Abstract submissions for the Society for Mental Health Research (SMHR) 2018 Conference is now closed. Notifications are due to be sent out 21 September 2018.
The theme of SMHR 2018 is ‘Collaboration’, which reflects a current impetus of mental health and psychiatry research in Australasia. Increasingly, mental health researchers are working in multi-disciplinary and multi-site studies at both the National and International level and such collaboration within academia as well as with industry is seen as crucial to the advancement of mental health research and a vehicle for scientific breakthrough.
Authors will be required to indicate their preferred presentation format when submitting an abstract.
There are three types of presentation formats.
Combined submission of 4 – 6 individual presentations submitted by one author on behalf of the group and under one common theme. Preference will be given to symposia that include diverse presenters (i.e. not all speakers from the same research team), ideally comprising speakers from at least two States/Territories/Nations.
Please ensure all information relating to each individual symposium presentation is included in the one abstract submitted. The standard time allocated per symposium is 90 minutes; session time will be confirmed in the acceptance letters.
Oral Presentations will be notified of their length of presentation time in the acceptance letters. Abstracts not selected for Oral Presentations may be eligible for a Poster Presentation.
A Poster Presentation constitutes a visual display of research projects. Your poster must not extend beyond the boundaries of your display board – one display board will be allocated per poster. The poster display will be an integral part of the program with dedicated times for delegates to interact with poster authors and ask questions. Full details of the format and display of Posters will be detailed within acceptance notifications sent to nominated presenting authors.
Abstract template: Download the relevant Abstract Template, save to your desktop and complete it. Use the template to present your abstract in the required format. Abstracts submitted not using the correct template will be returned for correction.
Text must be in Arial, 10pt font, single-spaced and justified.
Your abstract text should follow the specified word limits within the template; excluding references, title and affiliations.
There is to be a maximum of two references.
Use standard abbreviations only. Within the body of the abstract, when using abbreviations spell out the name in full at the first mention and follow with the abbreviation in parenthesis. Abbreviations may be used in the title, provided the name in full is outlined in the body of the abstract.
Your abstract should clearly, and where applicable, concisely outline the Background, Methods, Results and Conclusions.
After completing the template, move onto step 2.
Firstly, you must create an account in order to upload an abstract. To begin, please click on the submission button above.
Once you have done this, and you have not previously submitted an abstract, please click “Create New Account”. Your contact details will be required to create the account. You will then be automatically logged in.
Once you have created an account within this portal you can upload the abstract, review the presenter briefing notes when available, register for the Conference and review presenter terms and conditions at any time by logging in.
All abstracts must be prepared according to the guidelines provided. Incomplete or incorrect submissions will be returned to the author and must be re-submitted immediately in the correct format to be considered for inclusion in the program.
All fields on the online abstract submission form must be completed; you will not be able to submit an abstract through the portal until all areas are completed.
Abstracts that do not include results or state that “results will be presented” may be subject to rejection.
If you wish to make changes, edit or replace your existing submitted abstracts you are able to do so until Friday 3 August 2018 by contacting the Program Coordinator via email ciara@wsm.com.au. After this date, abstracts will be published exactly as they are submitted; there will be no opportunity for amendments from the close of abstracts on Friday 3 August 2018.
Abstracts must be submitted by the presenting author who should complete all fields on the online submission form.
Submission of your abstract/s implies you have read, understood and comply with the terms and conditions as outlined in the abstract portal.
If you wish to be considered in any of the above award categories, you will be asked to do so during the submission process. The judge’s decision is final and prize winners will be announced at the end of the Conference program. Further information regarding prizes and eligibility is available on the SMHR Awards 2018 tab.
If you submitted an abstract prior to Monday 12 August, notification to authors will be communicated by 24 September. Please note the details provided as the author contact should be for the nominated main contact for your abstract. All correspondence relating to the submission will be directed to this person, and they should in turn distribute to all co-presenters.
The invitation to submit an abstract does not constitute an offer to pay travel, accommodation or registration costs associated with the Conference. Similarly, no presenter fee is paid to successful participants.
All presenters must register and pay for the Conference by Monday 8 October in order for the presentation to be included in the Conference Program.