European Heart Journal Advance Access published online on December 1, 2009
European Heart Journal, doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehp462
Published on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. © The Author 2009. For permissions please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org
European Society of Cardiology National Cardiovascular Journals: the ‘Editors' Network’
Fernando Alfonso1,*,
Giuseppe Ambrosio2,
Fausto J. Pinto3,
Hugo Ector4,
Panos Vardas5,
Piotr Kulakowski6,
Adam Timmis7 on behalf of the Editors' Network ESC Task Force
1 Editor-in-Chief, Revista Española de Cardiología
2 Past Editor-in-Chief, Giornale Italiano di Cardiología
3 Editor-in-Chief, Revista Portuguesa de Cardiología
4 Editor-in-Chief, Acta Cardiologica
5 Editor-in-Chief, Hellenic Journal of Cardiology
6 Editor-in-Chief, Kardiologia Polska
7 Editor-in-Chief, Heart
Received 22 August 2009; revised 22 August 2009; accepted 18 September 2009
* Corresponding author and Chairman of the Task Force. Revista Española de Cardiología, Sociedad Española de Cardiología Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, 5-7, Madrid 28028, Spain, Email: rec{at}revespcardiol.org
Stimulating high-quality cardiovascular research is a major goal of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1–3 The ESC publishes two official general journals: the European Heart Journal and Cardiovascular Research,1–3 and several official sub-speciality journals. In addition, most European countries also have their own cardiovascular journals. National Society Cardiovascular Journals (NSCJ) have classically played a major role in disseminating high-quality scientific research, in education, and in the harmonization of clinical practice. Most NSCJ are published in local languages but many of them incorporate English editions and have obtained major international recognition. Altogether, NSCJ complement ESC official journals and provide a highly effective means to further disseminate European cardiovascular research.
 |
Background
|
|---|
Promoting collaboration among NSCJ appeared highly desirable
to facilitate advancement in knowledge and foster diffusion
of scientific and educative contents. Therefore, under the auspices
of the ESC, the first meeting of the NSCJ Editors took place
in 2005 in Stockholm and received ESC Board approval. Since
then a formal meeting of the NSCJ Editors has always been held
at the annual ESC Congress. On April 2007, during the Spring
Summit at the European Heart House in Nice, the ‘
Editors' Club’ initiative was launched as an official ESC Task
Force.
3,4 The organization of the Task Force consists of a Nucleus
of NSCJ Editors and remains within the membership division of
the ESC, coordinated by the ESC vice president for National
Societies. Further involvement of the ESC publishing department
might be considered as required. In April 2009, the name ‘
Editor
Network’ was considered more appropriate and this change
was also approved by the ESC Board.
|
Joint editorial policies: ‘Mission Statement’ document
|
|---|
Developing a ‘
Constitution Document’ and ‘
Mission Statement’ was soon considered a key step to set the basis
of future collaboration among the NSCJ Editors.
4 The objective
was to issue a core document with fundamental principles upon
which all the NSCJ Editors would agree in order to formalize
the ESC NSCJ Task Force. This document eventually had major
diffusion and editorial impact. A joint simultaneous publication
was organized in 2008. The document was initially endorsed and
published by 39 official NSCJ and translated into 14 different
languages.
4 As a second wave, all ‘affiliated’ ESC
national societies were also invited to participate in this
editorial initiative. This Mission Statement has been recently
endorsed and will be published in 2009 by 13 journals of affiliated
societies and two additional journals (of these four versions
were translated into Spanish and one into Portuguese). Therefore,
this effort should be considered one of the most important and
successful joint editorial initiatives ever organized under
the umbrella of the ESC.
