Medical Computing Review (MCR) Editorial Policy
Interested in Writing for MCR?
We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts, but we encourage all physicians and surgeons interested in writing reviews or articles for MCR to Contact Us with a description of their medical and computing background, and topic(s) of interest. All authors must have excellent written communication skills in the English language, and must disclose all past or current ties to any product or service that is directly or indirectly related to medical computing. Physician authors new to MCR are sometimes surprised by how closely we adhere to article and review formats; by the author's level of involvement in the editorial process; and by how seriously we take their work; Our goals are to showcase each author's work to its best advantage, to treat a reviewed product with respect, and (most important) to serve the needs of our readers with authoritative, thoughtful and unbiased content.
Conflict of Interest Policy
MCR requires all editors, authors and peer reviewers to disclose any past or current relationship with any product or vendor, including any competing product or vendor, directly or indirectly related to a projected article or review's content and topic. Usually but not always, a disclosure will exclude the individual from participating in any MCR work product. In exceptional situations, the editor-in-chief may publish an article by an author who has disclosed such a relationship, but only after consultation with the Editorial Advisory Board and with the disclosure prominently displayed with the article.
MedicalComputing.org Board members are bound by a corporate conflict of interest policy.
How Our Articles and Reviews Are Prepared
The majority of manuscripts are solicited from a pool of computer- and/or technology-savvy practicing physicians of various specialties, practice types and computer interests who have previously written for MCR, and are therefore familiar with the publication's goals and standards. The editor-in-chief and other members of the editorial staff and Editorial Advisory Board contribute frequently. Occassionally, the editor-in-chief solicits an article or review from a new author, almost always a practicing physician.
The practical aspects of composing the manuscript are discussed, a firm deadline is set, and the editorial staff assists authors as they desire. For MCReviews, the editor also arranges for a free copy of the product and identifies a person—usually the product's owner, project manager or editor—to address questions and problems should they arise.
Completed manuscripts are first reviewed for content by the editor-in-chief, who is a physician. In addition, during this stage nearly every major article, some reviews, and any manuscript written by any member of the editorial staff, is sent to one or more experts who serve as our peer reviewers. Manuscripts are almost never accepted for publication without further author editing; over 75% of articles and about 50% of reviews require at least one substantial rewrite before the manuscript is accepted for publication. Articles and reviews solicited from known authors already familiar with our editing process generally complete the process and their mansucripts are accepted for publication. With author editing, about 90% of new author submissions likewise eventually meet our standards for publication. In appreciation for their efforts, authors with accepted manuscripts receive a modest honorarium
Accepted manuscripts are then sent to the assistant editor and, as needed, to other members of the editorial staff, who review each article for technical clarity, overall comprehension and reader interest, and perform fact checking, style checking and copyediting. The work is reviewed one final time by the editor-in-chief, then returned to the author for their perusal and comments prior to publication.
This editorial process has evolved over fifteen years of publication as a subscription-based newsletter; we do not anticipate any major changes in the process or policy now that we are open access, but we will update this page as needed.
MCR Editorial Staff
Marjorie Lazoff, MD
Editor-in-Chief
Doris Peter, PhD
Managing Editor
Lee Ann Riesenberg, PhD, RN
Assistant Editor
Harry Brown, MB ChB, MRCGP
Contributing Editor (UK), Global Medical Computing
Derrick Darling
Assistant Technical Editor
Last Modified:11-Jul-2006