There are many things we can influence within our own practices. We can provide excellent care, educate our patients, build relationships within our communities, and help others better understand Traditional Chinese Medicine and acupuncture.
But some of the challenges facing our profession are bigger than any one practitioner can address alone. Regulatory barriers, scope-of-practice concerns, public awareness, government policy, and how our profession is positioned within Ontario’s healthcare system require something different. They require organization, relationships, persistence, and a collective voice.
This is where a strong professional association matters.
Over the past several months, TCMO has been strengthening its advocacy capacity and developing the infrastructure needed to represent our profession more effectively. We are building relationships with government and healthcare stakeholders, investing in dedicated advocacy and external relations, and identifying regulatory and professional issues where change is needed.
This work is rarely immediate, it takes time and repeated touch points to stay top of mind. Advocacy often happens through conversations, meetings, research, relationship-building, and sustained effort long before a visible outcome is achieved. But it is how professions create lasting change.
And TCMO’s ability to do this work ultimately comes from you, from me, from all of us working together.
An association representing a small number of practitioners has a voice. But an association representing a significant portion of a profession has influence. Every new member strengthens our ability to demonstrate that the issues we bring forward represent the concerns of practitioners across Ontario.
Last month, I reflected on the individual contributions that build our profession every day. Those contributions matter enormously. But there are also things we can accomplish only when we come together.
One practitioner can raise an issue. But how much attention does that issue actually receive if it’s coming from one voice? A profession that is organized, engaged, and speaking collectively on behalf of many voices can begin to change what happens next.
That is the strength we are continuing to build at TCMO, and I am excited about where it can take our profession.