Advocacy: Writing Effective Op-Ed Pieces

Child and adolescent psychiatrists have extensive experience in direct clinical care and working within health systems. This leads to an expertise that can inform and improve mental health care delivery. Yet physician voices aren’t necessarily sought after or readily heard when making legislative and policy decisions. Writing informative and effective op-eds can amplify your voice, but it requires many elements beyond expertise. An effective op-ed must be engaging enough to be read by a diverse group of readers, informative enough to allow readers to grasp the issues, and should avoid divisive language that could introduce barriers to problem solving.

Duke Scholars

Author J. Nathan Copeland Psychiatry, Child & Family Mental Health & Community Psychia ...