How to prepare & present a poster / oral presentation

How to Prepare & Present aPoster / Oral PresentationDavid M. Jaffe M.D.Washington University School of MedicineSt. Louis Children’s HospitalMarch 2, 2008

10 Minute TalkYOUR GOALS• Transmit results• Obtain and retain audience interest /attention• Obtain feedback and questions• Meet others who share your interest• Enhance your reputation• Professional advancement (enhance your CV)• Others ?

AUDIENCE GOALS• Receive information• Evaluate research• Topic update• New ideas for therapy or research• Evaluate investigators for collaboration and /or recruitment• Others ?

CHALLENGES• Short time• Too much information• Audience background• Audience competing agendas:roaming, socializing, eating & text messaging• One in a string of talks

PREPARATION• Data review• Select key findings, main points• Prepare data tables and figures• Write text of talk, edit• Make slides• Edit• Practice talk, alone and with trusted colleagues• Edit

ELEMENTS• Introduction / Purpose• Methods• Results• Discussion• Conclusions• Questions

INTRODUCTION• Time: 1 minute• Goals− Capture interest− Establish importance− Establish inevitability of your approach• Exhaustive literature review: NOT

PURPOSE• Last part of introduction• Clear statement of purpose• Hypotheses, goals, specific aims, researchquestion• Slides verbatim

METHODS• Time: = 3 min, try to complete by end of 4 th min• Goal: explain what you did• Detail: sufficient to allow audience to evaluatequality of research and threats to validity offindings• Graphics often help− Design− Timeline− Apparatus

RESULTS• Time: = 3 min, try to complete by end of 7 th ,no later than end of 8th• Goal: address purpose of research• Be selective• Highlight most important findings• Logical progression: description of sample, keycomparisons, modifying data

RESULTS: GRAPHICS• Help audience to grasp and remember keydata• Graphs are generally better than tables• Use color wisely (avoid rainbowmania)• Labels and legends: legibility• Orient audience to graph

DISCUSSION• Time: variable, but leave ½ to 1 min forconclusions (= 2 min)• Goals− Solidify audience grasp of your data− Highlight what you think is important− Acknowledge limitations− Place your study in context of key literature− Discuss implications for clinical practice− Anticipate future research

DISCUSSION: FORMAT• Restate key findings• Emphasize importance• Limitations− Acknowledge with strength− Don’t whine• Key literature• Implications

CONCLUSIONS• Time: 30 seconds• Goal: state conclusions• Slides verbatim• Attribute: must be supported by your data

QUESTIONS• Listen carefully• Restate question unless clearly heard inroom• Compliment question(er), when appropriate• Answer with clarity and honesty• Short answers if possible

DO’S• Stay within time, plan 9.5 minutes• Speak at moderate pace• Comfortable inflection• Practice• Seek feedback in advance• Use prepared text• Check synchrony of text and slides• Check slides for typos

DON’TS• Run overtime• Talk fast to try to include more material• Make jokes• Ad lib• Make conclusions unsupported by data• Show disrespect to questioners

SLIDE TIPS• Goal: to clarify, solidify understanding,retention• 4 to 6 lines per slide• Avoid rainbowmania, pointermania• Color suggestions: dark background (black orblue), light lettering with good contrast: whiteor yellow• Verbatim suggested: purpose, conclusions only• ? Label slides by section of talk?

POSTERSWhy do you stop at a poster?• Topic of interest• Author of interest• Poster Attributes– Title– Graphics– Layout and lettering (easy to read)• Other?

POSTERSWhy do you pass by a poster?• Topic• Time constraints• Poster Attributes– Topic may be of interest but title not– Hard to read– No visual appeal• Other?

VISUAL MEDIUM• Visual grammar• Column format• Reader gravity:Upper to lower, left to right• Graphics• Show vs tell

LAYOUTThe general layout of a poster presentation.The box at the top is the banner.Respiratory Care 2004;49(10) Permission requested

ELEMENTS• Title Banner• Abstract (optional)• Introduction/Background• Purpose (hypothesis, specific aims, goals)• Methods• Results• Discussion• Conclusions

ELEMENTS• Title Banner• Title– 72 point bold– Describe your work– Eye catching if possible• Authors (48 point bold)• Institution(s) (36-48 point bold)• Logos (University and/or hospital)

BACKGROUND• Bullets and phrases• Capture interest• Make your work seem “inevitable”• Either lead or follow with purpose• Left column

PURPOSE• Clearly state purpose• Hypotheses• Specific aims• Goals• Usually have some combination of these, notall of them• Left panel, either before or after Background

METHODS• Bulleted phrases• Graphics and timelines• Key elements– Design (name it)– Subjects (Inclusion and exclusion criteria)– Assignment to study groups– Interventions/procedures– Outcomes (primary and secondary)– Data Analytic methods• Middle column

RESULTS• What did you find?• Tables and figures• May not be able to show all of your data• Select the most important results

TABLES AND FIGURES• Communicate relationships quickly• Simple and clean• Simple 2-dimensional format• Text on graphs and tables must be visible• Legends and explanations on graph or figure

DISCUSSION• What you think the results mean• May summarize key finding(s)• Limitations• May cite key published reports– Illustrate how your results are congruentor contrasting– Show what your study adds• Right column

CONCLUSIONS• Must be supported by your data• Relate to purpose, hypothesis or aims• Right column, near bottom

HANDOUTS• Abstract• Copy of poster• Expanded methods• Expanded data (tables and/or figures)• Bibliography• Contact information (business card?)

PREPARATION TIMELINEWhen What0 Present poster-1 week Final print-1 week Make changes suggested by peers-1 week Distribute draft for peer review (round 2)-2 weeks Make changes suggested by peers-2 weeks Distribute draft for peer review (round 1)-3 weeks Edit your draft ruthlessly-3 weeks Create first draft of poster-4 weeks Plan out poster on scratch paper-4 weeks Define message and write an abstract (if youhaven’t already done sowww.ncsu.edu/project/posters/NewSite/CreatePosterPlanning.html

PREPARATION GUIDE• Prepare short, medium and long discussions ofyour poster• Short: “The quick guided tour,”Just the highlights (< 2 min)• Medium: More detail usually on methods andresults, but still summarizing (2 to 5 mins)• Longer: For the expert or very interestedviewer (> 5 min)