Understanding The SOS Poster Project
You Are A California PA, A CAPA Member,
You So Should Do It!

SOS Poster Project – In Short, Just the Facts – Not A Scientific Poster

• It is a quick and easy project – we promise. All you need is some poster board and a glue stick.
• California PAs will benefit when we take your posters, highlight them in the CAPA News and even better, create stories and press releases about what you are doing. Your posters will be really simple seeds of inspiration needed to identify larger and more detailed stories (that is our job) we can get to your local media. Sometimes, what you see as just your day-to-day job is the story about health care that will hit home with a reporter. If you are doing it, it matters!
• Foam board can be found at Staples, Office Depot, Michael’s or any stationary store. Standard size is 20 x 30. You can go up to 36 x 36 if you like.
• To your foam board, use a glue stick or a stapler and affix whatever you like: photos, words, images that will show us something about your practice, your volunteer work as a PA, your work as an educator, etc. Everyone can think of something to SHARE and we want hundreds of posters. Make it an office project. Add some photos of your MAs, your receptionist, etc. Show team medicine at its best.
• Getting your poster to CAPA is easy! If you are coming to the CAPA Conference, you will bring your poster with you (if it is 20 x 30, it will fit in the overhead compartment on a plane if you are flying, or the flight attendant can stow it). If you aren’t coming to the conference (and we hope you are) you can ship it to the CAPA office. Foam board is very light weight and will ship easily and it will be inexpensive.
• Need ideas? We have them. Tell us what kind of practice you are in and where you live. We’ll give you some ideas. Email: capa@capanet.org or call the office.
• Let us know today that you will be part of the movement to get PAs recognized by the media! Let’s do this together!

Participate Even If You Aren’t Coming To The CAPA Conference – But We Hope You Are!
This year during PA Week we gather for CAPA’s 34th Annual Conference in Palm Springs. In addition to the beautiful location and the terrific speakers – we will again strive to provide you with an opportunity to share a bit about yourself and what interesting things you are doing as a PA. With your help, we will all learn about some new, different, incredible work done by California PAs. After the conference, we will use this information to create press releases and feature stories to submit to the media. It seems like PAs never get enough good press – don’t you agree?

So,let us know by way of a “poster project” what you are doing either at work or outside your work setting, using your PA training/medical skills.

We hope you get the idea. The thing to remember is we don’t even know what we don’t know. What wonderful, innovative, exciting things are you doing? Now is not the time to be shy or humble. Your colleagues need to know and be inspired and encouraged by what you are doing. PA students need to know the possibilities! The people of California and California legislators need to know! And, it all starts at the CAPA Conference in Palm Springs during PA Week 2010!! We hope you will SHARE a bit about your SELF!

Keep It Simple. Have Your Kids Help With YOUR Poster Project!
Make it easy and let us know what you are doing to better your career opportunities, your community, your state and/or the world!

It Is About The Work You Are Doing, Not The Poster.
We aren’t looking for elaborate or expensive posters (however if you have them or would like to produce them, you are welcome to). We are creating an area in the CAPA Exhibit Hall which has scores of easels (provided by CAPA) ready and waiting for your poster. You can keep this simple and use a piece of foam board you buy at any office supply store and affix some photos and descriptive text/logo telling us a bit about what you want to share. Now is the time to brag a bit about yourself and/or your project. The poster should be no larger than 36 x 36. Standard size is usually about 20 x 30. Note: If the organization you are highlighting is a 501(c)(3) organization, their name will be entered into a drawing and they could win a $500 donation given in your name.

CAPA will be awarding certificates to all who submit a poster and we will be following up after the conference for more information. We will use your information to highlight your work in the CAPA News. We will alsoproduce articles we hope will become “PR/press opportunities” for some of the projects. We want and need to know what you are doing so we can “get the word out.” You are probably as frustrated as we about the lack of good press for PAs. We want PAs to be widely recognized and honored for the good things they are doing!

If you have any questions or suggestions about this project, please contact the CAPA office. We are anxious to talk with you and learn more about your poster project. We are here to help you and all California PAs shine.