CALL FOR SESSIONS

Call for focused scientific sessions

 

Each focused sscientific session is organised by a chair who is a recognised expert in the field. The chair has the responsibility to invite and lead a group of international presenters through a series of evidence based and

critically reflective linked presentations, drawing out the relevance, applicability, take-home message and potential challenges for the audience. It is important to deliver a coherent session with speakers working together thoughtfully. The aim of the session should be to create an insightful and engaging learning experience for clinicians, managers, educators, researchers and/or policy makers (depending on the topic) that ultimately informs, inspires, involves, and empowers congress participants.

Each focused session consists of:

• an introduction by the chair;
• a maximum of four 20-minute presentations;
• 20-minutes of questions and answers with the audience spread across the session; and summary by the chair highlighting the implications, applicability and relevant messages to take away.

 *Session duration 100 minutes.

Sample approach for a focused session:

• Use of a case study or clinical scenario that is used to structure the presentations;
• Related but conflicting evidence and how to resolve for patient benefit;
• Latest findings in the field from different research perspectives;
• Exploration of complementary skill sets or perspectives to advance an issue;
• Approaches taken in different countries/geographical areas.

Call open to any topic

The call for focused sessions is open to any topic that is relevant to the sports and exercise field. After ECOSEP Congress 2019 in Paris, ECOSEP carried out a  research survey, identifing a number of topics to be included at a future ECOSEP Congress. ECOSEP Congress Program Committee (CPC) is particularly interested in seeing proposals that address any (or a combination) of the following topics:

• How sports science needs to change to address global sports medicine and rehabilitation issues,    such as the demands of an ageing population, females and sports, sports for all abilities,functional assessement, neuroscience and sports, rehabilitaiton evolution, nutrition and supplementation, emergencies in sports and topics related to athletes’ lifespan (doping, racism etc)
• The unique contribution of sports and exercise physicians in the sport activity agenda;
• Challenging perceptions of injury management and prevention across  all fields of sports practice;
• Sports performance at both the elite and participatory level, requiresthe coordinated efforts of athletes,coaches,scientists and other professionals. One of the primary areas of focus for Sport and Exercise Science research is examining and determining the scientific base of sports performance
• Orthopedic specialty contribution regarding diagnosis, imaging, conservative and/or s surgical treatment of injuries in Sports
• Innovative approaches in Sports Dentistry

Requirements

The session chair should complete the online submission on behalf of all the presenters. The Scientific Session chair must have secured the agreement of all presenters before making a submission.

The online submission must address the topic from an international/diverse perspective by including presentations from a range of countries and preferably from three different ECOSEP regions.

Where applicable to the topic, priority will be given to symposia that include perspectives from low- resource countries.

Selected sessions chairs can apply for travel assistance to support the travel needs of one presenter from a low-income country (please contact for details).

 

The online submission form offers a limited word count detailed below.

Please ensure the following items are included in online submissions.

a.   Title of suggested session [10 words]

b.   Names of the chair and all presenters

c.   Contact details for all presenters:

i.   Full name, organisation/institution, city and country as you would wish it to appear in the completed program

ii.   E-mail, work telephone, mailing address

d.   Relevance to Sports Science globally [75 words]

e.   Target audience [25 words]

f.    Summary of the session focus and structure that will be followed including plans for audience interaction [100 words]

g.   The completed abstract for the session. One abstract jointly authored by the chair and all presenters should provide a comprehensive overview of the session and linked presentations. This will be included in the congress proceedings and should be structured using the following headings:

i.   Title

ii.   Authors (chair first, followed by all presenters)

iii.   Learning objectives (up to 3)

iv.   Description (supported by up to 10 current references)

v.    Implications/conclusions (Total 850 words for items iii-v)

vi.   Key words (up to 3)

vii.  Funding acknowledgements

viii. Supporting references (up to 10)

i.    A short biography for the chair and each presenter. This should outline academic qualifications, positions/appointments, most recent publication and presentation track record (last five years),research information (interests, grants), and professional practice background. [200 words each]

h.   Information concerning the submission being considered for an alternative format if unsuccessful

i.   Information concerning any presentations or publications of the work made prior to the ECOSEP Congress [50 words]

j.   Request for any presenters to be considered for travel funding assistance

 

Post-congress publication

Focused Scientific Sessions bring together presenters working on the same topic from diverse parts of the world. The abstract and presentations (subject to permissions) will be made available on the ECOSEP website after the congress. In addition, chairs will be expected to provide a session report which draws out the key

insights and take-home messages, which will also be included in the congress proceedings.

