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Steady improvement – condition stable
the surgeon 9 (2011) 299
available at www.sciencedirect.com
The Surgeon, Journal of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons of Edinburgh and Ireland www.thesurgeon.net
Editorial
Steady improvement e condition stable
First of all I should get the announcement out of the way. The Impact Factor of The Surgeon has improved from 0.942 in 2009 to 1.136 in 2010.1 This represents our highest level since the foundation of The Surgeon and owes a lot to my predecessor Professor Oleg Eremin. While it is to be welcomed, there are a number of caveats. Just as wise politicians are always cautious about improving poll figures, editors must recognise that the Impact Factor, while important, is only one measure of the health of a journal. Equally gratifying is the fact that submissions this year have almost doubled. It is hoped that The Surgeon continues to publish a wide geographical and clinical spread of articles which reflects the support of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons of Edinburgh and Ireland.
Case reports and surgical technique articles In attempting to reflect our clinical base, the Journal’s editorial board have put a great deal of thought as to how we might better accommodate “case reports” and “surgical technique” (How I Do It) articles. Much like other journals The Surgeon has been somewhat a victim of its own success. The increased submission of high quality original research and review articles, reflected in our increasing Impact Factor, has made it difficult to give case reports and surgical technique articles the prominence they deserve. Consequently we are considering a change in format whereby abstracts of no greater than 200 words, accompanied by relevant and necessary images, would be published in the print version of The Surgeon. The full articles including images and even filmed footage will be published on ScienceDirect and www.thesurgeon.net. We see this as a winner on a number of levels. Authors will receive acknowledgement for a publication in The Surgeon. Their articles will be recognised by PubMed and other search engines, as they draw their information from ScienceDirect and www.thesurgeon.net. The Journal, particularly in its electronic format, will be strengthened by its ability to increase its acceptance of these important articles. Most
importantly the readership will benefit from the enhanced material and a speedy way to recognise articles which will improve their clinical practice. These changes will be evident in the instructions for authors from the start of 2012.
Journal board The least interesting page of the Journal to the readership is probably the most important. While recognising an improvement in the “vital signs” of The Surgeon, it is important to thank the Journal’s Editorial and Advisory Boards, and particularly Ms Alison Rooney and Dr Terry McWade who represent the RCSEd and the RCSI respectively. Most importantly I would like to acknowledge Prof Robert Steele, the Editor, for his staunch support. In addition Professors Nicola Maffulli, Calvin Coffey and Graham Layer have assumed the onerous responsibilities for orthopaedic, colo-rectal and breast submissions. As Editor-in-Chief I thank them all for overseeing a successful year.
reference
1. Journal Citation Reports. ª 2011 Thomson Reuters.
Austin L. Leahy Editor-in-Chief
1479-666X/$ e see front matter ª 2010 Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (Scottish charity number SC005317) and Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved doi:10.1016/S1479-666X(11)00139-9
available at www.sciencedirect.com
The Surgeon, Journal of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons of Edinburgh and Ireland www.thesurgeon.net
Editorial
Steady improvement e condition stable
First of all I should get the announcement out of the way. The Impact Factor of The Surgeon has improved from 0.942 in 2009 to 1.136 in 2010.1 This represents our highest level since the foundation of The Surgeon and owes a lot to my predecessor Professor Oleg Eremin. While it is to be welcomed, there are a number of caveats. Just as wise politicians are always cautious about improving poll figures, editors must recognise that the Impact Factor, while important, is only one measure of the health of a journal. Equally gratifying is the fact that submissions this year have almost doubled. It is hoped that The Surgeon continues to publish a wide geographical and clinical spread of articles which reflects the support of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons of Edinburgh and Ireland.
Case reports and surgical technique articles In attempting to reflect our clinical base, the Journal’s editorial board have put a great deal of thought as to how we might better accommodate “case reports” and “surgical technique” (How I Do It) articles. Much like other journals The Surgeon has been somewhat a victim of its own success. The increased submission of high quality original research and review articles, reflected in our increasing Impact Factor, has made it difficult to give case reports and surgical technique articles the prominence they deserve. Consequently we are considering a change in format whereby abstracts of no greater than 200 words, accompanied by relevant and necessary images, would be published in the print version of The Surgeon. The full articles including images and even filmed footage will be published on ScienceDirect and www.thesurgeon.net. We see this as a winner on a number of levels. Authors will receive acknowledgement for a publication in The Surgeon. Their articles will be recognised by PubMed and other search engines, as they draw their information from ScienceDirect and www.thesurgeon.net. The Journal, particularly in its electronic format, will be strengthened by its ability to increase its acceptance of these important articles. Most
importantly the readership will benefit from the enhanced material and a speedy way to recognise articles which will improve their clinical practice. These changes will be evident in the instructions for authors from the start of 2012.
Journal board The least interesting page of the Journal to the readership is probably the most important. While recognising an improvement in the “vital signs” of The Surgeon, it is important to thank the Journal’s Editorial and Advisory Boards, and particularly Ms Alison Rooney and Dr Terry McWade who represent the RCSEd and the RCSI respectively. Most importantly I would like to acknowledge Prof Robert Steele, the Editor, for his staunch support. In addition Professors Nicola Maffulli, Calvin Coffey and Graham Layer have assumed the onerous responsibilities for orthopaedic, colo-rectal and breast submissions. As Editor-in-Chief I thank them all for overseeing a successful year.
reference
1. Journal Citation Reports. ª 2011 Thomson Reuters.
Austin L. Leahy Editor-in-Chief
1479-666X/$ e see front matter ª 2010 Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (Scottish charity number SC005317) and Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved doi:10.1016/S1479-666X(11)00139-9