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In the beginning……
Available online at www.sciencedirect.com
Medical Engineering & Physics 30 (2008) 1207–1208
Editorial
In the beginning. . .. . . In the life of many interest-based societies there comes a point where they feel a need emerge from the shadows and to become more evidentially “professional”. Thus it was in the late 1970s for the then Biological Engineering Society (BES). Until then the BES had a broad membership which included engineers and surgeons, anaesthetists and therapists, material scientists and general practitioners. It was this breadth that gave the society its strength, but at the same time was its biggest weakness. It was perceived, not unreasonably, as a cosy club run by amateurs for the benefit of enthusiasts. This “amateur” image sat uneasily with the international image of a Society whose members had played a key role in the establishment and development of the international body, the International Federation for Medical & Biological Engineering (IFMBE). Other similar societies the world over looked to the BES to give a lead in the international development of medical and biological engineering—indeed the society at that stage had a growing international membership and had provided many key members of the IFMBE’s governing body. In the UK, this amateur image was also at odds with the other bodies who were becoming more involved with the field of medical engineering, most notably the then Hospital Physicists’ Association. The society was faced with a challenge. If it was to develop a professional identity, it needed to do three things: establish a learned journal which could achieve international stature, in part as a vehicle for the members’ work; establish itself in a permanent home to accommodate the activity necessary to support a growing membership and thirdly establish the means of enabling those who regarded themselves as professional biomedical engineers to become recognised as such. In addressing the last of these I, as the President of the BES and Jack Perkins, a previous President of both the BES and the IFMBE opened negotiations which were eventually to lead to the BES’ affiliation to the then Council of Engineering Institutions and through it to the Chartering of those practising professionally as biomedical engineers. A key element of these discussions was the need to demonstrate that the BES was indeed a professional organisation. While we had an almost totally graduate membership, a record of running highly successful conferences and had a
regular Newsletter, we had no professional journal. The society had for some years enjoyed a loose association with the journal Bio-Medical Engineering (now the Journal of Medical Engineering & Technology), then published by United Trade Press. This relationship had enabled the BES to be involved in the appointment of Editors for this journal and for its members to receive the journal at a privileged rate. However, this was to change. Almost simultaneously, UTP decided to question its links with the society and the BES decided that it wanted association with what it then considered a “higher grade” journal. The parties separated amicably. At the same time as these events were taking place the BES and HPA were having top level discussions about closer collaboration and possibly even merger. However it was understood by all parties that much needed to be done before that could be achieved and I was determined that as far as possible the BES would go forward in the negotiations from a position of strength. An affiliation to the CEI and a respected journal were for me at least key elements of our portfolio which included our unique membership and our international standing. The society canvassed its members and then debated at length what it needed in a society journal. We eventually decided on a format which would combine reviews, scientific papers, technical notes and communications. The latter were perceived from the start to be an important component in giving space to ideas which were new, but possibly not yet fully formed. In placing the new journal alongside those already being published, the society also decided that the contents would not concentrate on what were considered the highly theoretical papers published in journals such as Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing, but should feature material which was much closer to being applied and therefore of greater immediate value to the developing field of biomedical engineering. In naming the journal, the society was keen to preserve its identification with the field of biomedical engineering but had to choose a name that would not be in conflict with other publications. The Journal of Biomedical Engineering, though its name was later to change, became the preferred choice. In choosing its first Editor, the society looked for someone of experience and international stature, but who also had an
1350-4533/$ – see front matter © 2008 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of IPEM. doi:10.1016/j.medengphy.2008.06.007
1208
Editorial / Medical Engineering & Physics 30 (2008) 1207–1208
empathy with what the society was trying to achieve. The late Jack Perkins was the obvious choice and fortunately took little persuasion in accepting the role. Dr. (now Professor) Jack Edwards who was then Chairman of the BES’ Publications Committee was charged with finding a suitable publisher. The choice which was eventually presented to BES Council for its approval was inspired and has continued to serve the society and the whole field remarkably well. In order to secure our publishing contract, the society undertook to provide all of its members with a personal copy of the journal, and although this has not continued it got both the journal and its members off to a flying start as it guaranteed both a national and international circulation from day one. I made the announcement that the BES would be launching the Journal of Biomedical Engineering at a dinner held in the Cutler’s Hall in Sheffield as part of the BES’ 8th International Conference on Biomedical Engineering. While BES members welcomed the development, several members of the HPA who were present sadly regarded it with suspicion and evidence that the BES was not serious about collaboration. Partly as a consequence, relationships between the two societies broke down and it was to be a decade before they resumed. For its first years under the editorship of Jack Perkins and subsequently Mick Byford, the journal authorship was predominantly from the UK. When I was appointed Editor in 1993, I was determined to broaden the author and reader base, to make it more international. I cannot speak for other editors, but my approach was to make sure that papers were sent for refereeing to those who I had identified as potential international authors. While this approach started to bear fruit I recognised that the Science Citation Index (SCI) rating of a journal was also of importance to its readership and its authorship. The SCI rating had been rising steadily under the previous editors, but was still not at the level I felt desirable. I also felt that if the journal were to grow, then it needed to broaden its authorship to embrace those aspects of
medical physics which were not the conventional radiation physics applications which dominate journals such as Physics in Medicine & Biology. This was where I was to make my biggest mistake as an editor of a learned society journal—I proposed to change the name of the journal to Medical Engineering & Physics. Council were persuaded by my arguments and approved the change. There was nothing wrong with the new name, but neither I, nor indeed others including the publishers, had understood the impact the change would have on its SCI rating. Simple logic would argue that if a journal changes its name, then citations coming under the banner of the new name would merely be summed with those under the old name. However, that was not the system and despite our protest to SCI, the journal was treated as wholly new publication and its rating therefore started from a zero base. So, for an agonising few years we had to watch the SCI rating of the Journal of Biomedical Engineering fade away to almost nothing, while that of Medical Engineering & Physics had to climb back to its original position. Fortunately, the impact of the Editors who succeeded me, Bob Allen and now Sally Clift has been to build further the reputation and international standing of the journal. It continues to be the vehicle for many of the best scientific papers in the field, a position which is only sustained by the editorial work which goes on behind the scenes. Starting a new journal is exciting and hugely rewarding and I have been privileged to have been associated with Medical Engineering & Physics for the whole of its life. I wish it every success for the future.
Colin Roberts 1 E-mail address: [email protected] 1 President, Biological Engineering Society, 1976–1978; Editor in Chief, 1993–1999.
Medical Engineering & Physics 30 (2008) 1207–1208
Editorial
In the beginning. . .. . . In the life of many interest-based societies there comes a point where they feel a need emerge from the shadows and to become more evidentially “professional”. Thus it was in the late 1970s for the then Biological Engineering Society (BES). Until then the BES had a broad membership which included engineers and surgeons, anaesthetists and therapists, material scientists and general practitioners. It was this breadth that gave the society its strength, but at the same time was its biggest weakness. It was perceived, not unreasonably, as a cosy club run by amateurs for the benefit of enthusiasts. This “amateur” image sat uneasily with the international image of a Society whose members had played a key role in the establishment and development of the international body, the International Federation for Medical & Biological Engineering (IFMBE). Other similar societies the world over looked to the BES to give a lead in the international development of medical and biological engineering—indeed the society at that stage had a growing international membership and had provided many key members of the IFMBE’s governing body. In the UK, this amateur image was also at odds with the other bodies who were becoming more involved with the field of medical engineering, most notably the then Hospital Physicists’ Association. The society was faced with a challenge. If it was to develop a professional identity, it needed to do three things: establish a learned journal which could achieve international stature, in part as a vehicle for the members’ work; establish itself in a permanent home to accommodate the activity necessary to support a growing membership and thirdly establish the means of enabling those who regarded themselves as professional biomedical engineers to become recognised as such. In addressing the last of these I, as the President of the BES and Jack Perkins, a previous President of both the BES and the IFMBE opened negotiations which were eventually to lead to the BES’ affiliation to the then Council of Engineering Institutions and through it to the Chartering of those practising professionally as biomedical engineers. A key element of these discussions was the need to demonstrate that the BES was indeed a professional organisation. While we had an almost totally graduate membership, a record of running highly successful conferences and had a
