Advocacy Champions

MMA recognizes Advocacy Champions every month.

Learn about our current champion, as well as our past champions, listed to the right.

April 2025 Advocacy Champion

Christopher Reif, MD, MPH

Family Physician (Retired)

1) Why is being an advocate so important to you?
To me, "advocacy" is about reaching out and including more people in making our community healthy.  Advocacy is a set of knowledge, skills, and actions that make us more impactful as physicians in the exam room, the clinic, our community, and our larger society.   Advocacy brings the right information in the right way to people that helps them improve their health.  Advocacy happens in the exam room when we are counseling patients.  In the clinic, we advocate with each other to build best-evidence protocols that speak to our patients in culturally respectful ways.  We advocate in the civic arena to build policies and resources that improve the health of our communities.  In the larger society, we advocate with our ethical mandate to address the social conditions that are so important to the health of our patients and communities -- poverty, equity, racism, violence, gender discrimination, reproductive rights, housing, and education.

2) What health-care related issue(s) have you advocated for over the past year?
I have focused on building health equity for marginalized and discriminated people -- in other words, respecting diversity, addressing the sources of inequity, and removing obstacles to include and welcome people into our clinics and health services. Over the past several years, one issue of health inequity has stood out for me -- quality health care for people who are incarcerated.  People who are (or have been) incarcerated, face so many obstacles to building a regular life -- poor health and poor health care are near the top of the list.  I have advocated through our professional organizations -- MMA, MAFP, ABH, MDHEQ, MPHA -- and at the State Legislature.     I have also joined our professional organization’s committees to promote broader equity, for example, the MMA Committee on Equity in Access & Quality, the MAFP Committee on Equity, MPHA Committee on Equity, and fundraising for a new clinic building at CUHCC. I have also lobbied at the State Legislature for Physician's Day on the Hill, Health Care for All (with Physicians for a National Health Plan & Health Care for all Minnesotans), and The End Slavery in Prisons Coalition.  
 
3) What advice would you offer to others who are interested in advocacy?
Focus on topics that are important to you.  Learn what you can about the background of the issue(s).  Check with your professional organization (and join!) -- they often have good resources.   Find colleagues who are also interested.  Connect with community groups who are involved.  Pay attention and acknowledge the people who have moved this issue forward.  We are not the first, we are not alone.    Listen and talk to different people. Help build a positive strategy.   Refine your talking points.   Practice your talking points with anyone / everyone -- colleagues, patients, family, friends, and neighbors. Think about what skills would help you get your message out -- and then look for training.  Advocacy is a communal effort to plan and build a path to better health -- and then inviting people to walk the path with you -- one step at a time.  Keep in mind -- "We all do better when we all do better."

Photo caption: Christopher Reif, MD, MPH, is standing with Roli Dwivedi, MD, chief executive officer at the Community-University Health Care Center and the current president of the Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians.