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"We recognized the need to align our procedures for custom publicationsacross the business so they are consistent with our high standards oftransparency, disclosure and ethical behavior and consistent with Elsevier'sreputation and responsibility for delivering world-class content," saidMichael Hansen, CEO, Elsevier Health Sciences. "We think the time has comefor a higher level of bar-setting for disclosure of origin and funding andencourage other publishers to take similar steps if they haven't already."
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The review was initiated when it was revealed that two Elsevierpublications from 2003, presented as an unbiased journal, were in factsponsored publications lacking adequate disclosures. The Australasian Journalof Bone and Joint Medicine published reprinted original, peer-reviewedresearch articles, plus other summarized articles, conference reviews andnews clips and was single-sponsored by a global pharmaceutical company.Contrary to the high standards that Elsevier sets for itself, the employeesresponsible did not make the sponsorship sufficiently clear to its potentialreaders. (See press releases from May 7, 2009,(http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/authored_newsitem.cws_home/companynews05_01203) and June 4, 2009 (http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/authored_newsitem.cws_home/companynews05_01233) at http://www.elsevier.com/newsroom for furtherbackground.)
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The guidelines cover the necessity for full disclosure of funding and theorigin of content and provide guidance on obtaining permission for the use ofcontent. The guidelines also point employees to best practices for medicalpublications from the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors(ICMJE), the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the Institute ofMedicine.
Publishing units will consider in their approval processes whether acustom publication is consistent with Elsevier's historical standard forworld-class content and whether appropriate disclosures are made. They alsoneed to follow the established record retention policy to ensure the companymaintains an archive of all custom products produced. Affected employees haveconfirmed receipt of the guidelines and attended presentations onimplementation. Elsevier management will continue to monitor and assessadherence to the guidelines and standards by all its business units globally.
"These guidelines will help ensure our readers are aware of the contextin which content is presented to them," said Hansen. "Further, thisexperience has demonstrated how much we value the input of our variouscommunities of authors, editors and others in helping us stay true to ourmission. Feedback on these guidelines and other parts of our business will becontinually welcomed."
About Elsevier
Elsevier is a world-leading publisher of scientific, technical andmedical information products and services. The company works in partnershipwith the global science and health communities to publish more than 2,000journals, including The Lancet (http://www.thelancet.com) and Cell(http://www.cell.com), and close to 20,000 book titles, including majorreference works from Mosby and Saunders. Elsevier's online solutions includeScienceDirect (http://www.sciencedirect.com), Scopus (http://www.scopus.com),Reaxys (http://www.reaxys.com), MD Consult (http://www.mdconsult.com) andNursing Consult (http://www.nursingconsult.com), which enhance theproductivity of science and health professionals, and the SciVal suite(http://www.scival.com) and MEDai's Pinpoint Review (http://www.medai.com),which help research and health care institutions deliver better outcomes morecost-effectively.
A global business headquartered in Amsterdam, Elsevier(http://www.elsevier.com) employs 7,000 people worldwide. The company is partof Reed Elsevier Group PLC (www.reedelsevier.com), a world-leading publisherand information provider, which is jointly owned by Reed Elsevier PLC andReed Elsevier NV. The ticker symbols are REN (Euronext Amsterdam), REL(London Stock Exchange), RUK and ENL (New York Stock Exchange).Tom Reller, Vice President, Global Corporate Relations, Elsevier +1-215-239-3508 [email protected]
SOURCE Elsevier
