Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists

VOLUME 6(2), MARCH/APRIL 2004

Time to meet your MP and other aspiring politicians

Participate in this year’s Federal election campaign
Mary Clark Green

Health care is political. Although the Romanow Commission made its recommendations in November 2002, it’s early in 2004 and few have been implemented. Many believe it’s due to the numerous provincial elections, changes in federal leadership and now, the federal election. Regardless, this is the time to discuss with your local political candidates the importance of access to occupational therapy for Canadians. When the new Parliament sits later this year, we want each and every member to know not only how essential occupational therapy is to Canadians’ health and well-being but its many roles in the cost containment of rising health-care costs.

Every new law or government policy will be a result of either strong advocacy action by organizations or consultation with relevant stakeholder groups. CAOT is sought out as a stakeholder on many health and social issues due to our strong values of integrity, accountability, respect and equity. As reputable stakeholders we have influenced the direction of health care at all levels, from the national arena right down to the individual hospital or health clinic. Unfortunately, it has not been enough. We must work on our relationships with individual politicians, particularly those in a position to influence decisions. We must also help to elect only those politicians who support an active role of occupational therapy in health care.

CAOT’s actions
CAOT’s focus this coming election will be on home care and community care. Our key message is that occupational therapy is an essential service in the proposed National Home Care Program. Media releases will be sent out at various times of the campaign to ensure that home and community care becomes a campaign issue.

We have also struck and are currently recruiting a Federal Election Action Team that will meet with specific cabinet ministers and members of Parliament who have sat on standing committees related to health and social policy. The goal of these meetings is to position occupational therapy clearly in the minds of these federal politicians. They will understand the importance of occupational therapy and how it affects the lives of all Canadians, including themselves and their families. In the future, when discussions arise regarding the National Home Care Program and other health and social initiatives, we want these people to say, “We must have occupational therapy.”

CAOT will also be working with other health coalitions who are advocating for the National Home Care Program. Our current membership just exceeds 6,000 so by joining others our voice becomes much stronger. One example is our alignment with the new National Coalition on Home and Community Care made up of the Canadian Association for Community Care, The Canadian Caregivers Coalition and CARP – Canada’s Association for the Fifty-Plus. This coalition is advocating for chronic long-term home care. We will also be positioning occupational therapy services in the entire continuum of home and community care beginning in primary health care. By joining others we are no longer a special interest group but share a common interest with others — those who wish to see a National Home Care Program.

Our message
It’s not just about what we do but its relevance. We must answer the simple questions of why we feel occupational therapy is important and who benefits from our services. Our election package will answer these questions regarding our essential role in home care and fortunately we have many examples of the difference occupational therapy can make in peoples’ lives from the 2003 special issue of OT Now. The difficulty, however, is explaining how complex even the simplest of occupations can be if the politician has never struggled to do an activity that was important to him or her.

During the campaign trail, politicians are under great pressure. They are at risk of health problems, one of which is a hand injury due to the number of times they have to shake hands. One simple way to make occupational therapy relevant to each candidate is to give them a Grip and Grin pamphlet, which offers suggestions for preventing pain and injuries associated with the repeated motions of hand shaking. This pamphlet was well received in the American election campaigns and we hope it will have an even greater impact here in Canada.

In this way the politicians will not only have in-depth information regarding the benefits of occupational therapy in the National Home Care Program but they will have a clear example of how our services help them to perform an occupation of up most importance to them — getting elected.

What you can do
There is no better time for us to advocate for our services. We have solid theory and research that supports the connection between occupation and health and cost benefit analyses that demonstrate our cost-effectiveness. However, our theory, research and best practices mean nothing if only we ourselves know of our value. For quite some time, we know it has not been enough to do a good job. And it will not be enough to prove our cost-effectiveness. We must bring pressure to bear on those leaders who are in a position to fund our services. Eli Sopow, (1997) who wrote The Age of Outrage suggests this is a time of the “be-generation.” Unlike the self-absorbed me-generation, the be-generation calls for us to be active, be involved, be inquiring and be demanding in creating political change.

Act local
There are many ways that you can become political to influence the direction of occupational therapy in Canada’s health services. The first step is to act locally. Find out who your incumbent is and watch as his/her opponents come forward. Check the Elections Canada web site at www.elections.ca for frequent updates. Find out who among these politicians supports occupational therapy and home and community care and support them, i.e., help get them elected! If you are not sure of their position and they are not sure, then start talking. Educate them about the importance of occupational therapy to Canada’s health system.

Help the candidates
You can contribute money, volunteer on campaigns and/ or sponsor meet-the-candidate events. Post signs and/or help candidates write position papers on health care. You can also contact all your friends, family and neighbours urging them to support the candidate who will push for occupational therapy once elected. Consider writing letters to the editor in response to candidates’ positions. You can reframe their ideas within an occupational therapy perspective. This increases visibility of the profession but can also alert voters to aspects of the position that they may not have considered. For example, if the candidate supports shorter waiting lists for hip surgeries, raise the issue of home and community care both pre- and post-operation. Make sure voters (and the candidates) know that a continuum of care is needed and give examples of how community occupational therapy decreases hospital stays, speeds the recovery process and reduces the need for costly long-term homemaking services.

At the very least, make sure every incumbent and candidate in your area receives a copy of the Grip and Grin pamphlet and a letter from you regarding the importance of occupational therapy in a National Home Care Program. These pamphlets are available from National Office. Sample letters and other advocacy materials will be posted on the CAOT web site.

There is no better time for debate about important issues such as health care than at election time. Help to elect only those candidates who are dedicated to seeing occupational therapy as an essential service in the National Home Care Program.

For more information on how you can be involved, contact Donna Klaiman, CAOT Director of Standards and Professional Affairs at (800) 434-2268, ext. 229 or by e-mail at: dklaiman@caot.ca.

References
Sopow, E. (1997). The Age of Outrage. Victoria, BC: Mediascope International.

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