scholarly journals A survey exploring biomedical editors’ perceptions of editorial interventions to improve adherence to reporting guidelines

F1000Research ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 1682
Author(s):  
David Blanco ◽  
Darko Hren ◽  
Jamie J. Kirkham ◽  
Erik Cobo ◽  
Sara Schroter

Background: Improving the completeness of reporting of biomedical research is essential for improving its usability. For this reason, hundreds of reporting guidelines have been created in the last few decades but adherence to these remains suboptimal. This survey aims to inform future evaluations of interventions to improve adherence to reporting guidelines. In particular, it gathers editors’ perceptions of a range of interventions at various stages in the editorial process.   Methods: We surveyed biomedical journal editors that were knowledgeable about this topic. The questionnaire included open and closed questions that explored (i) the current practice of their journals, (ii) their perceptions of the ease of implementation of different interventions and the potential effectiveness of these at improving adherence to reporting guidelines, (iii) the barriers and facilitators associated with these interventions, and (iv) suggestions for future interventions and incentives. Results: Of the 99 editors invited, 24 (24%) completed the survey. Involving trained editors or administrative staff was deemed the potentially most effective intervention but, at the same time, it was considered moderately difficult to implement due to logistic and resource issues. Participants believed that checking adherence to guidelines goes beyond the role of peer reviewers and were concerned that the quality of peer review could be compromised. Reviewers are generally not expected to focus on reporting issues but on providing an expert view on the importance, novelty, and relevance of the manuscript. Journals incentivising adherence, and publishers and medical institutions encouraging journals to take action to boost adherence were two recurrent themes. Conclusions: Implementing and evaluating editorial interventions to improve adherence to reporting guidelines is essential to improve the transparency of published research. This survey aims to cast light on the barriers and facilitators that can be expected when implementing diverse interventions, as well as on the potential impact of these interventions.

F1000Research ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 1682 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Blanco ◽  
Darko Hren ◽  
Jamie J. Kirkham ◽  
Erik Cobo ◽  
Sara Schroter

Background: Improving the completeness of reporting of biomedical research is essential for improving its usability. For this reason, hundreds of reporting guidelines have been created in the last few decades but adherence to these remains suboptimal. This survey aims to inform future evaluations of interventions to improve adherence to reporting guidelines. In particular, it gathers editors’ perceptions of a range of interventions at various stages in the editorial process.   Methods: We surveyed biomedical journal editors that were knowledgeable about this topic. The questionnaire included open and closed questions that explored (i) the current practice of their journals, (ii) their perceptions of the ease of implementation of different interventions and the potential effectiveness of these at improving adherence to reporting guidelines, (iii) the barriers and facilitators associated with these interventions, and (iv) suggestions for future interventions and incentives. Results: Of the 99 editors invited, 24 (24%) completed the survey. Involving trained editors or administrative staff was deemed the potentially most effective intervention but, at the same time, it was considered moderately difficult to implement due to logistic and resource issues. Participants believed that checking adherence to guidelines goes beyond the role of peer reviewers and were concerned that the quality of peer review could be compromised. Reviewers are generally not expected to focus on reporting issues but on providing an expert view on the importance, novelty, and relevance of the manuscript. Journals incentivising adherence, and publishers and medical institutions encouraging journals to take action to boost adherence were two recurrent themes. Conclusions: Biomedical journal editors generally believed that engaging trained professionals would be the most effective, yet resource intensive, editorial intervention. Also, they thought that peer reviewers should not be asked to check RGs. Future evaluations of interventions can take into account the barriers, facilitators, and incentives described in this survey.


F1000Research ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 1682
Author(s):  
David Blanco ◽  
Darko Hren ◽  
Jamie J. Kirkham ◽  
Erik Cobo ◽  
Sara Schroter

Background: Improving the completeness of reporting of biomedical research is essential for improving its usability. For this reason, hundreds of reporting guidelines have been created in the last few decades but adherence to these remains suboptimal. This survey aims to inform future evaluations of interventions to improve adherence to reporting guidelines. In particular, it gathers editors’ perceptions of a range of interventions at various stages in the editorial process.   Methods: We surveyed biomedical journal editors that were knowledgeable about this topic. The questionnaire included open and closed questions that explored (i) the current practice of their journals, (ii) their perceptions of the ease of implementation and the potential effectiveness of different interventions, (iii) the barriers and facilitators associated with these interventions, and (iv) suggestions for future interventions and incentives. Results: Of the 99 editors invited, 24 (24%) completed the survey. Involving trained editors or administrative staff was deemed the potentially most effective intervention but, at the same time, it was considered moderately difficult to implement due to logistic and resource issues. Participants believed that checking adherence to guidelines goes beyond the role of peer reviewers and could decrease the overall quality of reviews. Journals incentivising adherence, and publishers and medical institutions encouraging journals to adopt strategies to boost adherence were two recurrent themes. Conclusions: Further evaluation of interventions are required. These evaluations could take into account the points raised in this survey.


2000 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 341-367 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANDREW NOCON ◽  
MAGGIE PEARSON

Most published research on informal care for older people focuses on the support provided by relatives. The role of non-kin carers can, however, also be significant in supporting older people in their own homes. In this paper, we report the findings from an exploratory study of the support provided by friends and neighbours who are the main carers of frail older people. It draws on interviews with an opportunistic sample of friends, neighbours and older people, which explored their views about the support arrangements, the reasons why help was provided and any difficulties experienced. Several friends and neighbours provided intensive and frequent help, and some played a key role in co-ordinating other services. One of the main forms of direct support related to older people's quality of life, at a broader level than the practical help provided by statutory services. The flexibility of such support, and the friends' and neighbours' concern for older people as individuals, were particularly important to the people they helped. Nevertheless, such help was not provided without costs to the carers. The study highlights the need for policy-makers and practitioners not to take help from friends and neighbours for granted and, in line with the White Paper Modernising Social Services, to provide the support services they need.


