1. The aims of the society
The Society was founded in 1979 to promote research in Otorhinolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery and Allied Sciences. It is a non-profit making organisation open to all trainees and practising ORL-HNS, Audiological Physicians and individuals both medical and non medical working in related specialties, including both students and postgraduate students. Retired past members of the society are welcome to continue their membership and attend.
2. The programmed activities of the society
Two meetings will be held yearly, the first in Spring and the second in Autumn. The venue for the Spring meeting varies to help promote attendance from different regions, whilst the Autumn meeting is held in London. In years when the British Academic Conference in Otolaryngology is held the ORS will usually contribute to this meeting.
3. The council
The ethos of the Society is that it should be dynamic and forward looking, and in order to meet these aims no Council member can be older than 55 years other than the President. The Council will comprise the President (two year term), the past President (two year term), the President-Elect (two year term), the Secretary (four year term), the Treasurer (four year term), a representative from the Association of Otorhinolaryngologists in training (four years or until appointed to a substantive post), a Basic Scientist (four year term), a Statistician (four year term), the Editor of Clinical Otolaryngology (ex-officio), the Director of the Institute of Laryngology and Otology (ex-officio) , the webmaster (ex-officio) and four representatives (four years term). The Council of the ORS will meet at both the Spring and Autumn meetings. The Annual General Meeting will take place at the end of the Autumn meeting. All members of the Council are elected at the Autumn meeting, other than the President who is elected by Council. A member has to be proposed and seconded (both need to be ORS members). The individual(s) who have been proposed should make a brief statement about why they wish to stand for the post. If there are more candidates than places on the Council the individuals will be asked to leave the room. Democratic votes should then decide who is elected with a first past the post system.
4. The format of the society's meetings
The Spring and Autumn meetings will be advertised as widely as possible with a call for papers and a deadline for abstracts. Abstracts are received by email and should be structured (title, aim, methods, results, conclusion) with one copy containing the Authors / and Institution and another copy anonymised. The Secretary will forward the anonymised abstracts to the Council members for them to be marked in a structured format. The results of the returned marks will be analysed and the best submissions will be selected for presentation. Individuals presenting at the meeting have to be members of the ORS ( students, scientists and professionals allied to medicine need not be members of the society, but it is expected that one of their co-authors will be ) . The format of the meetings is that the presentations will be strictly restricted to a set time that includes time for questions. When the Council believes it to be of benefit to the Society it may invite a speaker to give a formal lecture. Abstracts submitted will only be considered if the presentation has not been given at a UK meeting. Presentations given at the ORS may be given elsewhere at a later date but the presenters should be aware that their abstract will be printed in Clinical Otolaryngology at the earliest opportunity.
5. Subscriptions
The yearly subscription for the ORS is kept to a minimum and is the same fee as for an individual who wishes to attend a single meeting as a visitor; this is done to encourage membership.
6. Clinical Otolaryngology
The ORS enjoys an excellent relationship with the Journal entitled "Clinical Otolaryngology" which publishes the abstracts for the twice yearly meetings. Clinical Otolaryngology will consider submissions of full papers for publication from all those who present, including the winners of the Philip Stell and the Angell James prizes. However, such authors should understand that their work will have to undergo the standard review process as other submissions to Clinical Otolaryngology.
7. Prizes
The Philip Stell prize will be awarded for the best presentation at the Spring meeting. The winner will receive money toward the cost of travel and accommodation to the Dutch ORL Society to present their paper. The winner is expected to accept an invitation from the Dutch ORL Society to present at their meeting. Three judges decide the winner on the basis of methods (5 points), analysis/statistics (5 points), presentation (5 points), originality (5 points) and clinical importance or relevance (5 points). None of the judges should have any involvement with any of the day's presentations, and they will be selected from Council. Should all the Council members present be involved with a presentation then the Council may delegate the task of judging to another individual on the basis of consensus.
The Angell James prize is awarded for the best presentation at the Autumn meeting and is judged in the same manner as the Philip Stell prize. The winner will receive money toward the cost of travel and accommodation to the Dutch ORL Society to present their paper. The winner is expected to accept an invitation from the Dutch ORL Society to present at their meeting. Three judges decide the winner on the basis of methods (5 points), analysis/statistics (5 points), presentation (5 points), originality (5 points) and clinical importance or relevance (5 points). None of the judges should have any involvement with any of the day's presentations, and they will be selected from Council. Should all the Council members present be involved with a presentation then the Council may delegate the task of judging to another individual on the basis of consensus.
Medtronic sponsor a yearly research prize (known thus far as the Xomed Treace prize) to the value of £2,000 that is open to members of the ORS (Consultants and trainees). The award is given for a written piece of work and it is judged by the President, the immediate past President and the President-Elect (should they have any involvement in any of the submissions the Secretary should delegate a referee from the ORS Council). The winner is expected to present their work to the ORS and the AAOHNS meeting with the £2000 intended to support travel costs towards the latter.
The ORS Research Grant is offered as a small research support grant to members of the society (consultants or trainees) up to a maximum of £2000 . Applications should comprise comprise an outline of the proposed research (maximum 1000 words) plus a breakdown of costs. Applications will be judged for scientific quality, practicality and overall merit by the President, Immediate Past President and President-Elect (should they have any involvement in any of the submissions the Secretary should delegate a referee from the ORS Council) . It is expected that the successful applicants will present their work at the ORS in due course.
8. Publication costs grant
Grants of up to £500 will be made available to members of the society to cover publication costs for publishing work previously presented at the ORS. Each application will be approved by council. Applications may be made at any time up to two years after the paper was presented. Grants will only be awarded for publication in a reputable peer-reviewed scientific journal. The grant may be awarded to cover colour reproduction costs where colour photographs are felt by the ORS council to enhance the presentation of the scientific content. Grants may also be awarded to cover publication costs for open-access ("author-pays" journals.
9. Honorary life membership
The council may elect honorary life membership to one individual per year. The recipient does not necessarily have to have been a member of the society. The award is normally for the individual's contribution to the society or research in Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery and its allied sciences.
