APMA News - September/October 2021 - 18

Step into Podiatry Campaign Promotes Strategic
Student Recruitment Through Career Awareness
C
areer awareness and student recruitment are long-term
goals. At the behest of the profession, APMA undertook
these efforts in 2018, conducting research that demonstrated
unequivocally that reaching a younger group of
students (ideally high-school-age) could foster a new pool of
potential applicants to supplement the unsustainable current
pool. Educating high school students about podiatric medicine
and surgery is a long game. These students will not matriculate
at podiatric medical schools for several years. The Step into
Podiatry campaign was designed from the outset as a long-term
effort that would require multiyear funding. But it also yields
important benefits in the meantime.
Nineteen months ago, the Step into Podiatry campaign
(www.stepintopodiatry.com) kicked off mere weeks before
the country shut down in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite challenges presented by the pandemic, and thanks
to the flexibility and expertise of APMA staff, with the support
of key recruitment stakeholders, Step into Podiatry generated
impressive and unprecedented results.
Over the past 19 months, the Step into Podiatry campaign has
reached 18 million prospective students. This widespread engagement
was accomplished through the campaign's strategic
career awareness outreach and digital advertising. These 18 million
students have learned about podiatric medicine and surgery
not only as a career but as a health profession. They have learned
about the conditions podiatrists treat, and they tell their families,
friends, coaches, teammates, and others. Career awareness isn't
just about recruiting students-it's also about promoting the
profession to prospective students and their trusted networks.
The American Board of Foot and Ankle Surgery (ABFAS),
American Board of Podiatric Medicine (ABPM), American
College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons, and APMA have maintained
their financial support of Step into Podiatry at the
same amount for the duration of the multiyear campaign.
Without the support of these stakeholders, these 18 million
prospective students would not have learned that podiatrists
can help treat their grandparents' chronic diabetic
wounds or that their teammates with Achilles tendon injuries
can seek treatment from a DPM. Our stakeholders are to
be applauded for their commitment to and understanding
of a long-term recruitment strategy through career awareness.
Without them, the campaign would not have had the
financial wherewithal to support strategic digital advertising
efforts. There would not be a professionally produced recruitment
video, featuring current podiatric medical residents
and students, that was viewed by more than 240,000
prospective students in one single campaign, generating the
highest clickthrough rate APMA' s national advertising partners
have ever seen.
Long-term solutions require long-term support. After an
initial year-long commitment, several stakeholders decreased
or halted funding altogether. The $80,000 decrease in funding
from stakeholders within the profession has led to a significant
budget shortfall for the campaign.
ABFAS and ABPM have stepped up, each board offering an
additional $25,000 as a matching grant beyond its initial
$25,000 contributions. The Step into Podiatry campaign will
receive an additional $50,000, but only if we can raise
$25,000 from APMA's state component societies. An additional
$75,000 contributed toward the campaign would ensure
a healthy budget for the current fiscal year to support
not only social media marketing on platforms like TikTok,
but also the continued momentum of our digital advertising.
APMA is asking each state component to consider making a
$500 contribution in 2021 to ongoing career awareness efforts.
To make a contribution, contact APMA Associate Director of
Young Physicians and Students Tiffany Kildale at takildale@
apma.org. These contributions will allow APMA to reach its
fundraising goal and receive matching grants from both ABFAS
and ABPM, ensuring that in the next 19 months, Step into Podiatry
can reach 18 million more students. n
APMA to Update Strategic Plan
APMA will undertake a review and revision of its strategic
plan this fall, with the Board of Trustees and senior staff meeting
November 4-6 to consider the current strategic plan in
light of responses to a member strategic planning survey.
The survey, which was shared with members in September,
was designed to elicit feedback on members' top priorities
for the work of their association. The board and staff
will consider the outcomes of that survey as they update
APMA's strategy document.
The strategic plan is the lens through which all proposed
initiatives and programs are viewed to ensure they contribute
18 APMA News September/October 2021
to the membership's vision for APMA's role in promoting and
protecting the profession. " By revisiting our strategic plan and
revising it on a regular basis, " said APMA Executive Director
and CEO James R. Christina, DPM, " APMA ensures the focus
of our activities and our strategic direction are aligned with
the needs of our members. "
The current strategic plan was last updated in 2018 and is
available for review at www.apma.org/strategicplan. n
http://www.stepintopodiatry.com http://www.apma.org/strategicplan
APMA News - September/October 2021

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