BEST POSTER AWARDS / CALL FOR POSTERS


Poster submission at the International Symposium on Research in Acupuncture offers young researchers the chance to present their work to authoritative senior researchers and international audience.

The Poster Session is open to medical students, medical doctors, scientists and clinical researchers interested in acupuncture.

The Poster Session focuses on Acupuncture and Research, with particular reference to the following topics (and related Panel Sessions):

1. Mechanisms of action and current trends in Acupuncture research
2. Research methodology and EBM in Acupuncture. The placebo issue.
3. From Acupuncture research to clinical practice.
4. Integration of Acupuncture into Healthcare Systems: regulatory and cost-effectiveness aspects

Posters will be displayed throughout the Symposium in the Congress Centre Foyer and one of the Authors will attend their poster at the designated time for viewing to present their work and answer questions.

Three best poster prizes will be awarded at the end of the symposium:€ 350,€ 250 and €150 for the first, second and third best poster, respectively.

After the Symposium, upon receipt of authors’ consent, all posters will be published on the School website, on the Symposium website and in the Symposium Proceedings.

Poster Submission
To submit a poster for consideration, please e-mail your poster abstract to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  by attaching a Word Doc file. Please submit your abstract under one of the four Symposium topics and clearly indicate your choice in the e-mail.

The scientific committee will review the poster abstracts. Notification of acceptance or rejection of the abstract will be sent to all corresponding Authors by August 20, 2018.

Submission deadline: July 31, 2018

Poster Evaluation
All posters will be evaluated by a Poster Review Committee in a double assessment system which includes the Symposium attendees’ evaluation.

First, the poster abstracts will be assessed by the Poster Review Committee in a blind peer-review process, by assigning a 1 to 5 score based on the following criteria:

1. Significance of the poster with respect to the selected topic;
2. Degree of novelty/innovation of the work;
3. Applicability of the work;
4. Overall quality
5. Study design coherent with objectives and applicability of analytical techniques.

At the end of this process, the accepted posters will get a 'base score' to be added to the audience’s evaluation on the Symposium day.

When registering for the Symposium, each attendee will receive an assessment card to evaluate posters according tothe following criteria:
6. Clarity and effectiveness of oral presentation
7. Readability and visual effectiveness of the poster (including text, graphs and figures)
8. Applicability and significance of the work.

Poster Guidelines
Posters are a highly visual medium and can be a very effective way of communicating information to a wide audience. The challenge is to produce a poster design that is both pleasing to the eye and logical to the mind.
Poster abstract
Poster abstract should not exceed 300 words, excluding the title, and should be divided into the following sections: Title, Authors with affiliations, Rationale, Objectives, Materials and Methods, Results, Conclusions, References.

Poster format
Vertical format, size 100x70 cm, printed on matt paper 70 g/m².

Poster language

Posters must be in English. If English is not the authors’ first language, the text should be proof read before submission.

Poster structure and content
The overall structure should be clear and logical so that the viewer’s eye naturally follows the flow of information from left to right and from top to bottom. Assume the viewer will be reading your poster from approximately 1 metre away. Keep any text brief and simple: it will be unusual for anyone to spend more than 5 minutes reading your poster. Content may be displayed in two columns.
Include the abstract title and all authors at the top. The title should be brief and relevant to the topic selected which should be clearly indicated.
Describe all parts of the project/study and include the following sections: Title, Authors with affiliations, Rationale, Objectives, Materials and Methods, Results, Conclusions, References.
Write the abstract using a word-processing programme. Check the spelling and grammar, and proofread carefully.
Only submit original work that has not been published or accepted for presentation elsewhere.
Colour and highlighted words can add an extra dimension to your poster design.
Use few tables and figures to explain key concepts, if necessary.
It is the text which accompanies the graphic and not the other way round
Font - choose a font that is easy to read at a distance of at least 1 meter. Most of the standard fonts are fine for this (e.g. Helvetica, Palatino, Times). Avoid mixing too many fonts: two is often ideal, one for the headings and one for the main text.
Type size – We suggest large type sizes; 24-point and 26-point size might be appropriate for the main text. Titles and headings will need to be larger than your main text. Developing a hierarchy of type sizes can help to differentiate between your main body text and the other text elements in your poster.
Line spacing- using one and a half or double spacing between lines of text greatly increases the legibility of your poster design.
Case- text in UPPER CASE can be very difficult to read, even at close distances, and is best avoided

Poster hanging and presentation
To ensure that all posters are hung in time for the opening of the Poster Session, your poster should be set up at least 60 minutes in advance of the Symposium opening.
At least one of the poster authors must be registered for the Symposium. Any Author can present and discuss the poster content. A 5-minute presentation will be allowed for each poster. Printing off A4 copies of your poster is a very effective way of sharing your information.
A 15-minute discussion with a moderator and a Q&A session with the audience will follow after the last poster has been presented.

Poster Award
The award for the three Best Posters will be voted on by the Symposium attendees within and not later 04.30 p.m. on Symposium day using the assessment card received from the Secretariat at the Registration Desk.

Removal
The posters will be removed by the organizing committee members.