How to prepare an abstract for BDA events

Layout of the abstract

Use 11-point Arial font and have margins of 2cm as shown in the template for all sections except the author’s address and the reference list, which should use 10-point Arial.  You may also use 10-point Arial for tables and figures.

The main sections are as follows:

• Title: A concise and informative title; try to use a single statement rather than hyphenated titles or titles that pose a question. Make the title as accurate as possible and do not be too specific to your locality.  For example, “Do nurses complete the MUST score on the stroke unit of St BDA’s Hospital, Peterborough?” would be better as “Low completion rates of nutritional screening tools on a stroke unit”.  This will increase the appeal of your work.

• Names: Anybody who contributed significantly to the project should be an author.  Authorship should be discussed with all collaborators prior to submission and the abstract should be approved by all authors prior to submission.  Provide the names of all the authors in this format T Jones, A Smith, and work addresses, including the department name and the full postal address. Please give the email address of the lead author.  Your position (e.g. Specialist Dietitian) and any qualifications (e.g. BSc RD) are not required.  If the abstract describes a study that was conducted as part of a dissertation you should discuss the abstract submission with your supervisors.  Your supervisors should be co-authors however you must ask their permission before submitting an abstract with their name as a co-author.  All abstracts are anonymised before they are peer reviewed.

• There should be a single line space between the author details and the body of the abstract. 

N.B. The content of the abstract will vary depending on the type of abstract.  Guidance on both types of abstract is given below.

Research, Audit and Service Evaluation Abstracts

• Background: One or two sentences to set the context of your work and justification for why the project was necessary.  Refer to published work, e.g. (Hooper, 2001).  The full reference goes at the end of the abstract – see below.  The aim should be clearly stated at the end of the background, not in the methods.

• Methods: Describe what you did clearly and concisely.  Describe the study design (e.g. randomised controlled trial, cross-sectional survey etc). Give subjects details and how they were recruited.  Explain what methods and statistical tests you used.  There should be a statement about ethical approval if appropriate.  There is sometimes confusion over the term audit.  Only use this term if you are clearly measuring clinical practice against local, national or international standards.

• Results: Write two or three sentences on your main findings.  You can also provide a table or figure if relevant.  Show the statistical significance of any differences.  Tables and figures can be copied and pasted from other programmes into the template as usual.

• Discussion: Discuss your findings in two or three sentences.  Explain the meaning of your results or say how they compare with what you expected or how they compare with other people's work.

• Conclusion: Give your final conclusion in one sentence.  Do not make sweeping conclusions that are not supported by your findings.

• References:  In general, an abstract should need no more than 2 or 3 references.  These should be cited in the text using the first author’s name and year.  At the end of the abstract, give the full reference for any publications in the format used in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, e.g:
  Hooper, L. (2001) Dietetic guidelines: Diet in secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. J Hum Nutr Diet 14, 297-305.
  Abstracts from the BDA Conference 2012 are also available with full abstract referencing guidelines.

Innovative Service Development Abstracts

• Background: One or two sentences to set the context of your work and justification for why the project was necessary.  Refer to published work e.g. (Hooper, 2001) as appropriate.  The full reference goes at the end of the abstract – see below.  The aim or purpose should be clearly stated at the end of the background, not in the process section.

• Process: Describe what you did clearly and concisely.  Detail each step as appropriate.

• Outcomes: Briefly describe the outcomes or results of the service development and how this will impact on future service.

• Conclusion: Give your final conclusion in one sentence.  Do not make sweeping conclusions that are not supported by your findings.

• References:  In general, an abstract should need no more than 2 or 3 references.  These should be cited in the text using the first author’s name and year. At the end of the abstract, give the full reference for any publications in the format used in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, e.g: Hooper, L. (2001) Dietetic guidelines: Diet in secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. J Hum Nutr Diet 14, 297-305.
  Full referencing guidelines are available with last year's abstracts.

How to find help?

If you would like advice on the type of abstract you should write or about writing your abstract please contact Judy Lawrence, BDA Research Officer j.lawrence@bda.uk.com

Examples of research, audit and service evaluation abstracts have been published in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. Abstracts from the BDA Conference 2012 are also available with full abstract referencing guidelines.

Abstract Selection Process

Each abstract will be anonymised and sent to two experienced reviewers, the comments and feedback will be co-ordinated by Judy Lawrence, Research Officer.

All streams, except the new to research, will be notified of the outcome of their abstract submission during the week of the 9th September 2013.

Dietitians new to research will be notified of any feedback on the 26th September 2013. The authors will be asked to make any changes to their abstract in light of the feedback and return to the BDA by 4th October 2013. On the 11th October 2013 the authors will be informed if they have been accepted and how they will be presenting by electronic poster or oral presentation.

Authors of successful submissions will be expected to present their findings at the symposia and book a delegate place, once their abstract has been accepted.

The abstract booklet will be available at the event.