsors an annual event to educate and demystify members about our political system. Past events have included meetings with the Governor’s Office and conversations with leaders from both political parties. Advocacy Days are typically held in early February each year. Please stay tuned to register for our Feb. 15, 2019 event!

There are many research projects that pediatric offices can participate in. If interested, the WCAAP can help facilitate you and your office’s participation. To learn more, visit the PROS website or contact WCAAP member Stephen Pearson who sits on the PROS executive committee. Recent studies have included measuring the amounts of nicotine exposure on children, collecting data to assess early puberty in adolescents and identifying effective interventions for obesity.

The WCAAP supports its members and their ideas. Let us know if you have some by contacting the membership chair. We are working to create and foster member interest groups such as international medicine, environmental medicine, and EMR implementation. Do you have any other ideas? Please let us know.