CHAI Advocacy Education

Child Health Advocacy Institute's Advocacy Education team supports Children National Hospital's priorities for community health improvement and clinical issues with complex etiologies and solutions. These efforts are occurring in a milieu of change in the U.S. healthcare system, and medical education is increasingly stretched to prepare trainees to think beyond individual patients and diseases and to work in interdisciplinary teams.

Children’s National attracts medical students, residents, fellows, faculty and other clinical and non-clinical staff who are actively seeking advocacy opportunities. Our location in Washington, D.C. provides a dual reality: significant inequities based on race, ethnicity and socioeconomic status, along with rich opportunities for community engagement and legislative advocacy. CHAI has significantly expanded its advocacy and community health education across the spectrum of learners, including close partnerships with community organizations to provide training on social determinants of health and health equity.

Our Vision for Advocacy Education

Our vision is to become a national model for socially accountable, interprofessional advocacy education, resulting in a skilled workforce driven to advocate for child health equity and systemic change.

Children’s National Hospital’s CARE mission is to excel in Care, Advocacy, Research and Education. The Child Health Advocacy Institute (CHAI) at Children’s National leads the institution’s advocacy efforts and advances policy and systems change to achieve health equity for all children. We also strive to teach students, residents, fellows, faculty, and other staff the most effective methods for becoming child health advocates. We accomplish this through education and exposure to interdisciplinary advocacy opportunities at the individual, community, and legislative levels. Collaborating with Children's National Medical Education and Safe Kids Worldwide, we strengthen our capacity to expand community-based advocacy and amplify our impact. CHAI is committed to impacting the lives of children beyond the hospital and leads several initiatives to advance advocacy and public policy.