Selection principles

The CPC is seeking sessions that comply with the submission guidelines and deliver against the following principles:

 

Explore: the most recent ideas, evidence, methods and areas of controversy in the literature related to outcomes for people and populations and to moving the profession forward

Inspire: with a clear purpose and applicable outcomes for delegates

Connect: related research and innovations, and internationally diverse delegates through active engagement

Include: speakers with international experience and standing1 in the topic area, representing a range of global and possibly service user perspectives

Impact: practice, education, research and/or policy by making clear the implications arising from the presentations

1 Consideration will be given to symposia that support inclusion, as appropriate, of less experienced with established presenters.

 

General information

1. The congress language is English and all proposals and presentations must be made in English. Translation may be provided.
2. A session chair or presenter may only appear in one session proposal submission. This does not affect any abstract submissions.
3. Session chairs and all presenters will have a free registration.
4. In keeping with ECOSEP policy honorarium payment of expenses will not be provided for chairs or sessions presenters, except where a grant is applied for and awarded to support a symposium presenter from a low-income country.
5. Proposals should address the current evidence, areas of controversy in the literature, implications for practice and the need for further research. Any reference to personal experience or hypotheses should be clearly labelled as such.
6. All research and studies that involve human participants and animal subjects reported in submitted proposals must comply with general ethical principles. To check that your research complies with ethical principles, please visit http://bit.ly/1MHKTWZ. (See also the global standards 2*)
7. All proposals and presentations must adhere to the use of “people-first” language. A person must not be referred to by disability or condition, and terms that could be considered biased or discriminatory in any way should be removed (e.g. use “person with a stroke” instead of “stroke patients”).
8. Any source of funding or support for the work being presented should be acknowledged.
9. Unsuccessful high quality focused symposia submissions may be considered for a different session format (e.g. discussion session or workshop)This would mean:

   The session outline and objectives would need to be amended according to the proposed session format
   Submitting authors would need to be willing to be guided by the CPC to amend the session structure as needed
   It may not be possible for all submitting authors to be included in the amended session structure

10. Presenters are requested to disclose potential conflicts of interest regarding their presentation in the first slide. This will allow the audience to take potential conflicts of interest into account when assessing the objectivity of the presentation.The CPC may invite symposium chairs and presenters to contribute to other congress programme sessions, such as poster walks and chairing abstract sessions.
11. ECOSEP is exploring options to publish congress sessions and outputs for those unable to attend the congress in person. The use of various media options is being investigated and may include virtual online access. Some sessions may be audio-recorded and PowerPoint presentations recorded. Any recordings of PowerPoint presentations made available online will be in PDF format; original PowerPoint files will not be published. As plans are agreed the implications will be communicated with symposium chairs and their cooperation is expected.
12. The author(s) retain the right, after presentation at ECOSEP Congress, to subsequently include the work in articles, books, or derivative works that he/she authors or edits provided said use does not imply the endorsement of ECOSEP.
13. In support of green meetings policies no handouts will be produced.
14. Standard lecture room layout will be provided with PowerPoint presentation in all focused sessions rooms.
15. Successful chairs and presenters will be expected to use their social media channels to promote their involvement in ECOSEP Congress 2021 and will be supported by ECOSEP in these efforts.
16. Focused scientific sessions are not to be used for marketing opportunities for new products, equipment or organisations, nor to refute or denigrate competitors’ products.
17. Descriptions and objectives for each focused session will be published in the preliminary and final programs, on ECOSEP’s website and in other promotional material.
18. Congress programme placement will be determined by the CPC to ensure best fit with the overall congress program. Any requests for specific dates and times cannot be guaranteed, but will be considered if submitted at the time of proposal submission.
19. Any changes to an accepted focused scientific sessions must be submitted to the CPC for review and approval.
20. All proposal submissions must be completed online.
21. On request, a teleconference to support the collaboration amongst focused sessions speakers can be facilitated by ECOSEP staff and this is actively encouraged.
22. All decisions of the CPC are final.

2 Declaration of Helsinki of the World Medical Association and the Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences’(CIOMS) International Ethical Guidelines for Biomedical Research Involving Human Subjects published in collaboration with the World. Health Organization. CIOMS and International Council for Laboratory Animal Science (2012) International Guiding Principles for Biomedical Research Involving Animals.

 

Consent, permissions and copyright  

In submitting an abstract you must confirm that:

• you accept responsibility for the accuracy of the submitted abstract and understand that the content cannot be modified or corrected after the abstract submission deadline and that it will be published exactly as submitted
• all co-authors are aware of and agree to the content of the abstract and support the data presented
• all presenters have agreed to participate in this session at congress should the proposal be accepted for presentation and take responsibility for their own travel, accommodation and registration costs
• you accept responsibility as the contact person for all correspondence about the abstract and to share information with co-authors about its status
• you have secured any copyright/permissions clearance required relating to any previous presentations, equipment or other material for inclusion in the ECOSEP Congress, its proceedings or other congress publications
• you consent to the session being recorded and live-streamed [all sessions are recorded and selected symposia live-streamed]
• for all studies involving human participants or animal subjects, permission has been obtained from the relevant regulatory authority and properly informed consent given where appropriate
• anyone who is identifiable in the abstract and presentation has given their consent to be included
• the work is original, except for extracts from copyrighted works used with permission from the copyright holders, and that it does not infringe upon any copyright, proprietary, or personal right of any third party
• you have identified any potential conflicts of interest e.g. financial interest in products or processes described in the abstract, stock ownership, membership on an advisory board or board of directors,or other substantive relationships

