Engaging the Public in Talking about Health Reform
By Jewlya Lynn, PhD, Spark Policy Institute
Health advocates across the country are talking about health care reform and the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In living rooms, workplaces, community events and everywhere in between, conversations are taking place to inform people about health care reform, including how the changes might affect them, what information they might need to know and what actions they can take to help increase awareness and understanding.
Some of these conversations are taking place as part of organized efforts—such as Connect for Health Colorado to inform people about the state insurance marketplace or Project Health Colorado, which aimed to raise awareness and understanding about access to health issues. Through these efforts in Colorado and across the country, advocates, outreach workers, grassroots organizers, policymakers and others prepare for these conversations by utilizing communications materials such as talking points, frequently asked questions, flyers and brochures, along with access to websites, social media tools and other training resources. Clearly, numerous communications toolkits exist to educate a wide array of audiences, from individuals and families to small businesses, people without insurance and others.
Despite the potential of each conversation to build awareness and understanding, advocates involved in Project Health Colorado found that these are tough conversations and that they can go downhill in the blink of an eye! They can be very unproductive, particularly when the person involved has strongly held values and misconceptions that are tricky to manage well. The intensity of opposition messaging and the political nature of the conversation add to these difficulties. No matter how good the message and the talking points, they aren’t enough in this type of conversation. In many cases, the tone, emotions and interpersonal dynamics of a conversation are just as important as the words themselves, if not more so.
A new brief from The Colorado Trust, prepared by Spark Policy Institute, explores the stories of three Project Health Colorado messengers, including a volunteer with the Stapleton Foundation and two messengers working with SE2. These messengers spent hours in the field, talking to the public about health care and health reform. Based on their experiences, the brief highlights specific interpersonal skills and strategies that can facilitate successful conversations and lead to individuals taking action. Their compelling stories and on-the-ground experiences surface some of the ways that advocates can change the conversation about health reform, one person at a time.
In addition to the stories, the brief provides practical information on using interpersonal skills to facilitate successful engagements, including tips on:
- Changing the emotional context of a conversation
- Building trust before delivering talking points
- Building motivation to take action
- Engaging audiences as champions and messengers.
The brief is the first in a series that explore lessons learned from Project Health Colorado. Each brief is designed to provide practical information that advocates, volunteers, nonprofits and others can use to further their health care and advocacy efforts. The upcoming briefs share tips on how to use stories to move your audiences to action, leveraging social media to cause social change and the unique role that faith-leaders can play in a broader social movement. Each brief will be accompanied by a webinar hosted by Spark Policy Institute, and the webinar on talking about health reform is available now on Spark’s website. For more information and invitations to the remaining webinars, please contact Rebecca Kahn.
