OU-COM professor
transforms national publication
New peer-reviewed
medical journal a first for osteopathic family
physicians
By Matt Bates
Dec. 7, 2009
The
2009 May/June issue of the Osteopathic Family
Physician News was a tabloid-sized newsletter
featuring updates on the American College of
Osteopathic Family Physicians
(ACOFP), news on medical policy and patient care,
and one scientific article.
The very next
issue, renamed simply Osteopathic Family
Physician, was a nationally peer-reviewed
medical journal consisting mainly of scholarly
articles—the first to focus exclusively on
osteopathic family practice research.
Jay Shubrook, D.O.
(’96),
took on the role of editor-in-chief of the
Osteopathic Family Physician, the official
publication of the ACOFP, in March 2009. During his
first few months as editor, he oversaw the
nine-year-old newsletter’s transformation to a
scholarly medical journal, a work begun by previous
editor Joel Kase, D.O., M.P.H.
“(This publication) represents the best of
osteopathic family medicine within our profession,
including topics like preventive medicine, managed
care, osteopathic principles, public health, medical
education and practice management,” Shubrook said.
Shubrook explains that before the transition, the
only journal
for osteopathic family practice research was the
Journal of the American Osteopathic Association
and allopathic (M.D.) journals. With the change from
newsletter to journal, osteopathic family physicians
now have a new avenue for publication.
ACOFP teamed up
with Dutch publisher
Elsevier Inc., a leading publisher worldwide of
scientific, technical and medical information
products and services, to transform and launch the
new journal in both print and online formats.
“We welcome the
opportunity to partner with a dynamic group like
ACOFP and envision that Osteopathic Family
Physician will become an increasingly important
forum for information exchange about a wide range of
topics in the field,” Elsevier Publishing Director
Chris Baumle commented in a press release.
As the official
journal of the ACOFP, this
new national research forum delivers information
that helps osteopathic family physicians care for
their patients, improve their practices and stay
abreast of ACOFP activities. The print journal
is distributed to ACOFP professional members, with
the online version sent to student and resident
members.
Response to the
first three issues has been positive, but there are
still challenges for this young publication. One
lies in increasing the volume of submissions, since
osteopathic family practice is a relatively small
field, according to Shubrook. A greater number of
submissions would allow the magazine to be more
selective and would increase the diversity of the
material covered, he says.
Shubrook previously
has published, edited and reviewed articles for
peer-reviewed journals. Recognizing what he sees as
a gap in medical education, Shubrook also hopes to
eventually develop a medical editing/writing
rotation with OU-COM to help train students and
doctors to become better writers and editors.
“I have gained a
greater appreciation of the different steps,”
Shubrook said of the editing process. His
managing editor, Belinda Bombei, “does a lot of the
nitty gritty,” he added. He compared her to an
emergency room doctor who does the critical “clean
up” on patients before sending them to other
doctors.
Shubrook is now
working to develop the journal into an authoritative
resource illustrating “the full breadth and scope of
the field of osteopathic family medicine.”
Visit the journal
online at
www.osteopathicfamilyphysician.org.
The American
College of Osteopathic Family Physicians is the
national organization of more than 20,000 practicing
osteopathic family physicians and
physicians-in-training. Their mission is to promote
excellence in osteopathic family medicine through
quality education, visionary leadership and
responsible advocacy.