Call for Abstracts: 2020 FETP International Nights at the 69th Annual Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Conference

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Division of Global Health Protection, Center for Global Health), and the Training Programs in Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network (TEPHINET) are co-sponsoring FETP International Night at the 69th Annual Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Conference. The 2020 EIS Conference is scheduled for May 4–May 7, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia. FETP International Night is scheduled for the evenings of May 5 and May 6.

Current trainees/fellows and those graduating after January 1, 2019 from field-based training programs in applied epidemiology, laboratory, and public health practice are invited to submit abstracts (in English only) through their program directors for consideration (see details below). Priority will be given to current trainees/fellows.

Abstracts should cover investigations or projects undertaken and completed during training and within the past two years (i.e., no earlier than January 1, 2018). We are interested in abstracts describing outbreak investigations, implementation and evaluation of public health programs or surveillance activities, non-communicable diseases, and other areas in applied epidemiology or public health practice. In particular, abstracts and presentations should emphasize how the results of the investigation or an analysis were used to direct public health actions, and also describe or estimate the public health impact.

Abstracts submitted for consideration should be original. In particular, the abstract should not represent work already published in peer-reviewed journals or previously accepted to an international conference. Please refer to the attachments for guidance on abstract format, suggestions, and evaluation criteria.

Submission of Abstracts

• Deadline for final abstracts. The deadline for abstracts to be received via Ex-Ordo, a platform managed by TEPHINET, is Thursday, December 5, 2019 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. There will be NO extension to this deadline. NOTE: Please do not send abstracts for FETP International Night consideration to the EIS office.
• Submission of abstracts: Individuals need to coordinate submissions with their program directors. All abstracts must be submitted by a program director or his/her delegate. Each program is allowed to submit up to four (4) abstracts. The site will be open to receive submissions by mid-November. Once the site is active, all program directors will receive a link to the site. Directors will then be prompted to create an account and log in. This method is the only submission method acceptable for an abstract to be considered. For questions about using the platform, please contact Shanti Bazouma at sbazouma@tephinet.org. NOTE: Any abstract submitted outside of a program director or his/her delegate will NOT be considered for the conference.
• Program Rankings: Because of limited space for presentations and a desire to maintain a broad representation of programs, a maximum of four (4) abstracts can be submitted from any single program and one (1) abstract per person (first authors). All abstracts must be ranked in order of preference from 1-4, with "1" signifying the most preferred abstract and "4" signifying the least preferred abstract. Abstracts submitted without a ranking will NOT be considered. Although the results of the independent peer-review will take precedence, the scientific committee is ultimately responsible for considering all factors, including ranking, to determine abstract acceptance.
• Evaluation: All abstracts submitted for International Night will be reviewed by three independent scientific reviewers.
• Acceptance: Applicants will be notified of abstract(s) acceptances by mid-February.
• Financial support: Financial support for travel is limited and priority for will be given to abstracts accepted for oral presentation. Programs are very much encouraged to pursue a variety of methods to support travel of for those accepted early on.
• Conflict of interest and biographical information: Authors of selected abstracts will be asked to submit a conflict of interest form. Biographical information will also be collected to facilitate continuing education accreditation of the conference.
• Additional information: Please see the attachments on the "Required Documentation" section of this page for detailed instructions and suggestions for abstract preparation to share with FETP and FELTP trainees/fellows and graduates.

Presentation Awards

The following presentation awards are given during FETP International Night:

WILLIAM H. FOEGE AWARD

The CDC’s Division of Global Health Protection and TEPHINET will present the 22nd William H. Foege Award at FETP International Night 2020. This award recognizes the best oral presentation hat best exemplifies an outstanding public health intervention and highlights investigations in which epidemiology leads to improvements in program implementation or other public health actions.

The Award is given in honor of Dr. William H. Foege, who was one of the pioneers of the World Health Organization’s strategy of disease surveillance and containment that successfully eradicated smallpox from the world. Dr. Foege also served as director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and was on the Global Task Force for Child Survival, which later evolved into the present-day Task Force for Global Health. He helped persuade the pharmaceutical company Merck to contribute over nine million doses of Ivermectin to treat and prevent river blindness around the world. He serves as a powerful advocate for using epidemiology to improve the health of the public, especially children.

Only abstracts accepted for oral presentation at FETP International Night 2020 will be considered for this award.

JEFFREY P. KOPLAN AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN SCIENTIFIC PRESENTATION

The Jeffrey P. Koplan Award for Excellence in Scientific Presentation was established in 2014 in honor of Dr. Jeffrey P. Koplan, former Director and 26-year veteran of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for his outstanding contributions to improving public health globally and his commitment to excellence in scientific research, analysis, and presentation. The Jeffrey P. Koplan Award is presented to the scientific poster presentation that most effectively emphasizes the results of an investigation and its impact on public health.

Dr. Koplan is a past president of the International Association of National Public Health Institutes. He currently serves as Vice President for Global Health at Emory University and is the former Director of the Emory Global Health Institute, an organization created to advance Emory University’s efforts to improve health around the world.

Only abstracts accepted for poster presentation at FETP International Night 2020 will be considered for this award.

More Information

Please see the section titled, "Required Documentation" to download the call for abstracts, abstract guidelines and evaluation criteria, and a sample abstract.