The main proposals of the ‘Mission Statement’ document are presented in Table 1. Besides, general editorial considerations were extensively reviewed and discussed. It was emphasized that both technical and ethical issues should be addressed to gain editorial excellence.4–8 Promoting editorial quality standards was considered of paramount importance to increase the attractiveness of our publications in the globalized and highly competing field of academic cardiovascular medicine. The Task Force strongly suggested the adherence to the uniform recommendations of International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). These recommendations have recently shifted the emphasis from the original technical requirements (focused on unifying formal aspects of manuscript preparation), to principles of editorial ethics and policies that should govern biomedical publishing.5,8 In particular, it was considered that the CONSORT recommendations should be followed to improve presentation of randomized clinical trials.9 Likewise, editorial standards should be maintained in electronic editions. Currently, online editions represent the most efficient means for disseminating scientific information3,10 The importance of facilitating electronic connectivity was emphasized and, it was suggested that, whenever possible, online journals editions should be made freely available.
On the other hand, the document stated that ethical considerations
directly affect the credibility of the scientific content. Transparency,
trust, and honesty in the process involved in performance and
publication of research should be ensured.
4–8 The final
purpose should be to protect the process of scientific exchange.
Accordingly, explicitly disclosing the role of the sponsor in
research studies became increasingly relevant. Other concepts
such as Editorial Freedom and Editorial Independence, recently
emphasized by the ICMJE, World Association of Medical Editors,
and Council of Science Editors
4–8 were addressed. The
NSCJ Editors should jealously safeguard the editorial independence
of their respective national journals. The peer review process
was considered as an essential part of the editorial scientific
process. Therefore, standards for peer review excellence should
be developed.
4–8 Other issues such as conflicts of interest
and requirements for authorship were also addressed. Publication
bias should be prevented. The whole publication process is based
on credibility, trust, authenticity, and scientific honesty.
4–8 To further preserve scientific credibility, the NSCJ
Editors should harmonize their policies regarding scientific
misconduct and fraud.
4,11–14 The HEART group issued a
consensus document focused on redundant publication that might
be used as a guideline.
15 Salami slicing and
shotgunning publication
strategies were discouraged.
11–14 Secondary publications
should follow the ICMJE requirements.
5 Finally, it was agreed
that stimulating bibliometric indexes was of clear interest
to gain international recognition
16–18 However, padding
the impact factor was discouraged. The NSCJ Editors should develop
common policies to stimulate diffusion of European studies exclusively
based on scientific quality and clinical relevance criteria.
This would eventually overcome current citation biases, particularly
against non-English and non-American biomedical journals.
4
The NSCJ Editors committed to progressively adapt their local policies, including instructions to authors, to follow these general editorial recommendations.4 European NSCJ are heterogeneous and are published in different languages. Cooperation among NSCJ Editors is crucial to avoid ‘Tower of Babel’ phenomena precluding efficient dissemination of scientific information across Europe. Nevertheless, these recommendations allow enough space for editorial policies that shape the specific interest of every particular journal. Room for diversity should be guaranteed as the focus and scope of different NSCJ actually widely differ.4
|
Results of National Society Cardiovascular Journals Editors' Network initiatives
|
|---|
- (1) The portal on the ESC web page for the NSCJ was modified to increase its visibility. Currently, this site may be also reached directly from the scientific area of the ESC.3 Thus, the role of NSCJ in the enormous scientific input provided by the ESC is now adequately recognized.
