How to Write Policy Guide

Thank you for your interest in being an AMSA Policy Author! Getting involved in policy writing is a great first step in getting involved with AMSA Advocacy. 
Policy offers a unique opportunity to actively have your say without any risk - you’ll always have the support of the AMSA Central Policy Officer, Vice President External, AMSA Global Health Policy Officer and AMSA Global Health Vice-Chair External - but as a member of a policy team, you will get to shape the view that is presented to AMSA National Council and make your mark on our advocacy platform. This can also be your first step in advocacy and in AMSA, and may present the opportunity to become involved to an even greater degree.
==What is Policy?==
AMSA as an organisation aims to always represent the view of its 17,000 medical student members in its advocacy efforts. That’s where AMSA’s official policy comes in - it is the platform that all of our advocacy efforts are based on. If we don’t have a policy on something, we cannot be confident that our advocacy work is representative. The AMSA Executive is also constitutionally bound to advocate in line with our policy base. Therefore, when we comment on issues, we will always refer back to the policy base to check out what our members say, and it might just be your words that we ultimately base something big off!
At present, we have 65 policies, all of which can be found on this wiki and on the AMSA website.
The scope of AMSA policy covers any topic related to health, medical students or student interest that has had a demonstrable need for policy. Policies need to have defined actions or to formalise the views of the organisation that would not occur without the creation of the policy, and contribute to the advocacy efforts of AMSA.
Simply outlining an opinion is not enough; our policy should be thoroughly researched, accurate, balanced, and actionable. In some cases, we develop policies on important issues that AMSA may be called to comment on, but may not actively utilise otherwise.
AMSA’s advocacy may be proactive or reactive, but it is incredibly important that we know what our position is, so that when the time comes to comment we are able to do so knowing that our stance is representative of Australian medical students.
==When are Policy Teams Needed?==
Changes to AMSA’s policy base can occur in a number of ways, generally falling under the categories of mergers, new policies or reviews. Each occurs for different reasons.
Mergers occur when two or more policies are similar enough to be be considered part of the same advocacy issue, or are so interconnected they are almost always considered in conjunction with one another. The ultimate aim with these mergers is to consolidate AMSA’s policy base into the most up to date, concise and actionable form possible, and to increase the ease with which information regarding interrelated issues is accessed and advocated on.
New policies are created where we see a deficiency in our current policy base to help us advocate on an issue. These can be brought up by any student and should be distinct from existing policies.
Existing policies undergo a four year rolling review to make sure they are up to date and the position taken by AMSA is still current. This involves researching the issue again to see if there has been any new developments in the area, checking the references to see if they’re still appropriate, and then evaluating this to see if AMSA’s position on it remains the same. Another reason that policies can be reviewed is when the circumstances surrounding the issue change, or if it is a contentious key advocacy issue. The Internships policy, for instance, has undergone 7 reviews and amendments since 2013! 
==General Goals for Policy Teams to Aim for==
* First meeting: getting to know your team, discussing the teams vision for the policy, preliminary research topics defined
* Second meeting: issues with the policy identified, broad goals set out
* Three weeks before due: Scope of the policy defined, broad position being workshopped, stakeholders being identified
* Two weeks before due: Background and position statement nearing completion, policy points being workshopped, drafting of talking points, summary and author’s comments
* One week before due: talking points and summary complete, author’s comments drafted, position statement and background completed, focusing on the policy points 
==A Rough List of Tasks Involved in the Policy Writing==
# Read the policy(s)
# Brainstorm issues related to the topic of the policy through prior knowledge and research
# Define the scope of the policy, with particular emphasis on how this relates to AMSA
# Analyse the current policy in relation to the defined scope, and create a general scaffold moving forward
# For existing policies, check that references are valid and current
# Divide up tasks for different members of the team. Conduct research and discuss findings and their implications for the policy.
# As more research is conducted, the stance of the policy may evolve and the final outcome may not be as expected. This is actually a good thing! We want our policy to be built from a foundation of good literature.
# Specific attention should be paid to the policy points, as the actionable part of the document. 
# Continue to meet and discuss progress, making sure to document the changes made and their rationale for council discussion
# As the policy nears completion, the policy summary, talking posts and author’s comments should be written. This assists AMSA reps in their review of the policy at their university.
