Public health advocacy: 10 pieces of advice

Together, these tips focus on the importance of preserving public confidence in the evidence base underscoring public policy; being clear and concrete about the policy reforms you support; emphasising the values on which policy is based; understanding the structure, conventions and subtextual features of news reporting; developing ‘killer facts’ with ‘earworm’ potential; appreciating that the advocacy process leading to policy change almost always takes a long time; and growing a rhinoceros hide to assist in the inevitable attacks you will face.