AMA Journal of Ethics^®

1. Official Contest Rules.
   These are the official Contest rules for the 2024 Conley Art of Medicine Contest (“Contest”). By submitting an entry to the Contest, each entrant (“Entrant”) irrevocably agrees to be bound by these Contest Rules. Each Contest Entrant also irrevocably agrees to be bound by the interpretations to these Rules and decisions of the Judges and the Administrator. Decisions of the Administrator are final.

   The Administrator may change these terms and conditions at any time. If the Administrator does change the terms and conditions, the Administrator will post an amended version of these terms on the Contest website. Your continued use of the Contest website or participation in the Contest after any changes are made to the terms will be deemed to constitute your acceptance of those changes. If you object to any changes to the terms, your only remedy is to discontinue your use of the Contest website and discontinue participation in the Contest.

2. Contest Entry Period.
   The Contest will begin on March 25, 2024 and will end on 5 PM Central Time, United States, on September 23, 2024 (“Contest Deadline”) as marked by electronic timestamp when received by the Administrator.

   Note: All materials must be received by the Administrator by the Contest Deadline. Entrants who have waited until 4:55 PM, for example, to submit materials have occasionally been disappointed, due to transmission delays. Please plan accordingly.

3. Prizes.
   From all Entrants, one winner will be selected. The Winner(s) will receive a check for up to FIVE THOUSAND AND NO/100 DOLLARS ($5,000.00) and the opportunity to have their winning essay published in the AMA Journal of Ethics (see section 9 below).

   In the event the originally identified winner is disqualified, fails to claim the prize or the Administrator deems itself unable to award the Prize, the judges may select another entrant as the winner. In the event of a tie, the Administrator may elect to split the prize.

   Neither the Judges nor the Administrator have any further obligation to any Entrant or Winner after the award of the Prize mentioned above. Each Entrant assumes all liabilities associated with entering this Contest and the receipt of any Prize. An Entrant may decline advancement in the Contest and decline any Prize prior to its award. Withdrawal from the Contest or declining a Prize at any time will nullify an Entrant’s designation as a Winner of this Contest.

4. How to Enter.
   Entries must be submitted to the following address: https://amajournalofethics.msubmit.net/cgi-bin/main.plex which is the AMA Journal of Ethics online contribution management system. The submission must include the cover page. Entries must be submitted within the time frames specified in the Contest Entry Period (specified in section 2 above). Each Entrant must complete the Contest Submission Requirements (specified in section 7 below). Contest entry is only available electronically. Submissions in person, by mail or other means will not be accepted.
5. Contest Background.
   Funded John Conley Foundation for Ethics and Philosophy in Medicine, the Conley Art of Medicine Contest (“Contest”) has been administered by the American Medical Association (“AMA”) Journal of Ethics.
6. Eligibility Requirements.
   At the submission deadline, entrants must be a(n):
   1. US MD or DO student in a LCME- or COCA-accredited school,
   2. Resident physician or fellow in an ACGME- or AOA- accredited program, or
   3. Early career physician ho has completed advanced training (which can include a health care ethics, policy or humanities program) within the prior 5 years.

   Only original entries by individuals are valid. Team entries or entries which reflect the work of more than one individual will be disqualified.

   Entries must not have been previously published in print or electronic format and must not have been submitted to any other contest or publication.

7. Submission Requirements.
   Entries must include a single contributor’s name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, medical school (and year in medical school) or specialty training program (and year in training program) on the cover page only.

   Graphics (cartoon panels, drawings, paintings, for example) must be in jpg format with a file size limit of 32MB so that it might be easily sized to fit per our production design needs. (If an image will lose clarity or readability due to resizing, it might be featured as a link to open in a new window on the journal site.)

   Within each submission, each entry must include a title, media used to create the art work, and brief (no longer than 50 words) summary description that clarifies each entry’s connections to ethics. For example, for a 5-part series of video shorts or still photographs on patient-physician relationships, the series would need a summary and each video short or photograph would need a title.