# Check the formatting of the policy, especially the referencing and the policy points.
# At any point there’s issues, make sure to liaise with your policy officer!
# After the policy is submitted for review, make sure to keep on top of the comments coming through, making changes as appropriate and engaging in discussion where necessary. There’s no need to accept every change that is made, you know your policy best.
# After the review period is up, make sure it’s completed and in it’s final form before it is released as a part of the council agenda.
# Present the policy at council with your friendly neighbourhood policy officer
# Consider pursuing any advocacy that may arise from your policy
# There might be more things! Every policy is different so please don’t consider this list to be exhaustive. 
==What to Expect as a Policy Author==
===Skills===
Being a policy author, as mention above, is a great way to get a head start in advocacy and gain insights into the policy process. Beyond this, policy writing is an interesting way to improve research and literature review writing skills, as well as
teamwork in a unique environment. There is a great deal of support available from both the policy officer and fellow policy authors, so previous experience is not really required. Writing policy also presents an opportunity to broaden your knowledge base about important issues related to medical students, and the arguments surrounding them.
===Meetings===
You can expect a policy meeting to occur around once a week, and these will often span for around an hour for around 6 weeks. A lead author will be selected for each policy team, and this person will typically chair these meetings. During meetings is when decisions regarding the direction and the content of the policy will be decided, as well as brainstorming policy points. This is the opportunity to discuss issues with the policy and the research process as well as editing existing work. These meetings are typically held via Skype, and the policy officer will be available to give direction and assistance as required.
===Research and Writing===
During the initial meetings, the issues will typically be broken up into parts for each person to research a certain issue. In reviews, this can involve dividing up references to follow them up, searching the literature for additional references, or researching the issues to understand the context of the policy. The way that the research each policy team conducts is really at their own discretion and will change according the preferences of the team. The research you conduct is then used to construct (or review) your policy.
===Review - Before Council===
During the review process, policies to be presented at the upcoming council are distributed to AMSA reps and presidents, as well as student members for review and comment. This is a way for the authors to receive comments on the policy and helps
to ensure that the policy is representative of AMSA’s members. AMSA reps often facilitate this through ThinkTanks and policy surveys of the students at their uni. During this process, points of discussion are brought up directly on the working document and responded to by the policy team. It is up to the authors whether or not they choose to take these comments into account, however the reason and validity of the points brought up must be considered.
ThinkTanks are an AMSA initiative for facilitating policy review. Every university should be having these before each council. If you’ve never heard of a ‘ThinkTank’, hunt down your AMSA Representative and ask them about it - it’s a great way to discuss policy with more people, or to practice for your presentation of the policy at council!
===Finalising the policy===
After the review period has elapsed, the policy team has the opportunity to respond to the comments in their entirety, particularly justifying contentious points in the post-review authors comments. The response is generally written by the lead author, and forms the basis of discussion at council.
During this period, the policy should be finalised, with relevant comments taken into account and those which are not should be justified. Ideally, the policy should be finalised a week before council to give the AMSA Representatives time to have a read before they are presented.
===Council===
Policies are presented at council for vote and potential ratification. Each policy is presented by any of the policy authors present, with the support of the Policy Officer, and aims to briefly cover what the policy is, why it is being presented, and any contentious issues that arose during the writing or review periods. Each of these parts are discussed with council attendees. The amount of time that a policy presentation goes for varies greatly with how contentious a policy is, but generally ranges from 15 minutes to 1 hour. Following discussion, the policy is voted on by AMSA Representatives and requires a 2/3rd supermajority to be passed and ratified as official AMSA policy. During this process, a policy may be adopted, rejected or amended.
Other guidelines regarding the policy presentation at council should be distributed to your team closer to the presentation.
===After Council===
Following ratification at council, policy teams with the help of the Vice President External and Policy Officer are able to pursue advocacy on the content of the policy and continue work on the issue. As mentioned above, all AMSA policy should be actionable, so each policy team (in conjunction with the Vice President External and Policy Officer) is able to decide on specific advocacy measures they wish to undertake. This is a great thing to take into account when defining the direction of the policy.
==General Expectations of Policy Authors==
* Attending weekly policy meetings (or thereabouts, life happens)
* Active participation in discussion of the policy in meetings
* Adhering to writing and research deadlines set by the policy team
* Bringing up any issues with the policy team as soon as they are noted
* Responding to emails from policy team in a timely manner (turn around expected is 3 days max)
* Facilitating discussion of your policy in the review period and at council to ensure all opinions are heard and respected.
==The Role of the Policy Officer==
The Policy Officer exists to help policy teams in the process of writing policies, but generally does not actively write the policy themselves. They will often give suggestions, ideas and facilitate banter. Depending on the team, the amount you work directly with them will vary, but they should be able to step in and lend a hand where needed or be your first point of call if any issues arise. They will typically attend at least the first and the penultimate meetings, and exists to provide support, direction and to ensure that the policy adheres to AMSA’s style. The Policy Officer will also help to guide the policy presentation at council, and liaise with the team concerning any advocacy after the policy is ratified. 
==How to Write Policy==
===Examples===
An example of a shorter policy: Alcohol Misuse and Harms (2014)
An example of a longer policy: Increased Student Numbers (2015); a longer policy exploring multiple complex issues.
===Background===
The background is the section of the policy that aims to summarise the issue, and may explore possible solutions to issues discussed. This is done in the form of a literature review and should be written in an objective manner, avoiding emotive language or anecdotal evidence. The background is extremely important as it lays the foundation for all policy statements, providing clear direction and justifying AMSA’s position. Every policy statement should be supported in the background; we want our policy to be clearly evidence-based. A good way to approach the writing of the background is to divide the issue into different subheadings in order to split it into manageable parts. It should also justify why the issue is of relevance to AMSA in the first paragraph of the policy, and this is often written as some variation of: 
:“The Australian Medical Students’ Association (“AMSA”) is the peak representative body of Australia’s 17,000 medical students. AMSA believes that all communities have the right to the best attainable health. Accordingly, AMSA advocates on issues that may impact health outcomes.”
:“The Australian Medical Students’ Association (“AMSA”) is the peak representative body of Australia’s 17,000 medical students. Accordingly, AMSA is uniquely placed to advocate on issues of medical education and make comment on the provision of modern medical curricula in the Australian context.”
This shouldn’t necessarily be copied word for word, but a justification in a similar form to the one above should be written in. We aim for backgrounds to be around one page, but it is inevitable with more complex issues that this will be longer. On the other hand, some will be much shorter. Bear in mind that the information should be aimed at justifying statements made later in the policy, or at establishing its relevance to medical students. Besides the first paragraph of the policy, there should be no mention of AMSA’s position, beliefs or opinions - this belongs in the position statement. 
===Referencing===
Policies are referenced in Vancouver style with square brackets, but otherwise in the same way to any other assignment or research paper. The details of Vancouver style referencing can be found here. 
===Position Statement===
The position statement summarises AMSA’s position on an issue. It usually consists of a single sentence or series of sentences or dot points that clearly outline the core beliefs of the Association. The position statement tends to begin with “AMSA believes that:” followed by the aforementioned sentences or series of dot points. 
For example:
:“AMSA believes that:
:: 1. Maximising the wellbeing of all university students through the prevention and treatment of mental health conditions should be a high priority for the Australian, State and Territory Governments;
:: 2. …”
Position statements can be aspirational, given that they are essentially core beliefs. That is, they need not be entrenched in what appears to be politically possible at a certain time. It should be noted, however, that the position statements should not become too unwieldy – usually 3-4 dot points is sufficient. In some cases, it may be appropriate for the 3-4 dot points to correspond with how the topic was subdivided. These should not call for any direct action (this is the policy statement’s job) but rather summarise AMSA’s beliefs. 
During this process, if you find that the team would like to make major changes to the approach of the policy to the issue or make major changes to AMSA’s stance on the issue, make sure to bring this up for discussion with the Vice President External or Policy Officer.
===Policy===
Finally, the Policy section outlines key points relating to the issue. AMSA’s stance on the issue is elaborated on and specific recommendations for action are made. In general, the policy section begins with “AMSA calls upon:” followed by a series of dot points in which AMSA calls upon various stakeholders to alter their practices, or adopt AMSA’s stance, in order to support the fulfilment of the objectives of the policy. This is often the most powerful part of the policy, and the most tangibly related to the AMSA Executive’s subsequent advocacy efforts. As such, it is important to brainstorm a list of relevant stakeholders and consider what medical students would like to see from each of these stakeholders. AMSA Council may call upon the AMSA Executive to take action with relation to the policy. 
