The American College of Surgeons has issued a call for abstracts to be presented at its 2018 Quality and Safety Conference, July 21-24, at the Hyatt Regency Orlando, in Orlando, FL. The deadline for submitting abstracts is January 26, 2018. Individuals at participating sites are encouraged to submit a 250-word abstract for poster and/or podium presentation. The abstract should relate to surgical quality improvement initiatives including the development, implementation, or validation of best practices within one or more of the following ACS Quality Programs:

• ACS NSQIP
• ACS Children’s Surgery Verification, as well as NSQIP Pediatric
• Cancer Programs, including CoC and NAPBC
• MBSAQIP
• Trauma Quality Programs, including Pediatrics, Verification, TQIP, and PIPs

Abstracts will undergo a peer review process that will focus on the following criteria:

• Quality and originality of the work
• Significance and applicability to improving surgical care
• Relevance to quality improvement and best practices
• Completed research
• Clarity of writing
• Primary author's availability to attend the conference

Upcoming Deadlines:

• January 26, 2018: Abstract submissions close
• March 12, 2018: Acceptance notices sent

Instructions and Guidelines:

All healthcare professionals including surgeons, nurses, residents, trainees, operational experts, and leadership affiliated with the aforementioned ACS Quality Programs are invited to submit a 250-word abstract to be considered for podium and/or poster presentation. There is an option to request a poster presentation only. The primary author is expected to present his or her work at the conference if the abstract is accepted. Unfortunately we are unable to accommodate co-presenters.

Please note that abstracts which have been submitted or recently presented at other meetings are eligible for presentation at the ACS Quality and Safety Conference. In the view of ACS, previous presentation of a paper does not prohibit the presentation or publication of the material at the Quality and Safety Conference.

There is a limit of three abstract submissions per primary author and/or co-author. Abstract acceptance is conditional upon registration and payment of applicable registration fees. Mandatory poster and presentation slide templates and guidelines will be sent after acceptance.

Only two images (including tables) may be embedded per abstract. Only one table attachment per abstract may be submitted. Files must be in .jpg or .png format. Other file types will not be accepted.

Abstract Competitions:

• Trainee Competition - This competition is open to all medical students, and medical or surgical trainees.

  Presenting an abstract at the 2018 ACS Quality and Safety Conference is one way to demonstrate the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's (ACGME's) Scholarly Activity program requirement. In order to fulfill this requirement, you do not have to be the primary author; however the abstract you are working on must be selected for presentation.

• Registrar Competition - This competition is open to all Registrars, Surgical Clinical Reviewers (SCRs), and Metabolic and Bariatric Surgical Clinical Reviewer (MBSCRs), also known as the data abstractors for the programs. These submissions can include quality improvement efforts that were initiated based on programmatic data or those implemented to improve the efficiency of how you use the program at your hospital. We are also interested in operational best practices relating to workflows around collecting data and reporting. Highlight your best practices so others may learn from your experience.
• Acute Care Competition - This competition is open to all abstracts related to acute care.
  
  Please note that the primary authors of the abstract(s) selected for the competitions will also be invited to submit full manuscripts to undergo preliminary peer review and possible featured publication in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons (JACS).

  Winners of the above mentioned competitions will be notified prior to the conference. Only primary authors will be considered.

• Abstract Poster Competition - All posters will automatically be entered into this competition. The winning poster will be voted on by conference attendees and announced onsite.

Abstract Submission Categories:

• ACS NSQIP Adult Quality Improvement
• ACS NSQIP Adult Research
• ACS NSQIP Pediatric / Children’s Surgery Verification Quality Improvement
• ACS NSQIP Pediatric /Children’s Surgery Verification Research
• CoC Quality Improvement
• CoC Research
• Geriatric Surgery
• MBSAQIP Quality Improvement
• MBSAQIP Research
• NAPBC Quality Improvement
• NAPBC Research
• PIPS Quality Improvement
• PIPS Research
• TQIP Quality Improvement
• TQIP Research
• TQIP Pediatric Quality Improvement
• TQIP Pediatric Research
• Trauma Verification Quality Improvement
• Trauma Verification Research
• Surgical Potpourri

Abstract submission and award categories are subject to change at the College’s discretion.

To begin, click "Join Now" below.