- (2) Direct bidirectional links between the ESC and NSCJ and among NSCJ have been implemented to establish efficient networking tools connecting all European journals.3
- (3) Detailed editorial, logistic and organizational data from all corresponding journals were obtained. A comprehensive structured questionnaire (23 items) was devised. Full results of this survey are currently freely available from the ESC web page (metafile of national journals).3 This posted material will be updated annually. Currently, data on 46 NSCJ is available. Overall, 25 journals have been published for more than a decade. In addition to local languages, 12 journals are also available in English. The mean journals print run is 3135 copies. A system of ‘peer review’ is selected to evaluate manuscripts by 31 journals and 23 journals adhere to the requirements of the ICMJE. Twenty-nine journals are indexed (Index Medicus), 18 appear in PubMed (MEDLINE), and 5 have obtained an impact factor in 2008. Twenty-six NSCJ have an electronic edition, and 13 have already implemented an electronic system for manuscript submission. A dedicated web page is currently offered by 25 NSCJ.3,4
- (4) The NSCJ Editors should work to progressively adapt their policies to recommend the ‘registration’ of clinical trials prior to definitive publication. This should take into consideration currently available administrative national laws and European directives. Proposals for a uniform European ‘Repository’ of clinical trials, fulfilling established editorial requirements, should be encouraged.19–20
- (5) Collaboration among NSCJ Editors is essential to further disseminate and promote clinical application of ESC clinical practice guidelines. After endorsement by National Societies, translation of these guidelines into national local languages facilitates their implementation into clinical practice.21–23 Publication of these guidelines in NSCJ should follow the general rules for ‘secondary publication,’ once primary publication in the European Heart Journal has been granted. Ensuring an early translation and publication process is important. This will help to elucidate success, viability, and implementation of different ESC initiatives at the national level.24
- (6) Boosting dissemination of official ESC late breaking clinical trials, by readily translating and publishing their abstracts into local languages while paying great attention to preserve accuracy and scientific integrity, remains a challenge.4 However, this proposal eventually flourished during the 2009 ESC Congress in Barcelona as the result of a close coordination between ESC scientific bodies, ESC publishing department, and NSCJ Editors.
- (7) Increasing general awareness of the relevance of editorial issues. An official educative session on this topic ‘Meet the Editors: Insights and Challenges’ has been also organized at the 2009 ESC Congress.
- (8) Joint simultaneous publications of documents on editorial issues. The success of the ‘Mission Statement’ document has been previously detailed. A new consensus document from this Task Force: ‘Role of Journals in Education’ has been recently elaborated and circulated among all NSCJ Editors. This document emphasizes the role of journals in continuous medical education and will also summarize the results of a structured questionnaire (43 items) sent to all NSCJ. A joint publication in all NSCJ has been organized by the end of 2009.
|
Conclusions
|
|---|
The main goals of this pioneering effort are the following:
(i) to increase collaboration among the NSCJ Editors, (ii) to
enhance editorial standards and requirements for scientific
quality, (iii) to preserve publication ethics, (iv) to guarantee
scientific credibility, and (v) to expand dissemination of scientific
knowledge. Commitment of the NSCJ Editors to achieve all these
objectives (
Table 1) is crucial and this ESC NSCJ ‘
Editors' Network’ should provide a unique platform to foster these
global editorial policies.
|
Acknowledgements
|
|---|
The continuous help of Anne Mascarelli (ESC) should be acknowledged.
Conflict of interest: none declared.
|
References
|
|---|
- Lüscher TF, Gersh B, Brugada J, Landmesser U, Ruschitzka FT, Serruys PW. The European Heart Journal goes global: the road ahead of the editorial team 2009–2011. Eur Heart J (2009) 30:1–5.[Free Full Text]
- Piper HM, Martinson EA, Opthof T. The hills and valleys of an impact factor. Cardiovasc Res (2005) 67:175.[Free Full Text]
- European Society of Cardiology (ESC). Available from: http://www.escardio.org.
- Alfonso F, Ambrosio G, Pinto FJ, Van der Wall EE, Kondili A, Nibouche D, Adamyan K, Huber K, Ector H, Masic I, Tarnovska R, Ivanusa M, Stan
k V, Videbaek J, Hamed M, Laucevicius A, Mustonen P, Artigou JY, Cohen A, Rogava M, Böhm M, Fleck E, Heusch G, Klawki R, Vardas P, Stefanadis C, Tenczer J, Chiariello M, Elias J, Benjelloun H, Rødevand O, Ku
akowski P, Apetrei E, Lusov VA, Oganov RG, Obradovic V, Kamensky G, Kenda MF, Höglund C, Lüscher TF, Lerch R, Jokhadar M, Haouala H, Sansoy V, Shumakov V, Timmis A. European National Society cardiovascular Journals. Background, rationale and mission statement of the ‘Editors' Club. Rev Esp Cardiol (2008) 61:644–650.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline] - Uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical Journals. International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. N Engl J Med (1997) 23:309–315. Available from: http://www.icmje.org.