These should be fairly specific calls, for example:
:“AMSA Council calls upon:
::The AMSA Executive to:
:::Sign the Right to Research Coalition Student Statement on the Right to Research, formalising AMSA as a member of the Coalition;”
There is no need to call on the AMSA Executive to endorse or support aspects of the policy - they are already constitutionally bound to do so. This should be used to draw specific attention to actions that are a priority of the policy team, and are reasonably actionable. As a final point on format, the policy section should be one running sentence. As such, each dot point, apart from the final point, is followed by a semicolon.
===Examples and Explanation of Stakeholders===
To be completed
===Summary, Authors’ Comments & Talking Points===
These exist with the intention of helping those reading the policies understand the decisions made by the team, and to facilitate the review process. In particular, teams may be asked to have the talking points and summaries written before the policy is due to allow the reps to prepare for their ThinkTanks a little bit earlier.
====Summary====
Before submission for comments and review, the policy team will be able to
summarise the policy in terms of:
* The reason the policy was created, reviewed or merged
* The broad content of the policy
* Major changes to the stance, scope or direction of the policy and their reasoning 
====Author’s Comments====
As well as this, the authors will typically write a pre-review ‘authors comments’, essentially outlining and justifying all the changes made, as well as highlighting any potentially contentious points and discussing them. After the review period, the authors will write a post-review authors comments, summarising and responding to any issues brought up in the review process of the policy. This is a good starting point for council discussion, and should bring anyone who hasn't stayed up to date with all the comments into the loop. This should be a thorough list of ALL changes made to the policy, including noting wording changes, additions to the background, sections removed, etc. The aim is to draw attention to the changes made following review for reference of those who commented. Try to add to the list as the final edits are done so important things aren’t missed. It can be helpful to include the rationale for more significant changes, but minor edits or wording changes do not need this.
====Talking Points====
The function of the talking point is to facilitate discussion of the policies at ThinkTanks, giving AMSA reps a starting point.
These should be:
# The main substance of the policy that should be discussed;
# Elements that may be contentious or stimulate discussion;
# Clearly identify the changes made in the policy, with references to what was in the policy before.
==Timeline==
In order for policies to be up for ratification at the next council, they need to be submitted by the date specified in the timeline. Otherwise, they will be eligible to be ratified at the next council, provided that they are completed by the relevant date there. However, where possible, policy teams should aim to submit the policy when it was intended.
==What to Do If You’re Having Issues - Escalation Pathways & Burn Out==
If at any point in the policy process you have issues that interfere with your ability to work within the policy team, please don’t hesitate to speak to someone about those issues so that we can help as best we can.
If you are struggling the most important 3 steps are as follows:
# Contact someone within your AMSA team (discussed below) to explain any issues you are encountering. They can help determine the next step of the process which might involve taking some time away from your role or delegating tasks. If you feel it is not appropriate to contact anyone directly within your team about this issue please contact the Vice President Internal.
# Reach out to one of your support people – someone else within med or external that, to make sure someone else is around who can support you.
# Reflect back on why you chose to engage with Policy originally. Remember the reasons that this was fun and exciting for you. Record your reflections about the issue that has arisen and any advice you have to ensure we can make systematic changes to prevent this from occurring again. Withdrawing from a role is always a possibility but should be discussed thoroughly with your team first.
===Escalation Pathway for Policy Teams===
The first person to go to is the lead author or policy co-ordinator on your team, particularly if it’s directly due to issues with the policy. If you don’t feel comfortable going to them, or you are the lead author or policy co-ordinator, you can always have a chat with the Policy Officer. As a last resort, you can also have a chat with the Vice President External about what’s going on.
===Burn Out===
In all volunteer positions, burn out is something to be mindful of, and something we all experience from time to time. The earlier we can identify this the better the outcomes are for everyone involved! Make a list of what your signs of burnout are and make sure that you have a plan in place to deal with this. For example if you notice that your studies are starting to be pushed into the background be aware of this, discuss it with someone in your team and mention that you need a reduce workload for a couple of weeks to catch up. We want to make sure that you have the best experience possible writing policy, and that as a team you produce the best quality of work possible and enjoy yourself while you do so!