Including advocacy

• Published in: Injury prevention Vol. 27; no. 6; pp. 592 - 593
• Main Authors: Jacoby, Sara F, Rexing, Christen J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 01.12.2021; BMJ Publishing Group LTD
• Subjects: Advocacy; Funding; Legislators; Nursing schools; Patient Advocacy; Prevention; Public health; SAVIR notes; Science; Social networks; Students; Violence; United States > US
• ISSN: 1353-8047; 1475-5785
• DOI: 10.1136/injuryprev-2020-044042

Correspondence to Dr Sara F Jacoby, Department of Family and Community Health, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; sfjacoby@nursing.upenn.edu ; Dr Christen J Rexing, Department of Urban Public Health & Nutrition, La Salle University School of Nursing and Health Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; rexing@lasalle.edu Injury and violence prevention is inherently political in nature because it often requires policy-makers to act in ways that produce outcomes that we cannot produce as individuals.1 2 We often hope that the science we pursue and our interpretations of evidence will translate into social, economic and political practice. Some require training and skill development and others are just a reframing of expertise in scientific writing, research translation and engagement with institutions, media and the public in injury and violence prevention science. While it is true that job titles, publications and institutional affiliations convey some aspects of expertise, your power as a persuasive advocate often requires a deeper reflection to identify and acknowledge who you represent, where you are, the resources to which you have access, the relationships you have fostered, and your place in the narrative or context for which you are advocating.