KEYNOTE ADDRESS: George Lundberg
What are the Global Pillars of Professionalism for Medical Editors?

Moderator: Peush Sahni

Professionalism and the Role of the Medical Editor
(Panel Discussion and Q&A)

Moderator: Christine Laine
Panelists: George Lundberg, Trish Groves, Farhad Handjani, Charlotte Haug

What are the tasks of a journal editor? Is the primary task getting a manuscript peer-reviewed? Evaluating the content of the article and peer reviews and requesting revision from the author? Deciding which research to accept for publication to meet the goals of the journal? Training other editors working on the journal? Or a larger question of establishing journal policy, providing vision, and ensuring the health of the journal? How should editors balance the vision of their journal with business realities? How should editors ensure that they understand the important issues facing medical journal editing and research, learn about and respond to new developments, and keep current in their field? In this panel discussion, editors will discuss the key tasks of editing a journal and whether these tasks have changed in the past 20 years and how these tasks are changing.

Professionalism and the Role of the Medical Editor.
(Small Group Discussions and Group Presentation)

Moderator: Suzanne Fletcher

Meeting attendees and panelists will break into small groups to discuss professionalism and the role of the medical editor, to define the core elements of medical editor professionalism. Groups will be have specific questions to discuss and will present their key findings. WAME will compile the findings from the three sessions in preparation for a conference statement on professionalism. Small groups will be facilitated by panel members and WAME Board members.

Research Integrity/Research Misconduct
(Panel Discussion, Q&A)

Moderator: Rakesh Aggarwal
Panelists: Lori Ferris, Ana Marusic, Trish Groves, Fatema Jawad

Editors are accountable for the content they publish in their journals. Many journals have processes to screen for possible research misconduct before publication. Unfortunately, possible research misconduct is often brought to the editor’s attention after the article is published. Some institutions do not take full responsibility for investigating possible research misconduct by their faculty. Some issues of misconduct stem from different regional definitions and understanding of what constitutes research misconduct. This practical and lessons-learned session will examine screening tools used by journals, possible warnings of research misconduct before and after publication (author and reviewer), and dealing with institutions. Speakers and attendees will also discuss issues related to different regional perspectives on what constitutes research misconduct. Issues such as authors attempting to peer review themselves and corrections/retractions will also be addressed.

Dealing with Conflicts of Interest (COI).
(Panel Discussion, Q&A)

Moderator: Robert Fletcher
Panelists: Christine Laine, Suzanne Fletcher, John Fletcher, Jose Florencio Lapeña

In 2009, WAME issued its revised policy on Conflict of Interest: conflict of interest in medical publishing exists when a participant’s private interests compete with his or her responsibilities to the scientific community, readers, and society. Some journals have relied on declaration of COI, but is declaration sufficient? When and how should COI be considered when evaluating a manuscript? Conflict of interest has continued to be a major concern for journal editors. In this session, journal editors discuss best practices and lessons learned in dealing with declared and undeclared COI of authors and reviewers. We will also address how to deal with and prevent Editors’ COI.

Publishers’ Perspective.
(Panel Discussion, Q&A)

Moderator: Rod Rohrich
Panelists: Duncan Macrae,Ian Burgess, Caroline Black

How can publishers help editors fulfill their goal of publishing the best possible research that meets their journal’s mission? How does a publisher determine the need for publishing another journal? What journals should be published in print and which online only? What access models—open access, print plus online subscription-based publishing, a hybrid model—are most appropriate for which journals and why?How can editors help publishers meet their goal of financial health? How can publishers help small and resource-challenged journals? What does a publisher do to help a journal get indexed and maximize readership? Practical issues of copyediting, how to deal with manuscript language issues, and other cost considerations will also be addressed.

Special Interest Groups (self-organize with sign up sheets on Friday)

Journal Administration: What Works?
(Panel Discussion, Q&A)

Moderator: Ana Marusic
Panelists: Fatema Jawad, Marcus Heinemann, Aaron Weinstein

This is a practice session on the “nuts and bolts” of running an editorial office and building a journal, including tips for small and resource-limited journals. How do you set up a journal peer review office and train editors? How do you form a good editorial board? How can you attract good papers and inspire peer reviewers and editorial board members to provide helpful peer reviews? What are the lessons learned in developing and maintaining author relationships throughout the processes of review, rejection, and publication? How do you prevent issues such as authors reviewing their own manuscripts? How can you reach and keep readers? What can a journal do to attract authors and readers before it is indexed?

Where is Medical Publishing Going?
(Panel Discussion, Q&A)

Moderator: Rod Rohrich
Panelists: Rajeev Kumar, Darren Taichman, Jocalyn Clark

What is the current view of scientific publishing and the role of the editor? What is new and what is coming in publishing and the role of the editor? What can journals do so that they are not confused with “Predatory journals”? What’s new in trial registration and legislation?

Publishing in a Digital World.
(Panel Discussion, Q&A)

Moderator: Amitabh Prakash
Panelists: Aaron Weinstein, Rod Rohrich

Editors face significant challenges in the 21st century publishing journals using a process that still fundamentally reflects the print world. How can editors take advantage of technology to improve their processes without losing important editorial oversight? What digital tools do editors most need to do their jobs better? What tools are currently available and how expensive and practical are they? How should editors use online publishing to maximize journal impact? How important is social media for scholarly journals and what resources are necessary? How can editors get their journals indexed? How can editors measure success of their journal and what are the pros and cons of the various methods to do so?

JOURNAL POSTER SESSIONS
(with tea and coffee/snacks)

RESEARCH PRESENTATIONS and
Presentation of the first Dr Bruce Squires Memorial Research Award

Judges: Lori Ferris and Rod Rohrich

KEYNOTE ADDRESS: Hooman Momen
[with thanks to BMJ for a BMJ Global Health Keynote Travel Award]

Moderator: Lorraine Ferris

What are the most important health problems in the world and how well are journals addressing them? What is the most effective way to improve local health—publication in high-impact journals with potentially limited applicability to a particular region, or publication in regional journals with lower readership? How do we measure the impact of journals on global health? What are editors’ responsibilities in promoting global health, if any? What is editors’ role in sharing research data and contributing to data clearinghouses for global health? What responsibilities do editors have to preserve patient confidentiality and maximize data usefulness and integrity?

Thinking Globally, Working Locally: WAME’s Statement on Global
Health Principles (Panel Discussion, Q&A)

Moderators: Lorraine Ferris/Robert Fletcher
Panelists: Hooman Momen, K. Srinath Reddy, Abraham Haileamlak

How important are local journals in knowledge translation? What do we mean by Global science/ local journals and global health/local medicine? Should editors be leaders in regions and should they be change agents in developing the medical and public health infrastructures of their region/country? How can editors help translate health knowledge into practice and/or policy?

The Roles of Regional Medical Editor Organizations.
(Panel Discussion, Q&A)

Moderator: Ana Marusic
Panelists: Maria del Carmen Ruiz, Farhad Handjani, Satyanarayana Kanikaram, Jay Shah,                   Abraham Haileamlak

What are the roles of regional medical editor organizations? What functions do they provide and what needs can they fill? How can they help support medical editor professionalism, standards, and help editors fulfill responsibilities for global health? How are they supported? How should organizations collaborate? How can editors get involved?

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