- Scott-Lichter D, the Editorial Policy Committee. Council of Scientific Editors CSE's White Paper on Promoting Integrity in Scientific Journal publications (2006) Reston: CSE. 2009 Update. Available from: http://www.councilscienceeditors.org/editorial_policies/white_paper.cfm.
- World Association of Medical Editors (WAME). Available from: http://www.wame.org.
- Alfonso F, Bermejo J, Segovia J. New recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Shifting focus: from uniformity in technical requirements to bioethical considerations. Rev Esp Cardiol (2004) 57:592–593.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
- Moher D, Schulz K, Altman DG, for the CONSORT Group. The revised CONSORT statement: revised recommendations for improving the quality of reports of parallel group randomized trials. Lancet (2001) 357:1191–1194.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
- García-Dorado D, Schlüter KD, Martinson EA, Piper HM. Which papers are more interesting to the readers of Cardiovascular Research? Information from download monitoring. Cardiovasc Res (2005) 65:1–5.[Free Full Text]
- Relman AS. The Ingelfinger rule. N Engl J Med (1981) 305:824–826.[Web of Science][Medline]
- Hildner FJ. Redundant publication. Cathet Cardiovasc Diagn (1997) 42:111–112.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
- De Maria A. Duplicate publication: insights into the essence of a medical Journal. J Am Coll Cardiol (2003) 41:516–517.[Free Full Text]
- Alfonso F, Bermejo J, Segovia J. Duplicate or redundant publication: can we afford it? Rev Esp Cardiol (2005) 58:601–604.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
- A statement on ethics from the HEART Group. Eur Heart J (2008) 29:1093–1095.[Free Full Text]
- Seglen PO. Why the impact factor of Journals should not be used to evaluate research. Br Med J (1997) 314:497–502.[Free Full Text]
- Smith R. Unscientific practice flourishes in science. Impact factors of Journals should not be used to evaluate research. Br Med J (1998) 316:1036–1040.[Free Full Text]
- Alfonso F, Bermejo J, Segovia J. Impactology, impactitis, impactotherapy. Rev Esp Cardiol (2005) 58:1239–1245.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
- De Angelis C, Drazen JM, Frizelle FA, Haug C, Hoey J, Horton R, Kotzin S, Laine C, Marusic A, Overbeke AJ, Schroeder TV, Sox HC, Van Der Weyden MB. Clinical trial registration: a statement from the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. N Engl J Med (2004) 351:1250–1251. International Committee of Medical Journal Editors.[Free Full Text]
- Alfonso F, Segovia J, Heras M, Bermejo J. Publication of clinical trials in scientific Journals: editorial issues. Rev Esp Cardiol (2006) 59:1206–1214.[CrossRef][Web of Science][Medline]
- Bassand JP, Ryden L. Guidelines: making the headlines or confined to the slide lines? Eur Heart J (1999) 20:1149–1151.[Free Full Text]
- Alfonso F, Bermejo J, Segovia J. European Guidelines at Revista Española de Cardiología: Towards a Full ‘Globalization’ of Cardiovascular Care? Rev Esp Cardiol (2004) 57:1000–1002.[CrossRef][Web of Science]
- Priori SG, Aliot E, Blomstrom-Lundqvist C, Bossaert L, Breithardt G, Brugada P, Camm JA, Cappato R, Cobbe SM, Di Mario C, Maron BJ, McKenna WJ, Pedersen AK, Ravens U, Schwartz PJ, Trusz-Gluza M, Vardas P, Wellens HJ, Zipes DP. European Society of Cardiology. [Task Force on Sudden Cardiac Death, European Society of Cardiology. Summary of recommendations]. Ital Heart J Suppl (2002) 3:1051–1065. European Society of Cardiology.[Medline]
- Simoons ML, Van der Putten N, Wood D, Boersma E, Bassand JP. The Cardiology Information System: the need for data standards for integration of systems for patient care, registries and guidelines for clinical practice. Eur Heart J (2002) 23:1148–1152.[Free Full Text]
CiteULike 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us What's this?
Top
Background
Joint editorial policies:...