Conference FAQWho plans the conference? Oregon Public Health Association (OPHA) is a nonprofit membership organization. The Program Committee is a group of OPHA members who work with the OPHA staff to plan and implement the conference. The Program Committee chairperson is the liaison with the board of directors, bringing forward board guidance, budget, and other recommendations. The chair also keeps the board up to date on plans. The Program Committee, which includes the OPHA Executive Director and Program Assistant, discusses emerging public health topics, and invites engaging speakers with expertise on the topic to give a keynote address. The number of keynotes each year is determined by the board approved budget. The Program Committee occasionally plans for other plenary sessions. A plenary session is offered at a time when no other sessions are planned at the same time. The committee discusses topics that have broad appeal to the public health community and would be best presented by a panel of speakers with multiple perspectives or another alternative to a keynote presentation. Breakout sessions and the poster session, which form much of the conference program, are developed entirely through OPHA’s abstract submission process. OPHA’s process is modeled after the American Public Health Association (APHA) process. An abstract is first and foremost a description of what you plan to present at the conference. OPHA provides complete instructions for what to include with your abstract submission. Only complete submissions that conform to the stated instructions will be considered. Please reach out to the Program Committee chairperson, Marie Harvey, with any questions. Who can submit an abstract? Can I? Yes, you can! Abstracts on all public health topics are welcome. OPHA defines public health broadly and encourages submissions from all sectors, not just governmental public health or academia. Anyone who would like to share information about their research findings, program evaluations, and policy impacts that relate to public health can submit an abstract. OPHA intentionally does not impose an overall theme for the conference to ensure that we receive a wide array of submissions covering the broad scope of content that impacts human health. The Program Committee is particularly interested in new approaches to solving emerging as well as long-standing public health problems and new or successful collaborations within public health sectors. Programs and projects with data and results, both positive and negative, are strongly encouraged. What format works best for my presentation? The OPHA conference offers three format options: individual oral presentations, panel discussions with three or more presenters, and poster presentations. You indicate your preferred format in the abstract submission form. INDIVIDUAL ORAL: Oral presentations are 10-12 minutes in length. Three presentations, grouped by themes, will be delivered in each breakout session. Oral presentations should appeal to a wide public health audience and preference is given to abstracts that include results/outcomes with public health implications. PANEL DISCUSSION: A panel discussion contains at least three related yet unique presentations. The overall panel must demonstrate enough new information and unique data to require a 75-minute session. Panels include a moderator, who may also be a presenter, and up to three panelists/presentations (maximum of four presenters). Panel submissions must include an overview abstract describing the overall purpose/theme of the panel plus separate abstracts for each individual presentation. NOTE: Panel submissions will only be considered if an overview abstract AND separate abstracts for each presentation are submitted. Due to time constraints, only a limited number of panel discussions can be accepted each year. POSTER: Posters are visual presentations displayed on 8’ x 4’ bulletin boards. Posters are printed and can be as large as the board, 8’ x 4’. The poster is usually a mixture of brief text combined with tables, graphs, pictures, and other presentation formats. The poster session and reception are held the afternoon of the first day of the conference. Attendees stop at posters to engage in 1:1 discussions with the presenter(s) about their work. Poster presentations create opportunities for dialogue, feedback, and shared learning between the presenter(s) and attendees. Posters also give attendees time to learn at their own pace. How are abstracts selected for inclusion in the conference program? Members of the program committee review each abstract and rate it based on evaluation criteria, including the best presentation format. Abstracts should clearly describe the background, significance and innovation of the work as well as its programmatic and/or policy significance. A clear list of authors and presenters must be included. Biased, promotional, commercial, or incomplete abstracts will not be considered. Complete selection criteria and submission guidelines are found here. Why are oral presentations only 10-12 minutes? Public health encompasses a huge range of potential topics. The OPHA conference is designed to offer the opportunity to learn about many topics and hear from many voices at one event. I am not interested in presenting this year, but I know someone who I would like to hear from! You can play a role in creating a great conference by encouraging your colleagues and peers to submit abstracts. Spread the word about the call for abstracts, thereby increasing the chances that your topics of interest will be included. If you have a suggestion for a keynote speaker, please contact the Program Committee chairperson, Marie Harvey. I am presenting, do I need to pay for registration? Yes. All presenters selected through the abstract review process must register and pay for registration. Organizing and sponsoring the conference is a time-consuming and expensive undertaking. The OPHA conference regularly has 80+ presenters. We pride ourselves in offering affordable rates to students and low-income attendees and scholarships for both attendees and presenters. If you are an OPHA member or sign up at the time of registration, you will receive the best rates. Do I need to be a member of OPHA to attend or present? No. OPHA members receive a discounted registration rate, but you do not need to be a member to attend, submit an abstract, or present. Membership status is not considered in the abstract review process. How can I get involved in the conference? It takes many people to put on such a large conference. OPHA offers multiple volunteer opportunities for both students and OPHA members at the event. Keep an eye on our website and our emails to hear about opportunities. It also takes all of us to spread the word and encourage others to submit abstracts. The best way to shape the conference is to play an active role in submitting abstracts and encouraging others to do so. What can I do to get more presentations in my area of interest? Reach out to colleagues and peers in your field and encourage them to submit abstracts. Read through our support materials and help your colleagues complete the submission process. I am interested in attending to receive CEU credits. Why are mine not offered? Securing CEUs takes significant effort and with limited staff, we rely on volunteers to secure CEUs. If we do not have a volunteer to help, we cannot offer certain CEUs. For example, it takes around 160 hours to secure CME or nursing credits. |
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Public Health Association is an affiliated association of the American Public Health Association (APHA). We have collaborated with APHA to grow stronger as organizations, to share expertise, influence, and resources, and to advocate for common priorities at the local, state and federal levels. APHA champions optimal, equitable health and well-being for all. With our broad-based member community and 150-year perspective, we influence federal policy to improve the public’s health. Learn more at www.apha.org.