How to Write a Conference Abstract

A quality improvement project abstract submission should share your ‘innovative quality improvement project or quality measures/analyses that you implemented in your own practice.’ This usually has a short word count.

• You should aim for completeness; Use full names and formal credentials; department and institution worked. The author information usually does NOT count against the total word count but be sure you check the instructions.
• There may be a limit on how many authors can be on the submission.
• The first author is the one who conceived the study and did most of the work; will be the person who presents. Sometimes you have to be a member of an association to submit an abstract, so check for those rules as well.
• Full disclosure on sponsors.
• Check how your abstract is being reviewed. Is it blind? You may see instructions like, To ensure blinded peer-review, no direct references to the author(s) or institution(s) of origin should be made anywhere in the title, body, tables or figures.

Your best strategy in writing a title: Write the abstract first. Then pull out 6-10 key words or key phrases found in the abstract, and string them together into various titles. Brainstorm lots of keywords to help find the best mix.

• Ideally 10-12 words long
• Title should highlight the case​
• Avoid low-impact phrases like ‘effect of... ‘ or ‘influence of…’; Do not include jargon or unfamiliar acronyms

• 2-3 sentences long
• First, define the problem that your project investigated. What are you trying to solve?​
• ​You may also give background on why you created the project or background on the topic. Was the problem internal or external? ​
• ​Did you review supporting evidence? What does the literature say about this topic?​
• ​You probably have a research question, or perhaps a PICO question or EBP question, if you are in healthcare. This may also be in the form of a statement of purpose

• 5-8 sentences long
• This will be the longest part of the abstract. Describe your study design or intervention
• ​Describe the population involved with your project
• ​What target measures did you set to show improved performance? ​
• ​Describe the procedures in your project, basically the process, each step taken, and the tools/techniques/strategies used
• ​What analytic approach did you use to evaluate the impact of the intervention?​
• ​How was data collected, analyzed, and interpreted?

• 5-6 sentences long
• Summarize, analyze and interpret the data you collected
• Formulate conclusions and present data that indicated that your project made a difference
• Share any Limitations such as: Factors such as environmental barriers, personnel issues, sample size, that impact findings and conclusions

• 3-4 sentences
• Explain how the data relates to your original question
• Explain how the project solved a problem and could benefit others. Meaning, you’ll strategize on how you improved quality and give the significance of your findings.
• You may list recommendations, resources, personnel, delivery date and benchmarks.
• Remember to share the implication of your findings and how this project could benefit others in the same field.