REVIEW PROCESS

Submissions will be reviewed by the Scientific Committee according to the assessment criteria. The committee will contact authors about the status of their abstract.

It is important you familiarise yourself with the Important Dates below.

Abstract Assessment Criteria

The assessment criteria used by the Scientific Committee will be:

Event theme and topics: showing a significant or relevant relationship to the conference theme.

Current and implementation focus: evidence that the project implementation and outcomes have relevance to improving the physical health of people living with mental illness.

Analytical: the abstract draws out insights, what was learnt, recommends new policies and/or actions and provide a clear understanding of the outcomes.

Collaborative approach: demonstrates effective partnerships with consumers, carers and other partners in design and implementation.

Broadening health: promotes understanding of the range of factors and disciplines that impact on the physical health of people living with mental health challenges.

Quality: high quality scientifically and/or in other ways.

Note: Abstracts written from a health consumer standpoint, demonstrate a partnership or co-design approach, or with a multi-disciplinary focus about service challenges being overcome, are particularly welcome and will be prioritised where possible.

POSTER & VIDEO PRODUCTION TIPS

Poster Design & Layout

Attention to detail makes poster presentations a success. A general concept is that posters should stimulate discussion, not give a long presentation. Because space is limited, keep your text to a minimum, emphasize graphics, and make sure every item in your poster is necessary. You can always bring handouts that provide more details than your poster. Also, have business cards available so interested people can contact you later.

A poster is essentially a visual presentation, so try to find ways to show what you did. Here are some tips:

• Refer to the poster submission criteria.
• Draw a rough sketch of your poster on graph paper to develop a clear idea of which components will go where.
• Information on your poster should read like a book – flowing from left to right and from top to bottom. It may be helpful to use arrows or identifiers (sequential letters or numbers) to guide your reader through the poster. You can also arrange it in two or three vertical columns, but not horizontal strips.
• The introduction or rationale should be placed at the upper left and the outcome/impact or concluding comments should appear at the lower right.
• Objectives, educational activities, and other information will fill the remaining space.
• Keep it simple – too much information leads to messy or busy posters.
• Avoid overwhelming your audience with too many numbers, words and/or complicated graphs.
• Stick to two or three main points. Too many can confuse the viewer.
• Get feedback from others before you finalise it.
• Use short sentences, simple words, and bullets to illustrate discrete points.
• Written material should be concise.
• Avoid using jargon, acronyms, or unusual abbreviations.
• Your printed outcomes/impacts should permit observers to focus on a concise statement of your central findings that lends itself to informal discussion.
• All information should be large enough to read easily from at least 4 feet away.
• The text should be no smaller than 24 points.
• Subheadings should be at least 60 points.

Video Production Tips

• Refer to the video submission criteria.
• Make it short, videos exceeding 2 minutes will not be accepted, so writing out a script (even just bullet points) in advance can help you with this.
• Be natural, your video will be more effective if you speak naturally and let your enthusiasm for your work come across.
• Be clear on your message. Answering specific questions to address the submission criteria: what question did you want to answer with your research? How did you go about it? What conclusions did you come to? Make people want to find out more.
• Be accessible, use clear language and be succinct.
• Use images, include images, charts, tables – anything that helps you explain your project.
• Make sure your audio is clear. Pick somewhere quiet to film, as background noise can be distracting. Use a plug-in microphone if possible.
• If using presentation slides make sure there’s not too much on the slide, so they can be easily read while still listening to your talk.
• Rehearse your presentation to ensure a smooth and confident delivery.
• Before submitting, test the video on different devices and browsers to ensure it plays correctly.
• Ask colleagues or mentors to review your video abstract and provide feedback.
• Save the recording in a usable format: .mov, .mpg, or .mp4