Health Leaders wear many hats. Some lead support groups, some advocate for their loved ones at the doctor’s office, some work with legislatures to expand healthcare coverage, and more. In this session, the options and opportunities that are available to Health Leaders as they move through their advocacy journeys are covered. Watch below. Key takeaways: Health Leadership can be defined as any action that speaks in favor of, recommends, argues for a cause, supports or defends, or pleads on behalf of others. There are 4 main types of advocacy: community awareness and education, legislative, di ..read more

The Health Union Patient Leader Certification Program offers a comprehensive toolkit for Patient Leaders seeking to elevate their impact in the healthcare space. During the Connexion Conference in 2023, Julie Croner shares the launch of the first Patient Leader Certification program of its kind. Moving through 3 main competencies – Powerful Storytelling, Meaningful Engagement and Responsible Patient Leadership – Patient Leaders deepen their knowledge, hone their advocacy skills, adopt community engagement best practices, master digital outreach, and foster personal growth. Learn more by watch ..read more

Healthcare advocacy as a Health Leader is deeply meaningful work–it can also quickly lead to burnout. Crafting effective health advocacy strategies requires not only your expert knowledge as a patient, but also a commitment to making a meaningful impact on the lives of individuals and communities through purposeful advocacy efforts. In this Connexion session, Carolyn Rotella, Health Union’s Director of Training and Education, walks Health Leaders through strategies for effective and sustained advocacy. Key takeaways: There are 3 elements of advocacy crafting: task crafting, relationship cra ..read more

Health Union hosted their 7th annual Connexion conference for Health Leaders on July 25th and 26th, 2023. Health Leaders from around the world joined virtually and connected, engaged, and learned from each other. The conference began with a welcome from Health Union’s Executive Team. See what they had to say in the video below. Key takeaways Patient Leaders (sometimes called Patient Influencers) are unique health education agents. They can act as educators and bridge gaps between patients and an often overwhelming healthcare system. Health Union’s goal is to amplify the voices of Patient Le ..read more

In the realm of healthcare advocacy and patient empowerment, the role of Patient Leaders has gained significant importance. Patient Leaders play a crucial role in advocating for the needs and concerns of their respective communities. To enhance their skills, expand their knowledge, and amplify their impact, many Patient Leaders are looking for specialized programs to gain a stamp of credibility in the landscape. The Health Union Patient Leader Certification Program was designed precisely for this purpose. This program offers valuable insights and training, making it an essential resource for ..read more

After the initial shock of a chronic or terminal illness diagnosis, questions arise. What does this mean? How do I manage the symptoms? Can I afford my treatments and appointments? It feels overwhelming. Learning to advocate for yourself is vital. Self-advocacy ensures you get the answers and care you need. Preparing for doctor visits Advocating for yourself means preparing ahead of time for your appointments. Plan ahead to make the best use of your time with the doctor.1-3 Write down specific questions – terms you do not understand, treatments you are curious about, or anything you want to ..read more

Through the Social Health Network, you’ll be able to learn a lot about branding yourself as a professional Health Leader. We want you to have endless opportunities to play your part. We’re not going to limit you, and we hope you won’t feel the need to limit yourself. Think big As a Health Leader, you should be thinking broadly about the buckets you fit into. Nearly all of our platform challenges have questions for you to answer about how best to describe yourself. When it comes to representing yourself as a Health Leader, you may think you fall into just one bucket – your condition-specific o ..read more

Choosing to become an advocate means sharing a health journey. To educate others, advocates share personal details about their health. They become vulnerable to help others on similar journeys. Unfortunately, misconceptions about the role and purpose of advocacy abound. Friends, loved ones, and even strangers often make insensitive comments that show their lack of understanding. We wanted to learn more about the misconceptions about health advocacy that our Health Leaders have encountered. So, we asked the Social Health Network Facebook community, “What is something people misunderstand about ..read more

The Social Health Awards honor and recognize the efforts of patients and caregivers within their communities and at the industry level. Our Health Leaders constantly amaze us through their unique advocacy efforts. Supporting fellow patients and caregivers with the tools they need to be the best version of themselves is worth celebrating! Our judges had a challenging task narrowing down all of these tremendous nominees. To determine the finalists, online health community members volunteered their time to narrow down nominations to just 60 finalists. From there, our industry judges provided weig ..read more

Behind advocates are people and resources that help them thrive. Family members or friends, apps or tools, each person’s supports are unique. The Social Health Network’s Facebook group recently asked 2 questions: “If you could give one person an award for their help in your advocacy journey – whether that be a healthcare provider, your spouse, or a beloved pet – who would it be?” and “Are there any tools that have helped you on your chronic or terminal illness journey? Whether that be an app, an assistive device, or something else?” Here is what the SHN community had to say. Apps and research ..read more