10.12737/8242 ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 3-12
Author(s):  
Елена Данилина ◽  
Elena Danilina ◽  
Екатерина Яковлева ◽  
Ekaterina Yakovleva ◽  
Татьяна Бутова ◽  
...  

The article defines the scientific and terminological problems of researching services in the field of services, the basic problems of the evaluation of services in health care organizations. On the basis of a systematic approach to the category of quality of medical services the article investigates patient satisfaction with the perceived quality of service, shows the role of consumer expectations in the evaluation of the perceived quality of services and finds that the requirements for the service in medical institutions are underestimated. On the basis of studies the authors identify behaviors of consumers of budgetary medical services organizations, develop a model of consumer activities, which differs from the existing ones that along with the economic component the model is complemented with communication components. The approbation of the authors´ model for health care services shows a characteristic pattern of consumer activity of budgetary organizations. The article highlights the factors of subjective judgment of health care consumers in assessing perceived quality. Based on the study of patient satisfaction the authors develop a hierarchical model of the perceived quality of health services, as well as the place of services defined in the model.


2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-165 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rahel Schomaker

Purpose – This study aims to analyze the quality of the Egyptian accreditation system. With a view on the high competition in the domestic labor market as well as with regards to the international competitiveness of Egyptian graduates and the potential role of Egyptian universities in the international market for higher education, a high quality of study programmes and the provision of skills which meet the employers’ needs is a pressing issue for policymakers in Egypt, in particular in the light of the recent and ongoing transformation process. Design/methodology/approach – Based on a triangulation of document analysis and semi-structured interviews, the authors analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the system of accreditation as well as current measures to improve quality in higher education and provide policy implications for further action undertaken by Egyptian policymakers to improve the accreditation system. Findings – First, the authors provide a sound overview of the newly established accreditation system in Egypt and analyze the role of the National Authority of Educational Quality Assurance and Accreditation within this process. Second, the paper addresses the structural shortcomings as well as implementation problems of the current accreditation system which limit the capacity of the national accreditation agency to provide accreditation for all institutions of higher education in Egypt and to ensure the overall quality of higher education. The role of peer reviewers is of pivotal importance in this context. A specific problem which has not been analyzed so far is the role of religious institutions, the so-called Al-Azhar institutions, in the accreditation process, and the consequences this will have for further developments in accreditation. Practical implications – The paper concludes with providing policy implications at the backdrop of the ongoing political transformation process in Egypt. Originality/value – The paper provides the first comprehensive analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the Egyptian accreditation system and contributes to the understanding of the pivotal role of peer reviewers in this process. Also, for the first time, the challenges regarding accreditation of Al-Azhar institutions are targeted.


Author(s):  
Enrique Mu

Any journal relies on voluntary peer reviewers to ensure the quality of research articles. Since reviewers are usually as busy as any of us, their voluntary contribution is greatly appreciated by our IJAHP editorial team. Still, reviewing a paper requires a set of skills...


Author(s):  
Manana Maghradze ◽  
◽  
Ketevan Kutateladze ◽  
Ketevan Burduladze ◽  
◽  
...  

The reduction of state subsidies, the control of expenditures by insurance companies, the introduction of ethical standards in medicine by health care institutions have increased the demand for additional investment. One of the important factors for increasing the competitiveness of private medical institutions and the sustainability of its activities is the formation of a marketing complex. In order to popularize the services of medical institutions, the main tools of the marketing communication system are used: advertising, public relations and so-called Synthetic means. Medical marketing cannot be considered as just developing good services and delivering it to customers. Medical facilities should also establish close links with existing and future clients. Marketing activities should ensure the creation of new medical services and the development of existing medical services. It is important to increase the role of the state in regulating the medical market in order to promote healthy competition among suppliers and the unwavering improvement of the quality of medical services.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael D'Andrea ◽  
James P O'Dwyer

Peer review is the gold standard for scientific communication, but its ability to guarantee the quality of published research remains difficult to verify. Recent modeling studies suggest that peer review is sensitive to reviewer misbehavior, and it has been claimed that referees who sabotage work they perceive as competition may severely undermine the quality of publications. Here we examine which aspects of suboptimal reviewing practices most strongly impact quality, and test different mitigating strategies that editors may employ to counter them. We find that the biggest hazard to the quality of published literature is not selfish rejection of high-quality manuscripts but indifferent acceptance of low-quality ones. Bypassing or blacklisting bad reviewers and consulting additional reviewers to settle disagreements can reduce but not eliminate the impact. The other editorial strategies we tested do not significantly improve quality, but pairing manuscripts to reviewers unlikely to selfishly reject them and allowing revision of rejected manuscripts minimize rejection of above-average manuscripts. In its current form, peer review offers few incentives for impartial reviewing efforts. Editors can help, but structural changes are more likely to have a stronger impact.


1982 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Dolan Mullen

This article traces the extraordinary transfer of control over an increasingly broadly defined sphere of living known as “health” to medical institutions and personnel in the U.S.A.—and examines the role of federal policy and secular trends in shaping the future of medical care. Changes in the prevalence and quality of health education in these settings are described in relationship to these organizational structures, and the “leading edges” of health education in medical care are identified.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document