WVU Department of Medicine Resident completes ACP Health Policy Internship

West Virginia University School of Medicine Department of Medicine resident Syed Ahmad, M.D., said his month in the American College of Physicians (ACP) Health Policy Internship program taught him how crucial it is for doctors and policymakers to have open discussions about how policies could affect patients’ lives and how physicians deliver care.

“While lawmakers juggle many interests, it’s essential that doctors always work to improve patient care and let lawmakers know how important policy is in that process,” Dr. Ahmad said.

The internship is hosted by the ACP in Washington D.C. and provides a multifaceted opportunity to learn about the legislative process and health policy. The interns participated in ACP's Leadership Day, which includes assisting with programming during the two-day meeting.

On Leadership Day, nearly 500 ACP member students, residents, and attendees gathered from across the country to strategize on how to present health policy issues to their respective House of Representatives and Senate offices. Ahmad and others then discussed how to best share this information using stories from everyday clinical practices and brought those anecdotes to meetings with members of Congress.

Interns attended various seminars throughout the month and visited events hosted by members of Congress, such as the WISH Act conference– a first-of-its-kind conference to discuss bipartisan legislation– to observe how various stakeholders work together to propose legislation.

“It’s hard to choose just one favorite part because the entire experience was rewarding,” Ahmad said. “Each day I would look forward to coming into work because of the ACP National team. They were energetic, passionate and very approachable. They had expertise in various fields and were always open to talk. Aside from the team, my favorite part was meeting members of Congress, sharing our stories and hearing about the barriers they foresee in getting bills introduced.”

The selection process for the Healthy Policy Internship is difficult and Ahmad said he feels honored to have been selected.

“I knew this would be a unique opportunity to understand policymaking and witness the dynamics behind how health policy is made. I am grateful for the support of my program team, including Drs. Jenna Sizemore and Josephine Reece, as well as Dr. Shawn Chillag, who served as the West Virginia ACP Governor while I was applying to the internship,” Ahmad said.

First photo from left: Tracey Henry, M.D., an ACP Intern and Syed Ahmad, M.D.

Second photo from left: Syed Ahmad, M.D., three ACP Lobbyists and a medical student intern 

Third photo from left: An ACP Healthy Policy Associate and Syed Ahmad, M.D.