ATTENTION ALL O&P CONSUMERS AND PRACTITIONERS: The National Association for the Advancement of Orthotics and Prosthetics (NAAOP) is soliciting applications for its annual health policy/advocacy fellowship. NAAOP is a national nonprofit association advocating for orthotic and prosthetic patients, as well as the providers who serve them.
The NAAOP Fellowship is a paid, 10-week summer program based in Washington, D.C. The fellow will learn about orthotic and prosthetic (O&P) policy, advocacy, and how NAAOP and other O&P organizations function on behalf of the O&P community and within the broader rehabilitation and disability policy and advocacy environment at the federal and state levels. The fellows will also be exposed to policy speakers, attendance at Congressional hearings, and participation in coalition and “think tank” meetings/presentations throughout Washington. The fellowship also includes exposure to O&P clinical practice and the business of O&P care.
Two fellows will be selected for the summer of 2020 through a competitive process using the application on the www.naaop.org website. You can also download the DOCX file directly using the link below:
The deadline to electronically submit this application is Friday, January 31, 2020 by 12:00 Midnight, Eastern Time. Finalists will be interviewed via videoconference and two high quality candidates will be selected. If the finalists selected cannot accept the fellowship for any reason, the next highest ranked fellow will be offered the position.
Selection Criteria: All applicants must:
Personally use a custom fabricated orthosis or prosthesis;
Have an interest in public/health policy and advocacy;
Demonstrate an interest in advancing O&P care;
Have excellent writing, speaking, and analytical skills (see application for additional factors).
NAAOP fellows each receive a stipend of $500 per week for a ten-week period, although the fellow will have paid time-off during Independence Day week. NAAOP will provide the fellows with an office, phone, and computer in its DC offices at NAAOP’s counsel, the Powers Law Firm, 1501 M Street, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20005. NAAOP will assist the fellows in exploring inexpensive summer housing options with area colleges for those with no other housing options. The NAAOP fellows will be responsible for their own housing costs but NAAOP housing subsidies may be available if necessary.
The NAAOP fellows will shadow NAAOP’s General Counsel, Peter W. Thomas, who will assign and oversee the fellows’ health policy and advocacy work. That work will focus on O&P policy but also include exposure to the broader rehabilitation and disability policy environment. Other O&P organizations will host the fellows to understand their respective role and contribution to the O&P field’s policy framework.
Application Deadline: 12:00 Midnight, Eastern Time, Friday, January 31, 2020
Applications must be submitted electronically to Fellowship@naaop.org.
Fellowship Selection Announcement: March 4, 2020
Fellowship Term: 10-weeks (Monday, June 1 through Friday, August 7, 2020).