Canadian Journal Addiction Medicine - Canadian Harm Reduction ...
Canadian Journal Addiction Medicine - Canadian Harm Reduction ...
Canadian Journal Addiction Medicine - Canadian Harm Reduction ...
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Message from the Editor: Revamping our <strong>Journal</strong>!<br />
Last year, at the last meeting of our Board in Vancouver, I was approached to assume the duties<br />
of Chief Editor. I have no illusion that editing our fledging <strong>Journal</strong> has its promises but also its<br />
challenges.<br />
First I would like to thank our founding Editor, Dr. Michael Varenbut who after enhancing the visual<br />
and content qualities of our Bulletin, had the vision to complement it with a scientific publication as<br />
an added membership benefit. I am glad that we will still be able to rely on his “can do” attitude as<br />
well as organizational skills as he oversees the rapid evolution of our Bulletin and remains an active<br />
member of our <strong>Journal</strong>’s Editorial Board<br />
The <strong>Journal</strong>’s Functions- Seeking a niche for our publication, I was fortunate to come across two<br />
editorials in the <strong>Canadian</strong> Medical Association <strong>Journal</strong> (CMAJ) who has just completed an editorial<br />
change. Richard Smith, former editor of the British Medical <strong>Journal</strong> (BMJ) was quoted to have suggested several functions for<br />
a medical journal, some may be relevant to our <strong>Journal</strong>.<br />
1. Information- keeping our membership abreast of the news relevant to our practice is a task we will share with the Bulletin<br />
2. Reform and community debates- our <strong>Journal</strong> should foster informed debates about contentious issues that abound in our field.<br />
Ideally, papers presenting the pros and cons of an issue should stimulate constructive feedback from our readership.<br />
3. Scientific dissemination- our <strong>Journal</strong> should be a platform for <strong>Canadian</strong> based research as well as international research of<br />
relevance to our practice.<br />
4. Education- continuing medical education (CME) credits is becoming a must for our licensing process. Increasingly <strong>Journal</strong>s<br />
have featured a CME article as part of their offerings. We shall explore the process of securing credits for our readership.<br />
Diversifying the submission - In an effort to promote our journal, we have updated our online submission and renewal<br />
system and diversified the types of articles to be submitted. Please peruse the latest draft of our process on the website: www.<br />
csam.org.<br />
In conclusion, revamping our <strong>Journal</strong> requires a group effort from the editors but also very much from you, our authors and<br />
readers. We look forward to a <strong>Journal</strong> with interactive participation and feedback.<br />
Nady el-Guebaly, MD<br />
Chief Editor<br />
November 2012<br />
Submissions to the <strong>Journal</strong><br />
Instructions to Authors for submission to the journal are located on the CSAM webpages (www.csam.org) under the sidebar:<br />
CSAM <strong>Journal</strong> & Weekly Bulletin.