Advocacy and the paediatrician

Advocacy means speaking out for the disempowered. It is as important a skill for paediatricians as communication but is less well taught. Advocacy applies to the paediatrician’s everyday work with child patients and also to the field of prevention in relation to a population of children. Paediatricians are powerful advocates because of their position and their perceived lack of bias, and they have ready access to those in positions of power.Advocacy has a long history in paediatrics and examples are given from the UK and USA. Its underpinning principles are drawn from the UN Convention on the rights of the child, which requires states to offer provision, protection and participation to children and young people. Its articles provide guidance on the scope of advocacy. Current issues requiring advocacy in the UK include special needs children in the education system, adolescents in hospital and outpatients, corporal punishment in the home, and child mental health and violence against children.Advocacy must be integrated into paediatric training as it is likely to be required even more in the future as services become more complex.