Open access in medical publishing: trends and countertrends

doi:10.1503/cmaj.045262

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Importance of Open Access Medical Publishing for Developing Country Clinicians and Researchers
Anant Bhan

Posted on: 31 January 2005

Posted on: (31 January 2005)
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Importance of Open Access Medical Publishing for Developing Country Clinicians and Researchers
Anant Bhan
The editorial in the January 18, 2005 CMAJ issue (1) is of special relevance for developing countries. As a South Asian physician presently pursuing graduate studies in a Canadian institution, the availability of the archives and the latest medical literature online through my university’s subscription has opened up a new world for me. This access has helped me improve the quality of my research, and understanding of is...
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The editorial in the January 18, 2005 CMAJ issue (1) is of special relevance for developing countries. As a South Asian physician presently pursuing graduate studies in a Canadian institution, the availability of the archives and the latest medical literature online through my university’s subscription has opened up a new world for me. This access has helped me improve the quality of my research, and understanding of issues. I already dread the loss of this privilege when I return back home. Developing country medical schools and research centers can often not pay for the high cost of online journal access, and subscriptions to print versions are limited to a few. Often the only information available is abstracts of articles through Pubmed (2), and of late, Google Scholar (3). It is difficult for residents on limited stipends to even buy individual articles which cost anywhere from US $ 10 upwards. Besides the fact that this would be a week’s salary for some residents, internet access is limited and safe online banking & credit card use are not available. This often means residents and scientists use outdated reference sources in their theses, and research. This reflects in the final quality and scientific rigor of their work.
The initiatives shown by CMAJ, Bio Med Central, Scidev.net & PLOS journals etc. towards open access are laudable. Open access in my opinion is very important to cross this information digital divide. However, the practice of making authors pay for online publication of their articles might dissuade developing country researchers from sharing important research in international journals. Special discounts or waivers need to be worked out to address this issue, as are offered in Bio Med Central, PLOS journals etc. Journals have to continue exploring innovative avenues to raise funds for making more progress in the open access trend, and to offset their costs incurred in the process.
CMAJ’s experience has shown the advantages of having an open access policy. I hope that CMAJ continues its leadership in this process of promoting equal opportunities and access in an increasingly globalizing world.
References 1) Open access in medical publishing: trends and countertrends. CMAJ 2005; 172: 149 2) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi 3) http://www.scholar.google.com
Conflict of Interest:
None declared
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Competing Interests: None declared.