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360 © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2017; 14: 360–364
M
edical knowledge is where standards could be posters and online resources
expanding at an ever- promoted and improved. Our produced by the University of concise and of
increasing rate: in 1950 it audit question was to assess the Leicester.8,9 The six auditors high visual
took 50 years for knowledge to quality of academic poster design were a multidisciplinary group quality to
double in volume, and in 2020 it against published suggestions. comprising medical students, maximise
will take around 73 days.1 The All posters at a national confer- surgical trainees and a nurse
readership
scale of this is evident at medical ence were audited to identify lecturer. Three auditors had
and surgical conferences held whether there was a need for prior experience in assessing
internationally, showcasing new intervention and consequent academic posters, and all six
research and educating peers. re-auditing. have an academic interest in
Therefore, presented work must be medical education and experi-
clear, concise and of high visual A total of 210 abstracts were ence in academic poster design.
quality to maximise readership. accepted by the Association of the The 10 standards (Table 1) were
Regardless of the potential value Study of Medical Education (ASME) reviewed and agreed by group
of the piece of work, it is useless for poster presentation at the consensus. A sample of 10 post-
until it is conveyed.2 2015 Annual Scientific Meeting ers was assessed by the auditors,
(ASM). Poster abstract guidance and consensus was achieved
Academic posters are com- was provided, but guidance for through a discussion of the
monly used as a means of presenters regarding poster design auditing standards for each. This
communicating at conferences, was limited to size and orienta- was to reduce interobserver vari-
and evidence of presentation tion (ASM 2015 Abstract ability. Each poster on display at
(poster or oral) at conferences is Notification, 20 March 2015, the conference was assessed by
frequently included in the pers. comm. to DF). one of the six auditors. Results
shortlisting criteria for postgradu- were collated and anonymised
ate training programme recruit- METHODS by AG.
ment. The aim of poster
presentation is to succinctly All posters displayed during the For the criterion ‘Proof-read
communicate key points to conference were individually for grammar and spelling?’,
attending delegates or for use as assessed using a standardised posters were assessed for
a visual aid during an oral pro forma. The criteria were grammatical and spelling errors
presentation. Both approaches developed using a checklist as a surrogate marker.
require creative and academic
writing skills, with the visual
impact of the poster being key to
stimulating and retaining inter- Table 1. Poster assessment tool and the number of
est.3 There is a lack of evidence posters judged to have met the criteria
regarding the effectiveness of Standard Number of posters meeting
academic posters in disseminating standard
information compared with other
methods.4 Evidence also suggests Meets the conference’s display criteria 130 (72%)
that interest from delegates (A0 paper size, portrait)
towards posters is low,5 and Readable at a distance of 2 metres 142 (79%)
therefore the visual appeal of a (Font sizes: heading 90, subheading 30,
poster may improve interactions. text 18)
There are multiple online Progression around poster signposted or 151 (84%)
allows for natural eye movement
resources with guidance on how to
design a generic academic poster; Proof-read for grammar and spelling 140 (78%)
however, these often advise the 137 (76%)
Appropriate referencing used
presenter to check local criteria.6,7
Some conferences provide Appropriate use of an academic logo 156 (87%)
guidance for poster presentation, No copyright issues on material used 52 (29%)
but this is frequently limited to
poster size and orientation. Contact details listed 73 (41%)
(e-mail or postal address)
The aim of this study was to Appropriate typeface 160 (89%)
investigate academic poster
Text to graphic ratio of 50 : 50 87 (48%)
quality at a national medical
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2017; 14: 360–364 361
Background
Academic posters are a common means of disseminating information at medical conferences. Clear presentation of content is important to attract
the readers’ attention. Some conferences provide guidance for the visual presentation of posters. The Association of the Study of Medical
Education (ASME) Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) 2015 provided poster abstract guidance limited to layout (size and orientation). This study
aimed to investigate the quality of academic posters at the conference with the intention of identifying areas where standards could be improved.
Methods
Six auditors assessed all posters displayed at the ASME ASM 15th-17th July 2015 using a modified checklist for academic posters1,2 consisting of 10
standards (see X axis, Graph 1).
Results
• 180 posters assessed.
Graph 1: Percentage of posters meeting each standard
100
90
87 89
80
84
79 78
70 76
72
Percentage
60
50
40
48
41
30
29
20
10
Meets the Readable at 2 Progression around Proof-read for Appropriate Appropriate use of No copyright issues Contact details Appropriate Text to graphic
conference’s Metres (heading poster signposted grammar & spelling referencing used an academic logo on material used (email or postal typeface ratio 50:50
display criteria (A0, 90, subheading 30, or allows for address) listed
Audit Standards
portrait) text 18) natural eye
movement
Key Message
Posters are a common method of study
dissemination at conferences. The current
inconsistency of poster quality should be addressed © M Redman
with a clear set of standards provided to presenters.
References
1. Canterbury Christ Church University. Creating an academic poster. http://www.canterbury.ac.uk/graduate-skills/preview/presentations/academic-
poster-tutorial/poster-tutorial-print.pdf (2007, accessed 26 July 2015).
2. University of Leicester. Designing an academic poster. http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/ld/resources/presentations/designing-poster/designing-poster
(2012, accessed 26 July 2015).
362 © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2017; 14: 360–364
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2017; 14: 360–364 363
Corresponding author’s contact details: Alan Gopal, The Hull York Medical School, John Hughlings Jackson Building, University of York,
Heslington, York, North Yorkshire, YO10 5DD, UK. E-mail: hyag1@hyms.ac.uk
Conflict of interest: AG, DC and MR are all national committee members for JASME – a special interest group of ASME for medical
students and foundation-year doctors. They have each received reimbursement of expenses when performing duties for this committee;
however, no funding was provided in support of this research. All authors have had some involvement either presenting posters or lead-
ing workshops at previous ASME Annual Scientific Meetings.
Acknowledgements: We would like to express our gratitude to ASME for their kind permission to investigate and publish these findings,
and their further support in disseminating further guidance to presenters for the ASME ASM 2016.
Ethical approval: We requested permission from the Association of the Study of Medical Education Senior Officers and Trustee board.
Professor Andrew Hassell kindly approached the board on our behalf.
doi: 10.1111/tct.12584
364 © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2017; 14: 360–364