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EDITORIAL |
University of Florida Department of Medicine P.O. Box 100181 Gainesville, FL 32610-0181
It is a great honor and pleasure to take over as editor-in-chief of Psychosomatic Medicine, a well-respected journal with a 60-year track record of excellence. I must admit a slight sense of trepidation at the idea of trying to follow in the footsteps of my esteemed predecessors. Nonetheless, I am confident that with the help of the editorial board and the broader psychosomatic research community, we will be able to continue the fine tradition of the journal while reaching out to demonstrate our relevance to the field of medicine as a whole.
As you may have noticed in recent years, the word " medicine" has received growing emphasis on the Journal’s cover. Joel Dimsdale, our outgoing editor, designed it this way, a visual reminder to all of us that we do not work in a small niche that exists in a little universe all its own; rather, we work in a field that contributes substantially to day-in, day-out health care. We have been learning valuable lessons, but we need to reach out to make sure our findings are heard by the broader medical community as well.
Our own American Psychosomatic Society evolved from an initial project by the New York Academy of Medicine to draft a bibliography of psychosomatic medical literature, covering the years 1910 to 1933. The original goals of the society were to foster closer ties between psychologists and psychiatrists and their colleagues in other healthcare fields. Years later, having witnessed an increasing trend toward subspecialization, we can see the wisdom of the society’s founding principles.
In his 1992 farewell editorial, Dr. Donald Oken wrote that our field "represents a new paradigm that will become the new basis for the medicine of the future." He also called on us to promote our field through educational efforts (1). I am sure that most readers of the Journal believe that he was right.
The society and the Journal have been very receptive to members from disciplines other than psychiatry and psychology and have even actively sought them, but it is important to expand these efforts. I hope this is an area where my own background will prove useful. I am a cardiologist and internist whose research (on the influence of psychological stress and exercise stress in people with coronary artery disease) has been enriched by extensive collaborations with psychologists, psychiatrists, and pain researchers.
Because one of my major goals as editor-in-chief is to expand the Journal’s influence and impact, I have invited distinguished colleagues from many fields of medicine to join the editorial board—people who study cancer, digestive disorders, dentistry, and a variety of other topics in a way that is shaped by an appreciation for psychosomatic medicine.
I am proud to introduce two new associate editors, Ken Freedland and Robert Golden. Dr. Freedland is a professor of medical psychology in psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. His primary research interest is in the role of depression in coronary heart disease and congestive heart failure. Dr. Golden is chair of the psychiatry department at the University of North Carolina and is well known for his research on the biological aspects of depression and consultation/liaison psychiatry.
Also, I am pleased to announce that Dr. J. Richard Jennings, president of the American Psychosomatic Society and an expert in psychophysiology, has agreed to continue in his role as an associate editor. We will benefit as well from the continued involvement of Dr. Dimsdale, who will serve on the editorial board. Rounding out the team are Victoria White, a medical writer and editor who is the new managing editor for academic issues, and George Degnon, the society’s executive director who is the Journal’s managing editor for business issues.
We will strive to maintain the Journal as the best in the field. Dr. Dimsdale has done a first-rate job over the past 10 years, and I will attempt to live up to his commitment to academic excellence. I also will try to broaden the Journal’s impact through several mechanisms. We plan to initiate a new feature called "Clinical Corner," where we will present articles designed to be particularly relevant to clinicians. These may include interesting cases with comment or reviews of pertinent topics. We will solicit reviews that would be of interest to internists in addition to our primary readership. These may include such subjects as recognizing and treating depression and anxiety associated with general medical illnesses, or the role of psychological stress in immune disorders. We also will look for ways to distribute copies of such articles and the Journal to a wider audience, which could include chief medical residents at medical schools throughout the country. We will expand our use of the Internet in these efforts.
The Journal will continue to encourage submissions of the best work in the broad field of behavioral medicine, consultation/liaison psychiatry, general medicine, and other related fields. We will publish reports of animal studies, clinical trials, and experimental laboratory-based clinical research. In addition, we will actively seek to provide material of interest and relevance to our colleagues in training. Such material could include reviews of new techniques or forums on grant writing or other matters related to academic growth. In some cases, our print Journal will refer to additional material on our Web site.
One new direction for the Journal will be to move to a Web-based system for journal article submission, review, and communication. There will be more information on this in upcoming issues, but I expect that, once implemented, it will speed the process of reviewing papers and shorten the time from submission of manuscripts to ultimate publication. We hope that our ability to publish quickly will bring us an important side benefit—the ability to attract even better-quality work than we do now.
It is a time of great uncertainty in the publishing world. It is difficult to predict how the rise of Web-based publishing will affect the future of print. But it also is an exciting time, as technology affords us the opportunity to attract new readers, provide supplementary material on the Web, and speed the pace of reporting on new research. That is why I think that the successful journals will be those that capitalize on the strengths of the publishing tools available—print and electronic.
I look forward to upholding the excellent reputation of the Journal and expanding its impact on medicine. I know I can count on the help and support of all of you in accomplishing these aims.
REFERENCES
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  D. S. Sheps Changes in the Air at Psychosomatic Medicine Psychosom Med, July 1, 2003; 65(4): 499 - 500. [Full Text] [PDF]
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