โ Scribed by Barry L. Zaret
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
B a r r y L. Z a r e t , M D Parents fill albums with photos and memorabilia cataloging their children's birth, growth, development, and maturation. Each year marks a special time for expanding the photo album and scrapbook and reflecting on the year's events. The same can be said for the Journal. In its third year of life the Journal has flourished and has achieved many milestones worthy of inclusion in its metaphoric scrapbook.
Of greatest note for incorporation in the third-year section of the Journal's scrapbook has been the relatively early acceptance by the National Library of Medicine for indexing in Index Medicus and MEDLINE. The indexing began with the first issue of Volume 3. We are in active discussion with the National Library of Medicine with respect to retroactive indexing of the first two volumes. Acceptance into Index Medicus after the publication of only two volumes is a substantial achievement. It is clear recognition of the quality of the Journal and the esteem with which it is viewed by others. It also places the Journal in another stratum with respect to attractiveness to authors, acceptability, and prestige.
There have been many other positive sign posts on the Journal's road to maturity. The total number of manuscripts received continues to increase. At the time of this writing we project 20% growth in submissions for calendar year 1996. Manuscript quality has been excellent. To stay within page limitations, we have had to be progressively more selective. The current acceptance rate for original manuscripts is approximately 33%. We continue to strive to ensure prompt review of manuscripts and rapid decision. The average time for initial manuscript review by reviewers continues to be 14 days. The mean time to first decision on received manuscripts (including third reviews when necessary) is 5.38 weeks, with a median time of 3.77 weeks.
A recent survey of the readership concerning perception of and interest in the Journal was quite gratifying. The 24% response rate included both American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC) members and independent subscribers which resulted in a total of 573 responses. Such a response is extremely robust for this type of survey. The survey represented a true spectrum of the readership in the field and involved substantial
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