Celebrate a new start for Journal of Echocardiography as an indexed journal in MEDLINE

Abstract

At the end of June, we received a pleasant reply from the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, USA. After the foundation of Journal of Echocardiography in 2003 as the official journal of the Japanese Society of Echocardiography (JSE), Dr. Kiyoshi Yoshida as the editor-in-chief and Dr. Shintaro Beppu as the president of JSE faced many challenges to raise the journal. The largest challenge was the small number of submissions. From 2003 to 2008, Journal of Echocardiography has published 114 articles and 21 from Dr. Yoshida’s department and 8 from Dr. Beppu’s. They have maintained the journal with their pioneering dedication. Dr. Yoshida passed the baton to me with a new electronic submission and editorial system and I became the second editorin-chief in 2009. The electronic system was driven by Springer. Springer also offered us strategies to improve the journal. However, even with the electronic system, we continued to have the same challenge. The number of submissions was low relative to our expectations. With the increase in the number of medical journals, competition between journals was getting more severe year by year. We have done multiple trials to increase the number of submissions, including more invitations for review articles from mainly foreign physicians, new invitations for highly acclaimed presentations in the annual scientific meeting of the JSE, and recent invitations for review articles from younger domestically active investigators. With these, the number of published article gradually increased and 38 articles were published in 2014 (21.7 articles per year up to 2008). Springer suggested that we apply to have the journal included in MEDLINE. There were new challenges again for this submission. It took more than 1 year from the suggestion to actual submission. I am very happy to announce that Journal of Echocardiography was finally accepted to be indexed in MEDLINE and PubMed. I appreciate the many contributions by members of the JSE, especially authors of articles, Drs. Yoshida and Beppu, previous and current associate editors, honorary and consulting editors, staff of the JSE office, and staff of Springer for offering us critical suggestions and support. I expect that acceptance from MEDLINE will prompt more people to submit articles to Journal of Echocardiography. We will have a new challenge again, especially to increase the impact factor for our journal further. At the end of this message I wish to repeat my declaration made in 2009 when I was inaugurated as the second editor-in-chief. I would like to celebrate this new challenge for Journal of Echocardiography with all of the physicians, sonographers, investigators, and others working on or with echocardiography to bring benefits for patients.