Well, I guess that brings me to, given your time on Capitol Hill as a staffer and your time teaching advocacy to pediatricians, what tips can you offer pediatric surgeons for having a successful meeting with a member of Congress or their staff?

I love this question because I've sat on both sides of it.

I've sat as the staffer receiving information from a constituent, and I've also done lobbying and training physicians to do lobbying.

So a few thoughts to leave your listeners with is to always be prepared.

I think in knowing who your audience is, is critically important.

So ways to kind of figure out where your member or the staff person may be on a particular issue.

A good place to look is the member's website and to kind of take a look at their press releases, see the types of press releases they've been putting out, because that's an indication of that member's priorities.

Can you share briefly