SCHOLARSHIPS

Society for Medical Decision Making
International Travel Scholarship Announcement

A limited amount of funds are available to support researchers currently residing in middle income countries and select low income countries to attend the 14th Biennial European Conference of the Society for Medical Decision Making (SMDM Europe 2012) in Oslo Norway, June 10-12, 2012.

Scholarship applicants will be selected according to the guidelines specified below. Scholarships will include:

1. A 3-year non-high income country membership in the Society (valued at $225 USD), including online access to Medical Decision Making, the official journal of the Society for Medical Decision Making.
2. 2012 annual meeting fees including meeting registration, attendance at the Monday and Tuesday evening social events and registration for two short courses (total valued at $952 USD).
3. A travel support subsidy for transportation, accommodation, and meal allowance; the amount of the subsidy will depend on the number of awards and availability of funds. In most cases, successful applicants can expect to receive support adequate to cover reasonable travel expenses.

Please complete the application form and forward it by email to smdm@targetconf.com by 17:00 (5.00 pm) GMT on February 3, 2012 with the following attachments in English:

1. Letter of support from an institutional sponsor (see guidelines for further information)
2. A brief (preferably one page) Curriculum Vitae.

Successful applicants will be notified on February 13, 2012. They must confirm that they intend to accept the scholarship, obtain the necessary visa, and attend the meeting by 17:00 (5.00 pm) GMT on February 22, 2012. If confirmation is not received by this deadline, the scholarship will be re-assigned to a waiting list applicant. Successful applicants will be responsible for making their own arrangements to obtain a visa. After confirming that they intend to accept the scholarship, they will receive an invitation letter and additional instructions. Successful applicants should complete their on –line accommodation form through the conference website (www.smdm2012.com ) by March 26, 2012.

Society for Medical Decision Making (SMDM) International Travel Scholarship Guidelines

Purpose

The international travel scholarship program for the 14th Biennial European Conference of the Society for Medical Decision Making (SMDM Europe 2012) is limited to researchers currently residing in middle income and selected low income countries as defined by the World Bank (see list below).

Travel scholarships are intended to provide support adequate to cover meeting fees and reasonable travel expenses for an individual to attend the SMDM Annual Meeting, but are not intended to cover all the costs associated with attending the meeting.

Eligibility

Applicants are eligible for consideration if they meet at least one of the following criteria:

1. An applicant is currently working for or has an affiliation with an institution such as a government body (ministry, department, agency, or research institute), university, or medical center located in a middle-income or low-income country listed below that is engaged in research or policy making related to the field of medical decision making, and provides a letter of support from this institution.
2. An applicant is conducting research related to the field of medical decision making in middle-income or low-income countries in collaboration with an institution located elsewhere and provides a letter of support from this institution.

Guidelines for Letter of Support

The letter of support should be in pdf form on the letterhead of the institutional sponsor and should include:

1. Name of the applicant
2. Name and position of the individual at the sponsoring institution
3. Description of the applicant’s affiliation with the sponsoring institution
4. Description of research or policy making role of the sponsoring institution as it relates to the field of medical decision making
5. Description of how attendance at the 14th Biennial European Conference of the Society for Medical Decision Making (SMDM Europe 2012) will contribute to furthering the applicant’s work with the sponsoring institution as it relates to the field of medical decision making

Attendance and Expense Reimbursement

Applicants who are awarded a travel scholarship are expected to attend the entire annual meeting including the short course day and both social events.

Applicants who are awarded a travel scholarship will be reimbursed for direct transportation to attend the 14th Biennial European Conference of the Society for Medical Decision Making

(SMDM Europe 2012) only after they have submitted valid original receipts for the costs they have incurred and only for costs that do not exceed the amount stated in the scholarship award notice. This usually means that funds will be paid after the close of the Annual Meeting when all valid receipts have been received and reviewed. Funds will be paid by wire transfer only to individuals; payments will not be made to organizations, government departments, or businesses?. Hotel charges for the room only will be paid directly by SMDM. All other hotel charges are the responsibility of the scholarship recipient.

For more information contact smdm@targetconf.com

Eligible Countries of Residence for 2012 SMDM Europe International Travel Scholarships (World Bank Definitions) Upper-middle-income economies (47)

Lower-middle-income economies (55)

Low-income economies (15)

Residents of other low-income countries may be considered on a case-by-case basis, please contact smdm@targetconf.com before submitting an application from a country not listed above.