American Medical Writers Association Southwest Chapter
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About AMWA

The American Medical Writers Association (AMWA) is a national organization for writers, editors, and other professionals in medicine and science. The association was founded in 1940 and has regional chapters across the United States and Canada and members in 26 countries throughout the world. AMWA holds an annual national conference and publishes a quarterly journal.The more than 4,000 members from around the world represent manyfields, including

  • Administrators
  • Advertisers
  • Audiovisual Producers
  • Journal Editors
  • Pharmaceutical Writers,
    Editors, and Managers
  • Professors
  • Public Relations Specialists
  • Publishers
  • Reporters
  • Researchers
  • Scriptwriters
  • Statisticians
  • Translators

If you write, edit, or are employed in the field of biomedical communication as a teacher or a specialist in multimedia, public relations, advertising, or marketing, you belong in AMWA. AMWA enhances the professionalism of freelance medical writers and editors and those employed by a hospital, medical school, clinic, health sciences center, foundation, nonprofit association, or pharmaceutical, medical communication, or biotechnology company.

Membership in AMWA is open to anyone interested in any aspect of biomedical communication. Student membership is available to full-time students. For membership applications or more information, contact the AMWA national office. For information about Southwest Chapter meetings, held bi-monthly, see our chapter events.

The Southwest Chapter of the American Medical Writers Association (Southwest Chapter) encompasses Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. As stated in the chapter bylaws, the objectives of the Southwest Chapter are

  • Bringing together into one association those persons in the chapter area who are engaged in or interested in any aspect of communication in the medical or allied professions and sciences. Such persons include (but are not limited to) writers, editors, illustrators, publishers, and those active in research, documentation, audiovisual techniques, public relations, and advertising, and
  • Providing educational programs both for members and nonmembers, and encouraging nonmembers to participate in chapter activities.

The Southwest Chapter is recognized as a nonprofit educational organization by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) under Section 501(c)(3) of the 1986 Internal Revenue Code.

The educational component of each Southwest Chapter event is offered free of charge to participants (except for workshops at chapter conferences). The chapter advertises its meetings to the general public by posting notices in local news sources, posting flyers at local hospitals, e-mailing an extensive list of members and nonmembers, and publishing a chapter newsletter at least four times a year. To attract even more participants, the chapter maintains alliances with other nonprofit entities, co-sponsoring events with local healthcare and educational institutions. The chapter also sponsors an annual essay contest that is open to all students engaged in health sciences-related writing, with a $500 scholarship awarded to the winner.

Donations to help meet these goals are very welcome. Corporate, organizational, and individual sponsors that donate funds (to cover honoraria for lecturers), food, or supplies for educational events receive tax relief for their conributions. During the 12 months of the 2003–2004 chapter year, the Southwest Chapter had several events attracting hundreds of participants in the Houston area alone. Attendees include not only medical writers and editors but also physicians, graduate students in biomedical fields, and members of the public at large.

 

Potential sponsors

For information about sponsorship opportunities with the AMWA Southwest Chapter, contact Alison Woo at 713.563.3432 or via .

AMWA Chapters

For information about the Southwest Chapter's initiatives in gaining 501(c)(3) status, refer to AMWA Journal 2004; 19: 29–30, and the links below (PDFs).

For more information about the Southwest Chapter, please read our constitution and bylaws.

AMWA Southwest Yahoo Group

AMWA Southwest maintains a Yahoo Group (listserv) account, amwasouthwest, for member news and discussions. Group membership is available to all chapter members.

Presidents' Reports

Presidents' reports are submitted to the AMWA national office at the start of each new chapter year and outline the president's goals and plans for the coming year.

Click here to view all current and past reports.
(Note: Page opens in a new window. All files are PDFs.)

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Specific content posted on this Web site is under the control of the Southwest Chapter of AMWA.
Such information is the direct responsibility of the Southwest Chapter and not the national AMWA organization.