5 Things Every Resident Should Know Before Submission

Abel Joseph, MD, is an internal medicine resident at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. He completed a research year at the Division of Gastroenterology at Duke University and wishes to pursue a career in gastroenterology. Dr. Joseph has been actively involved in multi-center retrospective trials and reviews in gastroenterology and has peer-reviewed high-impact GI journals. His research interests include outcomes of advanced endoscopic resection of gastrointestinal tumors and IBD. Dr. Joseph is passionate about the integration of technology with GI and artificial intelligence in endoscopic ultrasound imaging for esophageal cancer lymph node staging. Find him on Twitter @AbelJosephMD.

The Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2023 abstract submission period is now open. Submitting your research to a large meeting like DDW for the first time can be anxiety-provoking, but I want to share some of the best tips I learned during my DDW 2022 submission journey.

1. Know your audience.

DDW represents the four major gastroenterology and hepatology societies: AASLD, AGA, ASGE and SSAT. Choosing the right submission category will ensure your abstract is presented and published in the right place. A full list of abstract categories is available on the DDW website.

2. Do your research.

Abstracts selected for presentation at DDW in the past are available online in supplements to Gastroenterology and GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Reviewing past abstracts will give you an idea of how to design your abstract for success. The DDW ePosters site is another great resource to identify abstracts that were accepted for presentation last year.

3. Begin early with the end in mind.

You may find you have delays in data collection and analysis. Creating an outline of your abstract with clear objectives in advance can avoid the need for repeat data collection or analysis, and save you from stress on the Dec. 1 deadline.

4. Ask for help.

Abstracts are chosen for oral or poster presentation based on research quality, novelty and perceived impact. Your mentors may have been submitting abstracts for a long time, so they’re a great source to ask for experienced help. Make sure to reach out early on to allow enough time to incorporate their suggestions. The more people reviewing your abstract the better, so share your work with all your co-authors including medical students and co-residents before submitting.

5. Follow the submission guidelines.

Review the submission guidelines on the DDW website carefully. Pay attention to the word limit, figure and table limits, and abstract categories, especially when your research applies to a very small niche.