Advocate Spotlight: Amy R. Beck, PhD

I passionately believe that, as a psychologist, advocacy is medically necessary and an ethical responsibility.  

I am continually working on not feeling frustrated when things do not turn out the way that I would like them to, especially after a long action or legislative campaign.  Advocacy is a marathon, not a sprint, especially in a red state. A firm sense of hope and radical acceptance are powerful tools for emotion regulation and motivation to keep moving forward.  

I wish we as psychologists understood how naturally many of our skills translate to advocacy work.  The clinical skills used in assessment and intervention are the same tools to use when actively listening to and conversing with those you are advocating for.  Planning a research study, clinical intervention, or consulting project follows the same process as planning strategy and tactics for an advocacy campaign.  Psychologist skills can be superpowers in advocacy work; we just typically haven’t been taught that they are.  

My passion for advocacy was born from my years of providing care for an underserved population (individuals with obesity).  I learned very quickly that when the etiology and maintenance of a disease are driven by systemic factors, 1:1 care, while extremely important, will only get so far.  I realized that the most comprehensive care needed to also treat the systems causing harm, which is when my belief that advocacy is medically necessary was formed.  I am currently embarking on my first state-level legislation to codify coverage of obesity treatment for children under commercial insurance.  While I am motivated by my recent success in getting a state law passed to codify commercial insurance reimbursement for audio-only telehealth at a rate equal to in-person, a campaign that took several years, I know the coverage of obesity treatment will be a more challenging battle in my red state.  I estimate it to be, at best, a decade-long endeavor.