Call for Proposals

Correctional Mental Health Seminar
July 12-13, 2009  ·  Seattle, Washington

The sixth annual Correctional Mental Health Seminar will highlight important areas of shared concern for practitioners, administrators and others involved in the continuum of mental health care. We encourage you to share your expertise and help to advance knowledge and practice in this challenging and essential area. Topics of interest include mental health disorders and treatment, administrative issues, substance abuse and treatment, women’s issues, segregation and reintegration into the community. Presentations will be grouped into four tracks:

• Administrative issues

• Clinical issues

• Substance abuse

• Special interest

Submission Guidelines
Please follow these guidelines to ensure that your presentation is given full consideration. Proposals must be submitted online. We suggest that you prepare a Word file with the proposal information in advance to save time online and to ensure that you have a backup copy.

Lead Presenter
All proposals must have a designated lead presenter who is the sole point of contact. The lead presenter is responsible for submitting the presentation proposal, informing co-presenters of the education committee’s decision, distributing materials to co-presenters, planning the presentation agenda and ensuring that the content is not biased. The first three items below are required of all lead presenters and co-presenters. Lead presenters also must briefly describe their qualifications to present the material in the proposal.

• Contact information and professional affiliation

• 1-page CV or resume

• Disclosure form: All presenters are required to disclose their intention to discuss in their presentation any commercial products or services in which they have significant financial interest. Additionally, lead presenters are required to disclose any significant relationships with commercial supporters of the conference, as identified on the disclosure form.

• Qualifications to present the material (lead only)

Presentation

• Title: Clearly and concisely indicate the presentation subject and focus (maximum 100 characters).

• Summary: Succinctly describe the presentation for the Final Program (maximum 75 words).

• Abstract: Summarize the purpose, methods, findings and conclusions of your presentation, and explain precisely what attendees may expect to gain from it (approximately 300 words). Presentations that promote corporate products or services will not be accepted.

• Learning objectives: Provide three learning objectives for the presentation and a brief explanation on how each objective will be met. For guidance, see Tips for Writing Learning Objectives and Tips for Writing Content Outlines.

• Skill level: Indicate the level of your presentation—basic, intermediate or advanced.

• Intended audience: Indicate the primary audience to whom your presentation is directed, e.g., psychologists, nurses, administrators, all of the above.

Selection Criteria and Review
The NCCHC Education Committee will review all submissions. Decisions are based on the following criteria:

• Content must be related to mental health care provided in correctional settings.

• The topic must be timely and relevant.

• Content must be based on scientific modalities of diagnosis or therapy (if applicable).

• The presentation must not show preference for one product or service over another unless there is a clear scientific or objective basis to do so, or unless the presentation format allows for a fair presentation of alternatives.

• Corporate support, if any, must be disclosed.

• If applicable, presentations must be consistent with the philosophy and mission of NCCHC, including its standards, position statements and clinical guidelines.

• Presenters’ credentials and experience should be appropriate to present the subject matter.

• The presentation should be sufficiently in-depth to require the full time allotment.

• Presentation goals and objectives should correspond with the seminar goals and objectives.

To best meet conference attendees’ needs, the committee favors presentations that:

• Engage the audience in productive discussions

• Provide practical knowledge, skills and tools that attendees can employ on the job

• Advance the quality of care provided to patients

• Improve the work life of those engaged in the delivery of correctional health care

• Challenge current perceptions and attitudes

Approved Proposals
Selected presentations will be scheduled for Sunday and Monday, July 12-13. Typically, 60 minutes is allotted for each presentation.

Presenter Support
Presentation and speaker information will appear in the preliminary and final programs. Each room will be equipped with a podium, microphone, screen, head table and LCD projector. Additional audiovisual equipment may be rented at the speaker’s expense. AV rental forms will be enclosed with letters of acceptance.

Proposal Deadline
Proposals received by January 16 will be considered for inclusion in the program. Submission of a proposal implies a commitment to attend the seminar should your proposal be accepted. All speakers will receive a discount on the registration fee.

If you have questions about the submission process, please contact Deborah Ross, director of education and meetings, at (773) 880-1460 or deborahross@ncchc.org.

 Online Submission Form