Radiologists' personal income level and their knowledge of the federal advocacy process are key factors influencing donations to political action committees (PACs), according to a study published in the September-October issue of Current Problems in Diagnostic Radiology.
Keeping these factors in mind could help increase donations to PACs, which could translate to better advocacy for radiology, wrote a team led by Dr. Michael Drabkin of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.
"Radiology PAC fundraising may benefit from raising awareness of the federal advocacy process, as well as from targeted fundraising strategies aimed at higher income earners," the group wrote.
Radiologists aren't immune from the negative effects of government and insurance policies and so need to participate in the public discourse, Drabkin and colleagues noted. One way to do this is to support radiology PACs such as the American College of Radiology's political action committee (RADPAC) and the Society of Interventional Radiology political action committee (SIRPAC).
"Radiology PACs represent the interests of radiology on Capitol Hill, educating politicians about the merits and importance of diagnostic imaging and image-guided procedures, as well as lobbying on behalf of those interests. ... It is in the best interests of radiology and radiologists to have strong government relations in order to ensure that radiologists have a voice in the creation of policies that impact radiology," the team wrote.
Drabkin and colleagues investigated radiologists' donation practices to better understand what factors, if any, influence them to donate. The study consisted of a survey emailed to 4,474 radiologists that included questions about demographics, donor history, and knowledge of the federal advocacy process. A total of 336 radiologists responded to the survey; seven were excluded because they weren't practicing radiologists.
Almost half (46.2%) of the survey respondents reported donating to a radiology PAC in the past year, with those with annual income of more than $450,000 more likely to have done so than those with less than $450,000 annual income. Of the study participants, 77.2% reported limited or no knowledge of the federal advocacy process; those with good or excellent knowledge of this process had greater odds of donating.
Drabkin's group also found that those radiologists who were aware that their Society of Interventional Radiology membership dues do not fund SIRPAC were more likely to donate to the committee.
"Those who were aware that SIRPAC is not funded by membership dues or foundation funds were more likely to donate," Drabkin and colleagues noted. "It is possible that those who were unaware of this topic were less inclined to donate because they assumed that their society dues funded the PAC as well. Perhaps offering an opportunity for PAC donation upon paying annual dues would be effective."
