SSH Advocacy Committee — Call for Working Group Volunteers
WORKING GROUP 1: ADVOCACY MESSAGING & TOOLKIT
Effective advocacy depends on a shared voice. The Society for Simulation in Healthcare is building a standardized, tiered messaging toolkit that gives members — from individual clinicians to institutional leaders — the language and resources to represent simulation consistently and credibly in every advocacy context — externally with policymakers and partner organizations, and internally with department chairs, deans, hospital leadership, and other institutional decision-makers. Working Group 1 is recruiting members with communication, policy, or clinical expertise to help develop that foundation.
About the Working Group
Working Group 1 is responsible for developing SSH's core advocacy messaging framework and a tiered toolkit for use by SSH members, working groups, and partner organizations. The toolkit will address multiple audiences — legislators, regulators, health system leaders, institutional leadership at the local level (department chairs, deans, hospital and health system executives), and the public — and will serve as the connective tissue across all of SSH's advocacy activities. Messaging developed by this group will inform SSH's Hill visits, external coalition work, member-led conversations with their own institutional leadership, and event-based advocacy at conferences including INACSL, SESAM, and IMSH.
Working Group 1 Scope
- Develop a tiered advocacy messaging framework aligned to SSH's three committee goals
- Produce member-ready materials: talking points, one-pagers, and audience-specific language
- Equip members to advocate locally — providing language and materials for conversations with department chairs, deans, hospital leadership, and other institutional decision-makers
- Establish messaging standards that support consistent representation across disciplines — nursing, medicine, operations, education, and industry
- Provide the messaging foundation for Working Groups 2 and 3 as they engage external organizations and global partners
How to Express Interest
Interested SSH members should submit a single application package by email to ckitchen@ssih.org with the subject line “Advocacy Working Group Interest — WG1.” The application should include the three items listed below. Members may apply to more than one Working Group; please submit a separate application for each, with the appropriate WG number in the subject line.
- Statement of Interest (up to 200 words): Why are you interested in joining this Working Group, and what do you hope to contribute?
- Qualifications & Experience (up to 200 words): What relevant experience, expertise, networks, or perspectives do you bring to this Working Group?
- Current CV (attached as a PDF or Word document).
Timeline
Call for service issued May 1, 2026. Applications due by May 29, 2026. Selection during June 2026. Working Group activities begin July 1, 2026.
Commitment
Members selected for this Working Group are expected to participate in monthly meetings convened by the Working Group Chair, contribute to interim deliverables, and complete the Working Group’s core work products by IMSH 2027 (January 2027). Selected members will be recognized for their service through SSH communications.
WORKING GROUP 2: TARGETED OUTREACH
Healthcare simulation's impact on patient safety is strengthened when the profession speaks with coordinated reach. The Society for Simulation in Healthcare is building a prioritized strategy for engaging external organizations — professional associations across nursing, medicine, and the full range of health professions (including pharmacy, physician assistants, respiratory therapy, allied health, dentistry, and others), regulatory and accrediting bodies, health systems, and industry partners — that share SSH's commitment to simulation-based education and care. Working Group 2 is recruiting members with organizational relationships, regulatory knowledge, or professional network access to help lead that work.
About the Working Group
Working Group 2 is responsible for building and executing a targeted outreach strategy to external organizations across nursing, medicine, and other health professions — including pharmacy, physician assistants, respiratory therapy, allied health, dentistry, and others with direct stakes in healthcare simulation policy. The group will develop a prioritized engagement list, identify opportunities for joint advocacy, and represent SSH in coordination with organizations such as INACSL, WSSA, ACS, AMA, national nursing associations, and discipline-specific professional bodies. Internal sub-tracks organized by profession (initially nursing and medicine, with additional tracks added as participation warrants) will allow the group to address discipline-specific regulatory issues without losing the shared framework. SSH Corporate Roundtable members are explicitly encouraged to apply; industry participation strengthens this group’s reach into health systems and partner organizations, and operates within SSH’s standardized messaging framework.