   Entries must contain only de-identified information about patients, patients’ loved ones, or colleagues. Representations of all persons must be anonymized. Artists retain copyright of their original work, but

   By entering, the entrant warrants and represents to the AMA that (a) the entrant is the sole copyright owner of the submitted entry; (2) the images are not commercially available for sale; (3) any images do not violate or infringe upon the copyright, trademark, rights of publicity, privacy, or any other intellectual property or other rights of any person or entity.

8. Notice to Winner.
   Winning entrants will be contacted approximately six (6) weeks after submission deadline. In order to have the winning entry published, the Entrant must be willing, if deemed necessary by the Administrator, to allow the art to be edited by the AMA Journal of Ethics editorial staff. If the Entrant declines to allow the art to be edited, the art at the Administrator’s discretion, may not be published.
9. Intellectual Property Rights.
   Entrants will retain ownership of their work, but by entering the entrant grants AMA permission for the entry to be published by the AMA Journal of Ethics. Entrant agrees to document entrant’s permission by signing a document giving the American Medical Association (AMA) unrestricted use in all versions of the AMA Journal of Ethics. All Contest entries will be treated in accordance with the Administrator’s Privacy Policy which can be found at this link: https://www.ama-assn.org/general-information/general-information/privacy-policy.
10. General Information.
    Participation is subject to all federal, state and local laws and regulations. Void where prohibited or restricted by law. Entrant is responsible for checking applicable laws and regulations in Entrant’s jurisdiction before participating in the Contest to make sure that Entrant’s participation is legal. Entry into the Contest does not constitute entry into any other Contest or promotion, including, without limitation, other similar programs or promotions offered by Administrator. If Entrant is employed, Entrant is responsible for abiding by Entrant’s employer's policies regarding participation in the Contest. Administrator disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for disputes arising between Entrant and Entrant’s employer related to the Contest.

    By entering the Contest Entrant waives all rights to seek injunctive or equitable relief, or to claim punitive, incidental or consequential damages, or attorneys’ fees.

    Administrator reserves the right, in its sole discretion to cancel or suspend this Contest, to choose not to determine or name a winner, or randomly award the prizes from among all eligible Entries received prior to action taken by Administrator or award no prizes should fraud, virus, bugs or other causes beyond the control of Administrator corrupt the administration, security or proper play of the game. Administrator is not responsible for computer system, phone line, hardware, software or program malfunctions, or other errors, failures or delays in computer transmissions or network connections that are human or technical in nature.

    Should multiple users of the same e-mail account enter the Contest and a dispute thereafter arises regarding the identity of Entrant, the authorized subscriber of said e-mail account at the time of entry will be considered the Entrant. “Authorized account subscriber” is defined as the natural person who is assigned an email address by an Internet access provider, on-line service provider or other organization which is responsible for assignment e-mail address or the domain associated with the submitted e-mail address. Please see Administrator’s website's privacy policy for details of our policy regarding the personal information collected in connection with this contest. Any potential winner may be requested to provide Administrator with proof that such winner is the authorized account holder of the email address associated with winning entry.

    All Entrants must have a valid email address. Administrator reserves the right at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual (and all of his or her Contest Entries) who tampers with the entry process. Automated entries are prohibited, and any use of such automated devices will cause disqualification.

