The theme of the conference is Advancement through Collaboration. We invite abstracts on advancements made in clinical education through collaboration, both between different institutions and different professional groups, demonstrating the benefits of collaboration in the deployment of simulation in all its forms, including. clinical skills, part-task training, high-fidelity simulation and, non technical skills training through to their implementation in clinical practice.  The conference will explore the gamut of simulation and clinical skills education including its role in assessment.
 
The Organising Committee will select abstracts for themed sessions or workshop presentation. Detailed instructions on oral and poster presentation will be posted to qualifying authors with notification of acceptance.

Please submit your abstract by no later than Monday 31st August 2009 to Dylan Prosser, via abstracts@NAMSconference.org  You will be informed of the outcome of your abstract submission by Wednesday 30th September 2009.

All presenting authors must register and pay for attendance at the conference.  The deadline for early bird registration for contributors (only) is 30th July 2009.  Exhibitor representatives must pay full applicable registration fee if they are presenting an abstract.

ORAL PRESENTATION

We invite abstracts for three types of oral presentation:

RESEARCH PAPERS – These represent original research that has not been published in a national journal and which presents innovative projects, curriculum and technology programs and development.  Abstracts presented at a regional or international meeting are accepted.  Simulation research using standardised patients and virtual reality as well as patient simulators, task trainers, and computer-based simulations are encouraged.  A selection of abstracts from the best research papers will be published in a journal.

INNOVATIONS & EXAMPLES OF GOOD PRACTICE – These papers report innovative teaching methods and examples of good practice in healthcare education and the use of simulation.

WORK IN PROGRESS – These are more open submissions in which projects or ideas can be presented and discussed with the audience.

POSTER PRESENTATION

Contributions on any theme relating to simulation in healthcare education are welcome for poster presentation.  Posters will be on display throughout the conference and must be A0 (1189 x 841mm) in size.

The Scientific Program Committee may reassign oral presentations to poster presentations, or vice versa, based on scientific merit and preference indicated by the authors.

For inclusion in the Conference Proceedings please bear in mind the following:

1. Abstracts for submission must be typed and sent via email.
2. Type the text with single spacing, 11 point and preferably in Lucida Sans font.
3. The title should be in upper case.  Author names and addresses should be in lower case.  Leave a blank line between the authors’ addresses and the body of the text.  Underline the name of the presenting author.  There is no requirement for indentation or line spacing between paragraphs.
4. Simple tables (in black ink) may be included, provided that they fit within the box.  Do not include photographs in your abstract.

POSTER AND ORAL PRESENTATION

Abstracts are limited to one page (500 words or 300 words with a graph, table or B&W photograph, not including author names and affiliations).


Research abstracts should consist of five sections, namely:

• Introduction
• Methods
• Results
• Discussion/Conclusions
• References (excluded from word count)

Non-research abstracts should consist of four sections, namely:

• Introduction & rationale for innovation/good practice
• Outline of innovation/good practice
• Outcomes/discussion/conclusions
• References (excluded from word count)

WORKSHOPS

We particularly welcome workshops that include both demonstration of simulation and interaction with participants.  The submission abstract should contain a maximum of 300 words in the following format:

• Introduction/Rationale
• Format of Workshop
• Target Audience
• Aims and Learning Outcomes
• References (excluded from word count)

Workshop capacity will be 2 x 30 participants and 1 x 60 paticipants.  Please include any special requirements (e.g. flipcharts, data projector, patient simulator) when making your online submission.

ORAL PRESENTATION: Depending on the timetable, approximately ten minutes will be allocated for each oral presentation, followed by a short discussion.  A computer with data projector will be available in each room.  Main presenters should bring their presentation on a memory stick or CD. Presenters need to load their presentation on the PC of the appropriate room during the break before their session, or earlier. 

We strongly recommend that presentations are saved in the Microsoft Office 2003 format to prevent any compatibility problem. 

POSTER PRESENTATION: Posters will be displayed throughout the conference at a central location during the conference.  Posters must be no larger than A0 and use text, pictures and graphics as appropriate.  Authors will be responsible for attaching their poster on the display board they have been assigned.
 
WORKSHOPS: Workshops will run for 45 minutes.

Potential conflict of interest should be indicated on the abstract form, and presented in detail in the communication during the conference.