regular Newsletter, we had no professional journal. The society had for some years enjoyed a loose association with the journal Bio-Medical Engineering (now the Journal of Medical Engineering & Technology), then published by United Trade Press. This relationship had enabled the BES to be involved in the appointment of Editors for this journal and for its members to receive the journal at a privileged rate. However, this was to change. Almost simultaneously, UTP decided to question its links with the society and the BES decided that it wanted association with what it then considered a “higher grade” journal. The parties separated amicably. At the same time as these events were taking place the BES and HPA were having top level discussions about closer collaboration and possibly even merger. However it was understood by all parties that much needed to be done before that could be achieved and I was determined that as far as possible the BES would go forward in the negotiations from a position of strength. An affiliation to the CEI and a respected journal were for me at least key elements of our portfolio which included our unique membership and our international standing. The society canvassed its members and then debated at length what it needed in a society journal. We eventually decided on a format which would combine reviews, scientific papers, technical notes and communications. The latter were perceived from the start to be an important component in giving space to ideas which were new, but possibly not yet fully formed. In placing the new journal alongside those already being published, the society also decided that the contents would not concentrate on what were considered the highly theoretical papers published in journals such as Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing, but should feature material which was much closer to being applied and therefore of greater immediate value to the developing field of biomedical engineering. In naming the journal, the society was keen to preserve its identification with the field of biomedical engineering but had to choose a name that would not be in conflict with other publications. The Journal of Biomedical Engineering, though its name was later to change, became the preferred choice. In choosing its first Editor, the society looked for someone of experience and international stature, but who also had an
1350-4533/$ – see front matter © 2008 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of IPEM. doi:10.1016/j.medengphy.2008.06.007
1208
Editorial / Medical Engineering & Physics 30 (2008) 1207–1208
empathy with what the society was trying to achieve. The late Jack Perkins was the obvious choice and fortunately took little persuasion in accepting the role. Dr. (now Professor) Jack Edwards who was then Chairman of the BES’ Publications Committee was charged with finding a suitable publisher. The choice which was eventually presented to BES Council for its approval was inspired and has continued to serve the society and the whole field remarkably well. In order to secure our publishing contract, the society undertook to provide all of its members with a personal copy of the journal, and although this has not continued it got both the journal and its members off to a flying start as it guaranteed both a national and international circulation from day one. I made the announcement that the BES would be launching the Journal of Biomedical Engineering at a dinner held in the Cutler’s Hall in Sheffield as part of the BES’ 8th International Conference on Biomedical Engineering. While BES members welcomed the development, several members of the HPA who were present sadly regarded it with suspicion and evidence that the BES was not serious about collaboration. Partly as a consequence, relationships between the two societies broke down and it was to be a decade before they resumed. For its first years under the editorship of Jack Perkins and subsequently Mick Byford, the journal authorship was predominantly from the UK. When I was appointed Editor in 1993, I was determined to broaden the author and reader base, to make it more international. I cannot speak for other editors, but my approach was to make sure that papers were sent for refereeing to those who I had identified as potential international authors. While this approach started to bear fruit I recognised that the Science Citation Index (SCI) rating of a journal was also of importance to its readership and its authorship. The SCI rating had been rising steadily under the previous editors, but was still not at the level I felt desirable. I also felt that if the journal were to grow, then it needed to broaden its authorship to embrace those aspects of
medical physics which were not the conventional radiation physics applications which dominate journals such as Physics in Medicine & Biology. This was where I was to make my biggest mistake as an editor of a learned society journal—I proposed to change the name of the journal to Medical Engineering & Physics. Council were persuaded by my arguments and approved the change. There was nothing wrong with the new name, but neither I, nor indeed others including the publishers, had understood the impact the change would have on its SCI rating. Simple logic would argue that if a journal changes its name, then citations coming under the banner of the new name would merely be summed with those under the old name. However, that was not the system and despite our protest to SCI, the journal was treated as wholly new publication and its rating therefore started from a zero base. So, for an agonising few years we had to watch the SCI rating of the Journal of Biomedical Engineering fade away to almost nothing, while that of Medical Engineering & Physics had to climb back to its original position. Fortunately, the impact of the Editors who succeeded me, Bob Allen and now Sally Clift has been to build further the reputation and international standing of the journal. It continues to be the vehicle for many of the best scientific papers in the field, a position which is only sustained by the editorial work which goes on behind the scenes. Starting a new journal is exciting and hugely rewarding and I have been privileged to have been associated with Medical Engineering & Physics for the whole of its life. I wish it every success for the future.
Colin Roberts 1 E-mail address: [email protected] 1 President, Biological Engineering Society, 1976–1978; Editor in Chief, 1993–1999.