11. No Confidential Information/No Confidential Relationship.
    Administrator does not wish to receive or hold any submitted materials “in confidence”. Entrant agrees that, with respect to Entrant’s Entry, no confidential relationship or obligation of secrecy is established between Entrant and Administrator.
12. Internet.
    Administrator is not responsible for incorrect or inaccurate entry information whether caused by Internet users or by any of the equipment or programing associated with or utilized in the Contest or by any technical or human error which may occur in the processing of the entries in the Contest. The Contest is intended only for play in the United States and shall only be construed and evaluated according to United States law. Entrant should not enter this Contest if Entrant is not a resident of the United States. Void where prohibited.
13. Releases/Disclaimer.
    As a condition of entering, Entrant(s) agree: (a) to release the Judges, the Administrator, its affiliates, retailers, sales representatives, distributors, and its officers, directors, employees, representatives and agents from any and all liability, loss or damage incurred with respect to the awarding, receipt, possession, and/or use or misuse of any prize, (b) Entrants waive all rights to claim, punitive, incidental, consequential, or any other damages; (c) all causes of action arising out of or connected with this Contest, or any prize awarded, shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action; (d) any and all claims, judgments, and award shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, excluding attorneys’ fees and court costs; (e) all issues and question concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Contest Rules, Entrant’s rights and obligations, or the rights and obligations of Administrator in connection with the Contest, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of State of Illinois, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules; and (f) Entrants consent to the jurisdiction and venue of the federal, state and local courts located in Cook County Illinois.

    The Administrator, its directors, employees or agents are not responsible for errors, problems or malfunctions relating to or in connection with the Contest, including without limitation, errors, problems or malfunctions which may occur in connection with the administration of the Contest, the announcement of the prizes, the processing of entries or in any Contest -related materials; or for transactions that are lost, misdirected, or fail to enter into the processing system for any reason; or are processed, reported, or transmitted late or incorrectly; or are lost for any reason, including computer, telephonic, paper-transfer, or human error, or electronic, computer, or telephonic malfunction, damage, error, omission, interruption, defect, delay in operation or transmission, or any combination thereof. Any and all warranties and/or guarantees on a prize (if any) are subject to the respective manufacturers’ terms therefor, and the winner(s) agrees to look solely to such manufacturer(s) for any such warranty and/or guarantee.

    All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

14. Required Affidavit and Designation of Alternate Winner.
    The winner of the Contest will be required to sign and return to Administrator an Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability/Publicity Release Form before receiving their prize. Refusal or failure to sign and return the Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability/Publicity Release Form within 14 days from first attempted notification will result in forfeiture of the prize. Except where prohibited by law, acceptance of the prize constitutes winner’s consent to use his/her name, likeness, and biographical data for Administrator’s promotional purposes without additional compensation.

    At the time of the judging, extra alternate winners may be selected. Such alternate winners may receive a prize according to the circumstances described in section 3 (above) and this section. If any correspondence of the Contest or any prize is returned as undeliverable, the corresponding prize will be forfeited and will be awarded to an alternate winner. Should a winner make any false statement(s) in any document referenced above, the winner will be required to promptly return to Administrator his/her prize. Any unclaimed prizes will be awarded as Administrator deems appropriate. In the event there is a dispute of an Entrant’s identity, the prize will be awarded as Administrator deems appropriate.

