Alcohol & Alcoholism Vol. 38, No. 6, pp. 535-536, 2003
© 2003 Medical Council on Alcohol
EDITORIAL
EDITORIAL CHANGES IN ALCOHOL AND ALCOHOLISM
Cardiff & Vale NHS Trust, Biomedical Research Laboratory, Whitchurch Hospital, Cardiff CF14 7XB, Wales, UK
I would like to announce to our readership that the current issue, the last of this year, is the final issue of my Chief Editorship of Alcohol and Alcoholism. The end of my tenure as the Medical Council on Alcohol (MCA) Chief Editor marks the culmination of a 26-year association with this journal in various capacities, as Assistant Editor for 2 years (from 1978), Deputy Editor for 14 years (from 1980) and finally as Chief Editor for 10 years (from 1994). During this long and happy association, I have been privileged to witness and participate in events and activities which saw the transformation of this publication from essentially a newsletter aimed primarily at the UK general practitioner to a biomedical multidisciplinary scientific journal, arguably the premier European in its category, of a wider international reputation. Although this transformation took place over many years of sustained activity by successive editors, I am pleased to acknowledge and to remind our readership that it was initiated by my distinguished predecessor, Dr Myrddin Evans. During his 2-year editorship of the journal (1978–1979) (see Table 1) and his earlier activities as Deputy Editor, Dr Evans has been instrumental in single-handedly introducing scientific and other biomedical contributions to the journal.
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It is also clear from Table 1 that, since 1996, the European Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism (ESBRA), which adopted Alcohol and Alcoholism as its official journal in 1991, has contributed significantly to the editorial process through the appointment of an ESBRA co-Chief Editor, first Professor Keith Francis Tipton (1996–2000), then Professor Gian Luigi Gessa (2001–2003). I am very pleased to acknowledge their valuable contribution to the journal, which extended well beyond their internationally recognized and leading expertise in their own fields. The journal readership will also wish to know that Professor Gessa's tenure as the ESBRA Chief Editor will end simultaneously with mine; a pure coincidence! The adoption by ESBRA of Alcohol and Alcoholism as its official journal should be regarded as a key development in the history of this journal, as a result of which the journal is now perceived as the major European periodical in the alcoholism field, in addition to its international standing, with a major biomedical element. The ESBRA link is a great asset for this journal and I am confident that ESBRA will play a continuing major role in the development and progress of this publication.
Professor Gessa and I should like to take this opportunity to thank both the MCA and ESBRA for their confidence in our chief editorships, and the journal readership, particularly its contributors, for their support of the journal and their contribution to advancing its position. We believe that it is opportune at this important point in the history of Alcohol and Alcoholism, on the eve of the forthcoming changes in its chief editorships, to take stock and review briefly the progress of the journal over recent years.
We record with pleasure the sustained increase in submissions to the journal over the years, as illustrated in Fig. 1. Although journal editors generally work within the constraints of page budgets, my co-Chief Editors and I have always put the interest of science and scientists before commercial considerations, rather than taking the easier option of increasing the rejection rate, which has been around 45% for the past several years. We are pleased to acknowledge the support of this policy by both the MCA and our publisher, Oxford University Press (OUP) and are confident that both organizations will continue to support this policy under the leadership of our successors. Professor Gessa and I should also like to acknowledge the support and dedication of various members of the Editorial Team, past and present, without which it would not have been possible for us all as a single team to enable this multidisciplinary journal to achieve its current position so convincingly.
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Along with increased submission, the journal Impact Factor (IF), for what it is worth, has also been increasing steadily over the years and is now at its highest level yet (Fig. 2). Our policy regarding the impact and standing of the journal has always been to emphasize the greater importance to our contributors of expeditious handling and processing of their submissions and their constructive and competent peer-reviewing. The speeds of the editorial process and of publication and of steps in between can all be judged for the chronological data provided for each paper in the current volume, and I believe that a faster turnaround will be achieved through uniform application in future of electronic systems at all stages of the publication process.
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In accordance with the requirements of the Farmington Consensus statement and the guidelines of the International Society for Addiction Journal Editors (ISAJE), of which this journal is a founder member, I confirm that Alcohol and Alcoholism enjoys full editorial independence, is financially self-supporting and accrues income to both the MCA and OUP. During 2003, in addition to deriving income through donations from indiduals and from its own members and from its educational and publications activities, the journal owners, the MCA, has received funds from the UK Alcohol Education and Research Council, the Robertson Trust, the BBC, the Portman Group and Link Pharmaceuticals.
Evolving commitments and interests necessitate changes to work schedules and commitments. Both Professor Gessa and I consider this an opportune moment to hand over the journal chief editorships to our successors, which will allow us to devote the time and energies required for our research activities. In particular, Gian Luigi Gessa will be able to concentrate on his exciting research on new alcoholism medications based on GABA-related and other mechanisms, in addition to his new role as President of the Italian Pharmacological Society. As for me, I shall be devoting a major part of my research time to developing my recent invention of a new deterrent and wider alcoholism-treatment therapy based on metabolites of the amino acid tryptophan. Although we shall both miss our frequent and direct pleasant interactions with our alcohol research colleagues worldwide, which have made our tasks all the more enjoyable, Professor Gessa and I both record our pleasure and satisfaction at leaving Alcohol and Alcoholism in an excellent shape, and, in saying farewell, we express every confidence in the continued success of the journal under the leadership of our two successors and their editorial team.
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