The 2013 ACEP Leadership and Advocacy Conference wrapped up in May after 324 congressional meetings, hours of excellent educational sessions on leadership and advocacy topics, and a celebration of achievements in reporting and media relations on behalf of emergency medicine.

A significant objective of the conference is to equip emergency physicians with the specific skills and techniques to provide leadership at the national and chapter level. Approximately 14 hours of leadership training were included in the conference, focused on media training, presentation training, negotiation and conflict management, and effective governance practices. Nearly a third of the conference attendees were residents or young physicians, so the investment in their professional and leadership development will pay dividends for patients and the specialty for decades to come.

Visits to Capitol Hill highlighted the four-day conference, which drew a record 561 registrants.

ACEP members from 46 states and the District of Columbia participated in meetings in Capitol Hill offices with legislators and their health care staffs. Ninety percent of the Senate offices were visited, while more than half of House of Representatives offices welcomed emergency medicine physicians and residents. In addition to Hill staff, 158 Members of Congress participated.

Members arrived with a specific agenda, to gain support for three bills that would help emergency physicians improve patient care. ACEP President Dr. Andrew E. Sama said this year’s conference reached its goal of mixing education, networking and advocacy for the specialty.

“Our Leadership and Advocacy Conference has continued to add exceptional value for our members and advance policies that support the provision of quality emergency care for all our patients,” he said. “The forward thinking content and presentation of cutting edge subject matter provided an excellent update on the rapidly changing health care environment in America. Our member attendees, staff and consultants did an excellent job of relaying our concerns and promoting legislation to improve our practice environment and patient access to emergency medical care.”

Hill visits provided the opportunity for ACEP members to discuss the findings of the RAND report, “The Evolving Role of Emergency Departments in the United States,” released on May 20. The research described in the report was performed to develop a more complete picture of how hospital emergency departments contribute to the U.S. health care system.

It explores the evolving role that emergency departments and personnel who staff them play in evaluating and managing complex and high-acuity patients, acting as the key decision makers for roughly half of all inpatient hospital admissions, and serving as “the safety net of the safety net” for patients who cannot get care elsewhere. The report also examines the role that emergency departments may play in contributing to or helping to control the rising costs of health care.