15. Publicity Rights / Limited Privacy.
    By participating in the Contest, in addition to any other grants granted herein or which may be granted in another agreement with Administrator, Entrant hereby irrevocably (a) grants to Administrator the right to use Entrant’s name, likeness, image and biographical information in any and all media for any purpose including, without limitation, advertising and promotional purposes relating to the Contest; and (b) releases Administrator from any liability with respect thereto. Entrant acknowledges Entrant’s privacy rights will be limited in the Contest.
16. Legal Warning.
    ANY ATTEMPT BY AN INDIVIDUAL, WHETHER OR NOT A RESPONDENT, TO DELIBERATELY INTERFERE WITH THE OPERATION OF THE GIVEAWAY, IS A VIOLATION OF THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS. THE SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES AND DILIGENTLY PURSUE ALL REMEDIES AGAINST ANY SUCH INDIVIDUAL TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, ENTRAT FURTHER AGREES THAT THE ADMINISTRATOR, THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, ITS AFFILIATES, AND THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, SHAREHOLDERS, EMPLOYEES, REPRESENTATIVES, AGENTS, SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS, SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, LOSSES, COSTS OR EXPENSES, OF ANY KIND, ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND THE REASONABLE CONTROL OF ADMINISTRATOR AND/OR ITS AFFILIATES, ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION AGENCIES, SUPPLIERS, OR THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, SHAREHOLDERS, EMPLOYEES, REPRESENTATIVES, AND AGENTS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ACTS OF GOD, ACTS OF GOVERNMENT, ACTS OF TERROR, ACTS OF WAR, CIVIL UNREST, LABOR SHORTAGES AND/OR STRIKES, EVEN IF ANY ONE OR MORE OF THE PARTIES WERE AWARE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF ANY SUCH EVENTS OCCURRING.
17. Entrant’s Representations and Warranties.
    By participating in the Contest and submitting an Entry, Entrant represents and warrants that all information Entrant submits is true, accurate and complete to the best of Entrant’s knowledge, that Entrant has the right and authority to submit the Entry on Entrant’s own behalf or on behalf of the entity that Entrant specifies with the Entry, Entrant has secured all necessary consents and provided all necessary attributions with respect to artists, musicians or others whose intellectual property or creative content is included in Entrant’s Entry, and that Entrant’s Entry:
    1. is Entrant’s own original work, or is used by permission with full and proper credit given within Entrant’s Entry;
    2. does not contain confidential information or trade secrets (Entrant’s or anyone else’s);
    3. does not violate or infringe upon the patent rights, industrial design rights, copyrights, trademarks, rights of privacy, publicity or other intellectual property or other rights of any person or entity;
    4. does not contain malicious code, such as viruses, time bombs, cancelbots, worms, Trojan horses or other potentially harmful programs or other material or information;
    5. does not and will not violate any applicable law, statute, ordinance, rule or regulation; and
    6. does not trigger any reporting or royalty obligation to any third party.
18. Indemnification.
    By participating in the Contest, Entrant agrees to release, indemnify and hold harmless Administrator and its affiliates, subsidiaries, as applicable, or their agents, representatives, officers, directors, shareholders, and employees (collectively, “Administrator Entities”) from and against any injuries, losses, damages, claims, actions and any liability of any kind resulting from or arising out of Entrant’s participation in or association with the Contest. Administrator is not responsible for any miscommunications or technical failures related to computer, telephone, cable, and unavailable network or server connections, related technical failures, or other failures related to hardware, software or virus, or incomplete, late or misdirected entries. Any compromise to the fair and proper conduct of this Contest may result in the disqualification of an Entry, termination of the Contest, or other remedial action, at the sole discretion of Administrator.

Administrator: American Medical Association, 330 N. Wabash, Chicago, IL 60611.

Using this 4-point scale

    4    Excellent, exceptional
    3    Good, competently executed
    2    Satisfactory, meets minimum standards of acceptability
    1    Poor, significantly flawed

Judges will review the entries and then assign one overall rating to each entry as a whole, according to the following equally important criteria:

Visual Engagement with Ethics as a Theme

Representation of ethics content, interpretation and analysis of ethically relevant concepts

Design Effectiveness and Appeal

Clarity, originality, and innovativeness with which ethically relevant ideas are rendered visually to the viewer

Capacity to Complement Narrative- and Text-Based Explorations of Ethical Reasoning

Motivates a viewer’s engagement with aesthetic dimensions of important concepts and ideas in ethics in ways that narrative- and text-based engagement with the content might not do or might not do as effectively

Responsiveness

Submission meets formatting requirements:  

1. Graphics (cartoon panels, drawings, paintings, for example) must be in jpg format with a file size limit of 32MB so that it might be easily sized to fit journal production design needs.
2. Each entry must be original artwork and include a title, all media and tools used to create the art object, and brief (no longer than 50 words) summary that clarifies each entry’s connections to ethics. For example, for a 5-part series of video shorts or still photographs on patient-physician relationships, the series would need a summary and each video short or photograph would need a title.
3. Entries must contain only de-identified information about patients, patients’ loved ones, or colleagues. Representations of all persons must be anonymized.