Complete Story
05/16/2024
Train Ride to the Hyatt: Leadership and Advocacy Conference
Maj Joshua Da Silva, DO, USAF, FACEP
I remember sitting in the sun on the train to the Hyatt hotel this April, full of excited and nervous energy, thinking about how much I love this conference and where it has brought me. My first time at the Leadership and Advocacy conference was in 2023, and it was a moment that changed the trajectory of my career. It was a moment, sitting in a lecture on policy, when I realized “I found my people!”. I was a little surprised at how much I enjoyed being there, but looking back I see the steps that led me there. Living through COVID made me realize how quickly I could become a victim of the system, and I needed to start using my voice to advocate for change.
Leaving the representative’s office after my first LAC, even though I was unsure if what I had said made a difference, I felt a sense of accomplishment. It can be very intimidating to talk to lawmakers for the first time. Thoughts like “what if I sound stupid” and “what if I stutter” played on repeat in my head and made me feel like I was back in grade school about to give a PowerPoint presentation for the first time. To be fair, no one is good at this in the beginning, and it is something I see deter other physicians from using their voice. A lobbyist is a person who does this for a living for goodness sake, no one gets it perfect their first time!
The conference is not only a place to discuss policy and advocate for healthcare change, but the connections and mentoring I found there have been invaluable. If you have any goals within ACEP leadership, or leadership in general, LAC is the place to be. Where else can you sit next to so many past ACEP leaders and receive one-on-one mentoring?
Flash forward to 2024, on my way back to the Hyatt in DC, I think about everything I was able to accomplish by going to LAC last year. I can truly say it was a turning point in my career and I cannot recommend more that you attend. GSACEP even has a scholarship that I was able to use in 2023, if you are having trouble with funding.