On behalf of all co-authors the submitter will confirm:

• release of the copyright to ECOSEP to publish electronically and in other formats the abstract that will be presented at ECOSEP Congress 2021 (e.g. congress website, program, print materials)
• consent to have authors’ names, affiliation and biographical material used in connection with the publication of your work

When completing the online submission process you will be asked to confirm that you have read and understood the general information and the requirements you are expected to fulfil.

Submit a session by filling in the attached file and uploading it here.

Congress participation assistance fund for focused scientific sessions presenters from a low or low-middle resource country

 

Introduction

The Congress Programme Committee (CPC) for ECOSEP Congress 2021 encourages the inclusion of presenters from a low or low-middle resource country.

Their inclusion in key sessions, such as focused scientific sessions, is an important opportunity to raise awareness of global issues and perspectives. It also promotes greater international collaboration and support.

However, presenters from these countries often face challenges in securing funding to contribute to international events.

Funding has been allocated to support presenters from  low or low-middle resource countries participating in focused sessions. These will be people who, in the CPC’s opinion, will make a valuable contribution to the scientific programme but who are unable to get full funding from other sources.

 

The available support is limited so applicants are expected to make every effort to seek funding from other sources. The maximum support that will be provided to one applicant is € 500.

 

Application criteria

To be eligible for consideration, applicants must:

• have the appropriate experience and expertise to contribute to the session; and reside in a low or low-middle resource country or be temporarily working/studying in another country with a commitment to return (evidence required).

Restrictions

• Only one funding application will be considered per session. Only one speaker will be funded.
• Applications made after the focused symposium submission deadline will not be considered.
• This funding is not open to general abstract presenters.

Timing of applications

Applications for assistance to participate in a focused symposium must be made at the time of the focused symposium submission – the deadline is 30 September 2020. Applicants will be notified whether they have been successful or not by 20 December 2020.

Review process

Applicants must show evidence that they have sought funding from other sources (e.g. employer, national health ministries, international travel funds and scholarships) and that their employer is unable to provide full funding, but has given their full support to their involvement in ECOSEP Congress 2021. Because funding is limited, there is likely to be competition for support.

 

Applicants must complete the application form in full and provide:

A.   Justification for their personal contribution to the congress session (maximum 200 words) under the following headings:

• expertise and experience brought to the session;
• benefits that contributing to the session and attending ECOSEP Congress 2021 will bring to their personal and professional development;
• why their participation in the congress is important; and
• how they will use the congress experience after the event.

The information provided under each heading will be scored out of 3 points, making a maximum of 12 points available.

B.   A letter of confirmation from the sscientific session chair outlining the contribution of the proposed presenter. If the individual is the chair, then a statement outlining why they are best placed to lead the session. The letter can be uploaded through the application survey.

Applications will be reviewed by the CPC. Only once a focused session submission has passed the review stage will a funding application be considered. Acceptance of a scientific session submission does not guarantee funding. Applicants are still expected to seek alternative/additional funding sources beyond the closing date of the funding request to ECOSEP.

What the funding can be used to pay for

Funding may be used towards the cost of:

• congress registration fee;
• international economy travel (the period of travel must include the congress dates);
• insurance (adequate travel, accident and health insurance must be obtained prior to departure);
• local travel in Athens for airport transfers to accommodation and congress venue;
• accommodation at a reasonably priced hotel for up to 3 nights;
• daily subsistence up to £30 per day; and other costs relevant to the presentation.

Attendance at social events will not be covered.

Visa requirements are the responsibility of the presenter.

 

Conditions

ECOSEP will advise successful applicants for congress participation assistance on the most cost-effective ways of managing congress registration and travel arrangements. For example, registration will be handled by ECOSEP.

Any invoice submitted must comply with the requirements of ECOSEP (successful applicants will be provided with details of these). No bookings should be made without first obtaining agreement from ECOSEP.

Successful applicants will normally be expected to take advantage of any group travel and block hotel booking schemes arranged by the congress organisers.

Because it is unlikely that the fund will be able to meet full costs, the applicant will have to demonstrate that the outstanding costs can be met by other means, ensuring their congress participation.

If the congress is cancelled for any reason, the full amount (less essential expenses) must be repaid to ECOSEP.

 

For any questions related to focused sessions funding applications, please contact the congress secretariat at [email protected]