在国会山讨论偏头痛和头痛
On Valentine's Daythis year, I was happy to not have a Migraine ruining the day, but I wasn't at home sharing the day with my husband. Instead, I spend the day with my friend, colleague, and Migraine specialist, David Watson, M.D. We, along with over 100 other patients and health care professionals, were in Washington, D.C., for the 10th annual Headache on the Hill.
Headache on the Hill is an annual event of the Alliance for Headache Disorders Advocacy. On Monday afternoon (February 13, 2017), we had a three-hour briefing session. This session provided us with information on how to approach our senators, members of the House, and their legislative assistants. It also provided us with information about this year's "ask." We can be far more productive when visiting offices on Capitol Hill by being organized and by all of us asking our legislators and their staff to support specific issues and legislation. We need to give them something specific rather than simply asking them to be supportive of people with Migraine and other headache disorders.
his year, our ask was related to the opioid and chronic pain crises in the United States and legislation that would provide funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to conduct research that would address these crises. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, and Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., are working towards an appropriations bill that would fund Section 108 of CARA, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016。Section 108 calls for fundamental, translational, and clinical research with respect to:
the understanding of pain
慢性疼痛疗法的发现和开发
the development of alternatives to opioids for effective pain treatments
It also calls for:
“优先和方向。 - 联邦资助的痛苦研究组合的优先级排序和方向应考虑间际疼痛研究协调委员会与机构间工作队的痛苦管理最佳实践，以及按照国家止痛策略，联邦痛苦研究策略以及2016 - 2012年财政年度的NIH范围战略计划，其中包括个体疾病和医学障碍的相对负担，以视为平衡联邦优先事项的重要考虑因素研究组合。“
If you're shaking your head and wondering what all of that means, I understand. The wording of legislation is often difficult to follow and fully understand. Essentially, Section 108 is aboutresearching alternatives to opioids for chronic pain。当我们于2月14日制作了Capitol Hill时，我们要求我们的参议员和房屋成员以任何可能的方式支持第108条的资金.DR。Watson和我做了一轮西弗吉尼亚立法者。
Dr. Watson talked with them about the problems presented by a lack of good options for treating pain when he's trying to help his patients. I talked with them from the perspective of a patient who has Migraine as well as arthritis and pointed out the problems with opioids — not only are they a bad choice for people with Migraine, but they present me with issues related to medication overuse headache, and more. I gave them a window into my life, a life with no pain-free days, and no appropriate treatment options. Then, I talked with them about my advocacy work with patients who are in situations similar to or worse than mine. In addition to the issues of opioid abuse and addiction, I told them that we all need to also be concerned with the issues of loss of hope and suicide that come from having such limited treatment options.
Dr. Watson and I had four appointments on Capitol Hill:
In Rep. Alex Mooney's office, we met with one of his legislative assistants.
In Sen. Joe Manchin's office, we met with legislative assistants and Manchin.
在Sen.Shelley Moore Capito的办公室，我们遇到了立法助理和Capito。
在代表。David McKinley的办公室，我们遇到了立法助理和麦金利。
这对我们来说是个美好的一天。我们每个人都遇到似乎的接受和热情。当然，我们必须等待，看看它们是否支持第108条，如果其中任何一个都是Cosponsor，但我的希望很高。这是沃特森博士和我的另一种方式作为合作伙伴工作。The day was much better for me because Dr. Watson and I went to our appointments together. I find it easier to talk with our senators and members of the House, as well as their legislative assistants, when he's with me. With both of us there, I don't worry so much about forgetting to say something important, and I feel that it's very effective to have both a physician and a patient in those meetings. All in all, it was a wonderful day.!
Teri Robert., Senator Joe Manchin, Migraine Specialist Dr. David Watson
Dr. Watson (on the right) and me with Sen. Joe Manchin!
Migraine Specialist Dr. David Watson, Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Teri Robert
Dr. Watson and me with Sen. Shelley Moore Capito!
Teri Robert，国会议员David McKinley，偏头痛专家David Watson博士
Dr. Watson and me with Rep. David McKinley
