The 19th International Conference on Pharmacoepidemiology and the
1st International Conference on Therapeutic Risk Management
August 21-24, 2003
Wyndham Philadelphia at Franklin Plaza
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
GUIDELINES FOR POSTER PRESENTATIONS
Overview
Poster sessions are designed to give presenters an opportunity to discuss informally their research with colleagues interested in their research. The purpose of the posters is to visually stimulate interest in the research, to present sufficient information for viewers to understand the methods, results, and significance of the research, and to promote conversations and networking among conference participants.
Numbering System
Each poster board will be numbered. The poster number is the first number listed. Presenters should attach their posters to the board number corresponding to the number assigned to their poster in the final program, which will be available at the registration desk. Please note the number may differ from that shown in the preliminary program. The abstract number, for use in locating abstracts in the final program and the special issue of Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety, is in brackets [] after the title of the abstract.The 3 poster sessions are attached.
Poster Session Schedule
Poster Session Schedule and Set Up- Contributed poster sessions and special poster sessions generally run for one day each as follows:
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Set up by presenters: 7:00a.m to 8:00 a.m.
—Open: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
—Stand by poster during poster session (daily Noon-1:30pm)
—Take down by presenters: All posters must be taken down by 6:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Posters must be taken down by 2:30pm on Sunday.NOTE: Neither ISPE or the hotel will be responsible for any poster that is left up overnight or is lost or damaged.
Please adhere to this schedule.
- Presenters are asked to be available at their posters during the poster session, noon-1: 30pm daily, to discuss their posters with interested viewers.
- Poster boards will be numbered. Presenters should attach their posters to the board number corresponding to the number assigned to their posters in the final program. Please note that this number may be different from that shown in the preliminary program.
Poster Specifications
- Posters must be designed to fit a 4-ft. high by 6-ft.wide freestanding, poster board. This board will be the only support device available. Business cards or small leaflet literature for distribution may be inserted in an envelope and affixed to the board.
- Posters may be attached to the boards by pushpins or Velcro. Please bring your own mounting supplies.
- Posters may be prepared as a single poster or as several smaller sections mounted together.
- The following format is required for all poster presentations. This guide provides you with the expectations regarding content of your poster under the 5 major headings (Background, Objectives, Methods, Results, Conclusions). Posters that do not meet these specifications will not be displayed.
Title Page
Conflict of Interest Statement
It is the policy of ISPE that all presenters at the ICPE must disclose the financial and other interests of each author/presenter that may pose a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest. This statement should follow the title page/slide of your presentation and should be a positive disclosure statement.
A disclosure statement must accompany each abstract submission and each presentation. This statement must list all funding sources for the current project, as well as other potentially conflicting relationships that existed at any time during the conduct of the study, or at a minimum, the 1-year period before the ICPE. Non-financial conflicts (e.g., a close relationship with, or a strong antipathy to, a person whose interests may be affected) should also be disclosed. For oral presentations, potential conflicts must be listed on a conflict-of-interest slide immediately following the title slide. If more than 5 potential conflicts are listed, then the most relevant ones must be highlighted verbally. For posters, potential conflicts must be listed on the poster in a type size consistent with the rest of the poster.
Background:
One or two sentences that describe the clinical (or other) importance of the study question.
Objectives:
The main objective(s) or study question should be explicitly stated (e.g., "To determine the rate of…"). If study was to test an a priori hypothesis, it should be stated.
Methods:
Should include statements that address:
Design: Basic study design, source population, follow-up; For new analyses of existing data the dataset should be disclosed; statement of criterion standard if study of screening or diagnostic test and any blinding; analysis type (e.g., cost-effectiveness, cost-benefit, etc.) if an economic analysis. Matching and selection of controls, if relevant, should also be included.
Setting: To assist reader in determining the relevance of the findings to their own circumstances, the setting or source population should be described including statements regarding generalizability to a larger or more representative population. This may include eligibility, inclusion/exclusion criteria, and for surveys and follow-up studies should include the number eligible versus the number/proportion remaining in the analysis.
Exposures or interventions: explicit naming of medications or other interventions.
Main outcome measures: the primary and secondary outcome measurement(s) as determined prior to data collection. If hypothesis was formulated after data collection, this should be stated.
Results:
The main outcomes of the study should be provided and quantified, including confidence intervals and/or other significance tests. If differences are not significant, the clinically important difference sought should be stated and the confidence interval for the difference between the groups should be given. When risk changes or effect sizes are reported, absolute values should be included so that the reader can determine the absolute as well as relative impact of the result. Screening and diagnostic test studies should report sensitivity, specificity, and likelihood ratio and if predictive value or accuracy is given, prevalence or pretest likelihood should be provided.
Conclusions:
Only those conclusions that are directly supported by the reported data should be provided, along with their implications (avoiding speculation and overstatement of findings). Emphasis should be given equally to positive and negative findings of equal scientific merit.
Suggestions for Posters
- Keep text brief. Report only key aspects of each section. It is not advisable to display the entire text from a manuscript. Too much detail detracts from the primary message of the text.
- Keep figures simple. Convey only one idea per figure, table, or photograph. Figures from publications, theses, or dissertations normally do not make good visuals. Too much detail detracts from the primary message of the figure.
- Text and figures should be readable to someone standing at a distance of six feet. Adjust font and image sizes accordingly. BIG IS BEAUTIFUL, and easy to read.
- Photographs should clearly show what you want the audience to see.
- Use appropriate blank space between words, sections, and figures.
- Use appropriate and compatible colors for fonts, backgrounds, graphics, and matting. White backgrounds generally are best for text.
- Simple typefaces are preferable to fancy fonts. Bold type may be effective on headings. Select a clean and simple font and use it consistently throughout the poster. Use both upper and lower case letters, especially in the body of your presentation. Make lettering large enough to read from at least three feet.
- Avoid overcrowding.
- Arrangement. Design the flow of information from left to right. Use lines, frames, contrasting colors or arrows to call attention to important points.
- Color. Use color to attract interest and to dramatize similarities and differences. Emphasis may be lost if more than four colors are used.
- Vertical posters will not fit the boards; only horizontal posters are allowed.
Suggestions for Presentations
- Rehearse your presentation and memorize points you want to emphasize during the poster session. Know where various points are located on your poster so you can refer to them as you talk with viewers, without turning your back or blocking their view.
- You may wish to attach your business card and/or write the hotel (or other) telephone number where you can be reached during the meeting.
