01 September 2025
Our nurse experts, Patricia Cornell and Georgina Ducker, have put together some helpful tips for submitting your abstract to conference. Their guidance is designed to make the process easier and to give you the best chance of success.
Why present a poster?
Poster presentations are an excellent way to showcase projects that have improved services, streamlined processes, or enhanced patient care. This might be through an audit, a survey, or a new way of working that has made a real difference.
The deadline for abstract submission is 15th October 2025, so now is the time to bring your work together. Below are some practical tips to help you prepare and submit a strong abstract. Once you have an abstract accepted it will be time to put it into a poster format – we’ll cover that in early 2026
Tip 1: Start early
Don’t leave submission until the last minute. Explore the online portal in advance and gather the details you’ll need. It will make the process much smoother.
Tip 2: Draft in Word
Write your abstract in a Word document first. This makes it easier to keep track of the word count, edit, and share with co-authors for feedback before transferring it to the portal.
Tip 3: Ask colleagues to review
Always seek input from others. A fresh perspective helps spot grammatical issues, improve clarity, and ensure your key messages come across. Once submitted, the abstract cannot be amended.
Tip 4: Review previous examples
Looking at abstracts from past conferences can help you understand the style and structure. For 2025, examples are available in Rheumatology Volume 64, Supplement_3 on Oxford Academic.
Tip 5: Follow the required structure
Abstracts are limited to 450 words in total (a table counts as 100). Use the standard format:
- Title
– concise, clear, and engaging
- Background/Aims
– why you undertook the work and your objectives
- Methods
– how data was collected and analysed
- Results
– the key findings, including demographics; consider a table for clarity
- Conclusion
– the impact of the work and future implications. Avoid repeating results or introducing new data here.
Final thoughts
Good luck with your submission. If you need advice or support, your rheumatology team will be a great resource – or feel free to get in touch via BSR.
Poster presentations are an excellent way to showcase projects that have improved services, streamlined processes, or enhanced patient care.