Article 1 - Purpose and Objective
The Expanscience Osteoarthritis Congress Grant of the Osteoarthritis Foundation is intended to fund all or part of a researcher's or physician's participation in a scientific conference on osteoarthritis organized outside its home country.
It was established by the Osteoarthritis Foundation, a private foundation created in July 2015, to promote basic and clinical research in the field of osteoarthritis.
Its objective is also to promote the Osteoarthritis Foundation’s activities abroad.
Article 2 - Name, value, and periodicity of the Grant
The name of the Grant is Expanscience Osteoarthritis Congress Grant of the Osteoarthritis Foundation.
The Grant, worth 2.500 euros (two thousand five hundred euros), is awarded by the Osteoarthritis Foundation and cannot be shared. It can be used to finance all or part of travel, conference registration and accommodation costs.
The Grant is awarded each year, or at other frequencies based on the Foundation Board’s decision.
Article 3 - Conditions/criteria applicable to candidates
This grant is aimed at candidates intending to submit an abstract for an oral or poster communication.
The criteria used for awarding the Grant are the relevance of the congress to the applicant's medical and/or scientific activities (25%), the quality of the curriculum vitae (25%), the quality of the abstract (25%) and the motivation letter (25%).
Moreover, the winner is committed to write a report in English summarizing the main 3 to 5 points/key messages learned during the conference.
Article 4 - Designation/selection of the winner
The winner will be chosen by the Osteoarthritis Foundation. Professor Bernard Rentier, Rector Emeritus of the University of Liège, will chair the Scientific Committee for the 2024 edition of the grant.
Article 5 – Jury
The jury includes the members of the Board of Directors of the Osteoarthritis Foundation and international scientific personalities selected by the Osteoarthritis Foundation.
The members of the jury shall not be remunerated but shall be entitled to a travel and accommodation allowance in the unlikely event that their presence should be required. A quorum of three members is required to deliberate validly. The jury may deliberate by videoconferencing.
The jury shall conduct its proceedings and deliberations in accordance with this Regulation. Decisions shall be taken by consensus as much as possible and, if not, by secret ballot until a simple majority is reached.
The jury shall evaluate the applications in a written report and provide its recommendations. This report shall be sent to the Osteoarthritis Foundation.
Article 6 - Submission of applications
Each application shall be sent with the applicant's contact details to admin@fondationarthrose.org with acknowledgment request, by 31 August at the latest.
Candidates must provide the following documents in English:
- A curriculum vitae (max 2 pages)
- A copy of the research abstract(s) intended to be presented in the congress
- A motivation letter explaining the reasons for which they want to attend the congress
Article 7 - Awarding of the grant
The Grant will be announced by the Osteoarthritis Foundation at an event organized by the latter. The winner will receive a payment corresponding to the amount of the Prize and a certificate.
The laureate will be invited to present briefly his/her research work and the usefulness of his or her participation in the congress for his or her medical and/or scientific activity.
This presentation may be made in writing, by video message or in person and will take place at the awards ceremony and/or at any other event organized by the Osteoarthritis Foundation. A recent photo of the winner will also be requested to promote the award by the Osteoarthritis Foundation and Laboratoires Expanscience.
If the winner's presence is required at the evening, the Osteoarthritis Foundation will cover part of the cost of travel (economy class) and accommodation (standard room).
Article 8 – Appeal
The decision of the Osteoarthritis Foundation regarding the award of the grant is not subject to appeal. The grant applications shall not be made public.
Article 9 - Amendment to the Regulation of the grant
Any amendment to this Regulation shall be submitted to the Osteoarthritis Foundation for approval.
Download the rules here.