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NAMSS Conference Committee Chair: From Abstract to Applause

By Teddy Durgin

Mallorie Merboth may be director of medical and professional staff services at Boulder Community Health in Colorado, but she is also NAMSS Conference Committee Chair and is working hard on and looking forward to this fall’s 50^th Annual Conference in New Orleans.

One of the more important dates in the lead-up to the yearly event is the Wednesday, March 4, deadline for conference abstracts pitching potential workshop sessions to lead. Merboth offers calm advice and wise counsel on this part of the process, describing an ideal abstract as providing “a 10,000-foot view of who you are and what you want to share at the NAMSS conference. The speaker demographics section should include a well-formatted resume that defines the speaker’s expertise in the content they are proposing to share. The summary and outline section of the abstract should clearly list what will be shared with the attendees, preferably with an estimated time for each section.”

She adds that the abstract should include any proposals for a special format (e.g., game show, case study discussion, interactive panel) and any information related to additional resources needed for this special setup, such as additional audio-visual needs, round tables in the room setup, and so forth.

Selling the Session Before You Even Speak

The NAMSS Annual Conference typically draws over 1,800 medical services professionals (MSPs) from all over the United States. It is a premier event that promises attendees opportunities to expand their professional networks and learn from leaders in the profession.

The question was posed to Merboth: What trending topics has the Conference Committee been seeking and why? “Technology and AI and their integration into the work of MSPs are topics that are high on our priority list,” she says. “As NAMSS expands our educational offerings to include payer enrollment (PE), we are also seeking abstracts submitted for MSPs who work in all areas of PE — those working for health systems, IPAs, CVOs, health insurance companies, etc.”

“We are also interested in case study abstracts,” Merboth adds. “We’d love to see an abstract if you’ve managed a big project this year to completion or had to manage through a disaster or unexpected event that impacted your medical staff, or have any other unique, first-hand experience with lessons learned for other MSPs.”

Merboth says just the simple act of submitting an abstract opens many new doors with NAMSS. “Even if your abstract isn’t selected for conference, we offer the opportunity to be considered for a webinar using the same submission,” she says. “No need to give us the information twice. If your abstract is selected for conference, you will receive free registration for the NAMSS conference!”

Still, despite her advice, Merboth senses there might still be some ambivalence among NAMSS member-readers. “If you have a great idea to share, we want to hear about it, and we aren’t asking for a lot at the abstract phase,” she adds. “You don’t have to have the full slide deck done at this step. We are only looking for a well-thought-out idea that has the potential to be a highly engaging and informative session for our members.” Indeed, final slide decks and additional materials will not be due until later in the summer of 2026.

Merboth’s Experience

As Boulder Community Health’s director of medical and professional staff services, her duties and responsibilities include oversight of credentialing, privileging, peer review/quality, the facility’s medical library, its CME program, and provider data operations. With such a position of importance, it’s no surprise that she has previously submitted abstracts herself. “Yes, before I was on the committee, I submitted an abstract for the conference,” she recalls. “I have submitted with a group, and I submitted alone. The group dynamic can feel a little bit like a group assignment in school, so be sure your team is one that you want to work with on a project! I’ve also had an abstract not selected, which was disappointing, but I was asked to do a webinar with the content.”

Finally, she is also proud to talk about the speaker development program that NAMSS offers. Launched in 2024, the program has become a valuable resource to develop new and emerging MSP speakers. “First-time speakers will likely be asked to participate in the program,” she concludes, “which will partner them with an experienced speaker mentor and give them access to NAMSS’s speaker tools leading up to the conference in October. The goal of the program is to set new speakers up for success and build a robust group of experienced, engaging MSP speakers.”