Military Health System Research Symposium (MHSRS)
August 3 - 6, 2026
Calendar
Download iCal FileThe Military Health System Research Symposium (MHSRS) is the Department of Defense’s (DOD) premier, annual medical research meeting. The joint symposium offers a unique opportunity for interested researchers to engage with program managers and DOD officials, who are often hard to reach virtually without a prior connection, on military biomedical and health-related research topics. Thematic tracks and previous discussions range broadly, but typically include topics such as infectious disease, TBI, psychological health, and injury prevention, among others. Registration for the in-person MHSRS opens in June of each year. The tentative dates for the Symposium are August 3 - August 6, 2026.
While attending the MHSRS allows interested researchers to access DOD health program managers and officials, Lewis-Burke recommends submitting an abstract of proposed research to better facilitate engagement with program managers that support specific types of research topics. The call for abstracts to present at the MHSRS is typically released in January or February and closes about one month later.
Two types of abstracts are accepted:
1. Research Abstracts: “Include data and conclusions formatted as: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Conclusions.”
2. Advanced Product Development: “Focus on mature efforts/technologies supporting the filling of an existing DoD capability gap and should be formatted as: Introduction, Capability
Description, Methods/Technical Approach, Results, Applicability to Medical Roles of Care, Impact to the Warfighter/Significance, Developmental Status of the Technology.”
See more information from Lewis-Burke here.
Date posted
Mar 9, 2026
Date updated
Mar 9, 2026