Happy Holiday's from WASHAA!

At this Holiday Season, the first of many to come for WASHAA, we send thanks and appreciation to all WASHAA members and friends for being an early supporter of health advocacy in Washington State and of our organization!  

We are celebrating our first year of business, having accomplished a lot thanks to your support: 

• WASHAA website is rapidly gaining traction: Several hundred unique visitors a month stop by our WASHAA website, live only since April 2013.
• Directory is in demand: The WASHAA Advocate Directory is steadily growing and is repeatedly on the top 3 most visited pages on our site every month.
• 1st event was a success: 70 people came to our 1st Annual WASHAA Meeting and learned about the State of the Industry, WASHAA's mission and exciting programs, and expanded their professional network. 
• WASHAA is at the center of educational standards discussions: We are actively involved in efforts to shape educational curricula for 2-year and 4-year colleges in our state around health/patient advocacy and care coordination.
• WASHAA is shaping national professional certification efforts: A pioneering effort is underway to establish professional standards for those that advocate for patients and two members of the WASHAA Board of Directors are actively participating in the national Patient Advocate Certification Steering Committee.   

Our organization's rapid growth, reflects the enthusiasm and need for recognition of the advocacy field, promotion of best practices and expansion of advocacy services' reach to patients and their families. We are honored to be carrying out this work and look forward to a new year full of exciting programs for our members and the public with your continued support and participation.   

My warmest wishes to you and your family this Holiday Season.
Happy Holidays - Healthy, Prosperous and Happy 2014! 

Io Dolka
WASHAA Executive Director

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