Authorship decision-making in the field of orthopedic surgery and sports medicine

F Ruben H Nurmohamed,Istifari Voigt,Preshant Awadpersad,Roshni H.S Matawlie,Pravesh S Gadjradj

doi:10.1016/j.jcot.2021.101531

F Ruben H Nurmohamed, Istifari Voigt + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcot.2021.101531

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Abstract

PurposeTo facilitate decision-making in authorship positions, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editor (ICMJE) developed a guideline that stipulates criteria authors should meet in order to merit authorship. Authors who did not meet these criteria and still enlisted as authors, are called ‘honorary’ authors. In this study, the prevalence and characteristics of honorary authorship (HA) is assessed in the field of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine. MethodsA survey was distributed among corresponding authors of articles published in 2019 in six Orthopedics-dedicated journals. Results479 of the 1392 approached authors responded, leading to a response rate of 34.4%. 91.6% of the respondents were aware of the ICMJE guidelines, whereas 67.8% were aware of the issue of HA. Overall, the prevalence of guideline-based HA was 41.9%, while the prevalence of self-perceived HA was 14.7%. Having a senior member automatically enlisted as author on the departments, was associated with a higher rate of guideline-based HA (OR 5.03) and self-perceived HA (OR 3.31). ConclusionsThe prevalence of HA in the field of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine is high, but comparable to other medical fields. Transparency in authorship decision-making is crucial to maintain liability in scientific articles.

Highlights

In present-day medicine, publishing articles in scientific journals is a popular manner to contribute new knowledge to the academic world
Regarding authorship-guidelines, 91.6% (n 1⁄4 439) of all invited authors were aware of the existence of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editor (ICMJE)-guidelines, whereas 67.8% (n 1⁄4 325) knows of the general issue regarding honorary authorship (HA) (Table 2)
Honorary authorship is a phenomenon that exist across all medical specialties which can affect the integrity of the scientific

Summary

Introduction

In present-day medicine, publishing articles in scientific journals is a popular manner to contribute new knowledge to the academic world. Publications can be used to measure academic success and accomplishments of individual researchers, making it a considerable parameter to assess scientific excellence.[12] The importance of publications is shown in the trend that institutions and residency programs incorporate the amount of publications as criterion in their application process.[14]. With these social and academic implications, authorship ensures credit which is desired by academics. “Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.”

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