Poster Presentation Assignment

elb252 · Jun 25, 2009

I had to do something very similar to this for my Nursing Research class. I did my poster/paper on the effects of alternative medicine on individuals suffering from diabetic neuropathy. Really fascinating information but took a lot of work...know that "overwhelming" feeling all too well, as I'm sure most of the members on this forum do.

So what I did was print out the article and highlight and make side notes about the MOST important key facts. You don't have to read the article word-to-word, but just make sure that while reviewing it you know what the article is saying. I find that it also helps to look at the abstract of the article, so you're not completely left in the dark as you begin to read it.

For the poster, do you have to draw anything? I'm not artistically-talented either, so I found a lot of different and really unique pictures to put on my posterboard. I also added some clipart, typed all of my words up in a really neat (but professional) font to print out and glue on the poster. But go over the exact requirements for your poster...

I might be able to give you additional help if you tell me what your exact assignment is. Also, if you don't understand something from the instructions still, do not be afraid to ask your professor again! One pair of rolling eyes or a groan is better than getting a whole bunch of points taken off for "not following directions." It's your grade!

Erika

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Jun 25, 2009

the very first thing that came to my mind when you mentioned that your topic was grief was that there is a nursing diagnosis about this (i know the nursing diagnoses like the back of my hand). i would immediately look at the defining characteristics (signs and symptoms) of the diagnosis of grieving since they often include the signs and symptoms if the diagnosis runs along the same lines as a medical diagnosis. since elsevier took access to the care plan constructors offline, here are the defining characteristics of grieving from page 263 of nanda international nursing diagnoses: definitions and classifications 2009-2011 if you do not have a nursing diagnosis reference:

alteration in activity level
alterations in dream patterns
alterations in immune function
alterations in neuroendocrine function
alterations in sleep patterns
anger
blame
detachment
despair
disorganization
experiencing relief
maintaining the connection to the deceased
making meaning of the loss
pain
panic behavior
personal growth
psychological distress
suffering

from some of those, and based on what you focus your paper on, you can develop a poster. it doesn't have to be cute or clever. i was thinking of something like putting several cartoon pictures of people in sadness, loss, anger, etc. around a central word of grief. there are all kinds of clip art pictures that you can enlarge, print off the internet for free and paste onto a piece of poster board. on clip art.com (http://www.clipart.com/en/se/clipart) i did a search for sadness and some cute images came up. you copy and paste anything you find that you like to a word document, enlarge it to a size you want and then print it out. we used this site in my health information classes to create images that were required on the covers for our reports and term papers. if you want a clever saying, try going to the quote garden (http://www.quotegarden.com/). they have a section of sayings about grief as well as some of the other symptoms of grief and you might find one you like and is short enough to use for a poster or your paper.

good luck with your assignment.

llg, PhD, RN · Jun 25, 2009

If you do a little hunting ... you will find many resources to help you design a poster. Many nursing journals have published 1-3 page "articles" about how to make a good poster. It's a skill that many nurses need as posters are often used to communicate with staff about changes in policy, updates in practice, etc.

You don't need to be artistcally talented to do a reasonably good poster. You can use clip art, pictures found online, etc. to "pretty up" your presentation. Many beginners use PowerPoint to create 1 page "slides" that are printed out and placed on the poster for the text portions of their poster. Pick a pretty PowerPoint template for your text ... add some clip art and/or pictures ... print it all out in type large enough to read from a few feet away ... paste it onto a poster board ... you have a poster.

Good luck. It may not be as difficult as you fear.

byrd262, BSN, RN · Jun 25, 2009

I suggest using CINAHL for finding nursing research. Also, I learned the hard way to double check that the actual article is authored by nurses and actual research and not a CEU article.

Mike A. Fungin RN · Jun 25, 2009

Everyone who's posted has really good advice. I only have two things to add.

1) I don't have an artistic bone in my body either. As long as you do all of the research and compile your own headings and content, there's nothing wrong with asking someone to help you put the poster together so it looks good.

2) To help put your situation in perspective, I did a poster presentation during the last semester of my BSN program for Nursing Research and my critical care preceptorship. It was on the prevention of catheter-associated urinary tract infections in critically ill patients. I had not one, but twenty-two, sources.

It could be much worse. You'll get through this. Deep breaths :wink2:

mrflynn0907 · Jun 25, 2009

Thank you all soooo much for the advice. I really like the Nanda angle. Maybe this won't be as bad as I think. Thanks again. I may be asking for more advice.

mrflynn0907 · Jun 25, 2009

I suggest using CINAHL for finding nursing research. Also, I learned the hard way to double check that the actual article is authored by nurses and actual research and not a CEU article.

You are absolutely right about CINAHL. Much better than PubMed. Thanks so much.

David12 · Feb 14, 2012

when i hear the term “poster presentation” it causes me to pause. this is an oxymoron. is not a poster meant to stand by itself? is it meant to be placed on a person’s back or carried constantly by a person while he/she simultaneously expounds on what is already visible on the poster? is it useless without a commentator?

while many professional groups may on occasion use poster presentations, nurses commonly use such presentations. in fact, nurses become excited in the extreme at the thought of poster presentations. to nurses, poster presentations represent self-actualization. they are the zenith of educational achievement. don’t laugh – it is true.

while attending nursing school a large part of our grade in a class was based on the completion of a poster presentation. during this time, i was asked by friends, over lunch, what i was doing in my college nursing class. i stated we were drawing posters. my friends began to laugh. i had thought it was a juvenile thing to do myself, but it had not struck me until that moment just how juvenile it was. my friends thought i was joking and i explained that i was not. this caused me to think a little deeper about poster presentations.

the definition of a poster is: a large, usually printed placard, bill, or announcement, often illustrated, that is posted to advertise or publicize something. [http://www.thefreedictionary.com]

is a poster not meant to stand alone – to speak for itself? if not then why is it called a “poster”? to my mind, the measure of a poster is: does it (the poster, by itself) clearly inform the viewer of the subject it addresses. why else give its illustration any consideration?

the “poster presentation” group feels a poster must have a mouthpiece. why bother with a poster then? say what you have to say. stand there and repeat it as each person passes by.

frankly, i would prefer tinker toys, building blocks or even play dough to drawing/illustrating posters as a learning method. if not superior to posters, they are, at the least equal to posters as a teaching method. yes, they seem like immature ways to learn, but so does making posters.

if i am to view your poster, then please keep silent – do not speak and interrupt my appraisal of it. unless it is so simplified that it does not engage my brain, in which case, you should classify it as visual aid for your oral presentation and not as a “poster.” make sense, give an oral presentation and use visual aids if you like or simply make a poster, post it and walk away.