Working Group 2 Scope
- Build a prioritized list of external organizations for structured outreach and relationship development
- Lead or support SSH representation at external organizational meetings and conferences
- Advance discipline-specific regulatory advocacy — including simulation hour recognition in nursing clinical education, physician training standards, and equivalent recognition across other health professions
- Coordinate with Working Group 1 to ensure outreach is grounded in SSH's standardized messaging framework
- Identify and develop opportunities for formal collaboration and shared advocacy positions with partner organizations
How to Express Interest
Interested SSH members should submit a single application package by email to ckitchen@ssih.org with the subject line “Advocacy Working Group Interest — WG2.” The application should include the three items listed below. Members may apply to more than one Working Group; please submit a separate application for each, with the appropriate WG number in the subject line.
- Statement of Interest (up to 200 words): Why are you interested in joining this Working Group, and what do you hope to contribute?
- Qualifications & Experience (up to 200 words): What relevant experience, expertise, networks, or perspectives do you bring to this Working Group?
- Current CV (attached as a PDF or Word document).
Timeline
Call for service issued May 1, 2026. Applications due by May 29, 2026. Selection during June 2026. Working Group activities begin July 1, 2026.
Commitment
Members selected for this Working Group are expected to participate in monthly meetings convened by the Working Group Chair, contribute to interim deliverables, and complete the Working Group’s core work products by IMSH 2027 (January 2027). SSH Corporate Roundtable members are explicitly welcomed; industry participation operates within SSH’s standardized messaging framework. Selected members will be recognized for their service through SSH communications.
WORKING GROUP 3: GLOBAL COLLABORATION
Healthcare simulation is a global discipline, and its advancement requires coordinated effort across borders. The Society for Simulation in Healthcare maintains active relationships with international simulation societies — including SESAM, ASPE, and SimGHOSTS — and is engaged in global health forums including the World Health Organization. Working Group 3 is recruiting members with international networks, global health experience, or cross-border advocacy expertise to help SSH extend its voice where patient safety is shaped at scale.
About the Working Group
Working Group 3 is responsible for SSH's global advocacy strategy: identifying and activating partnerships with international simulation societies, coordinating SSH representation at global conferences, and aligning SSH's advocacy positions with emerging international standards and policy discussions. The group builds on SSH's existing formal affiliations and its standing relationships with organizations that influence simulation policy across nearly 70 countries.
Working Group 3 Scope
- Develop and maintain a prioritized strategy for engagement with international simulation and healthcare organizations
- Coordinate SSH advocacy presence at global conferences including SESAM and INACSL
- Support SSH participation in global health policy forums, including World Health Organization channels where simulation is relevant
- Align global collaboration efforts with SSH's standardized messaging framework (Working Group 1) and domestic outreach strategy (Working Group 2)
- Identify opportunities for joint international advocacy, research alignment, and shared position statements with global partner societies
How to Express Interest
Interested SSH members should submit a single application package by email to ckitchen@ssih.org with the subject line “Advocacy Working Group Interest — WG3.” The application should include the three items listed below. Members may apply to more than one Working Group; please submit a separate application for each, with the appropriate WG number in the subject line.
- Statement of Interest (up to 200 words): Why are you interested in joining this Working Group, and what do you hope to contribute?
- Qualifications & Experience (up to 200 words): What relevant experience, expertise, networks, or perspectives do you bring to this Working Group?
- Current CV (attached as a PDF or Word document).
Timeline
Call for service issued May 1, 2026. Applications due by May 29, 2026. Selection during June 2026. Working Group activities begin July 1, 2026.
Commitment
Members selected for this Working Group are expected to participate in monthly meetings convened by the Working Group Chair, contribute to interim deliverables, and complete the Working Group’s core work products by IMSH 2027 (January 2027). Selected members will be recognized for their service through SSH communications.