BOOK AND MEDIA
October 3, 2017
Rivara F, Easley T, Flanagin A, Bauchner H. Announcing JAMA Network Open-a new journal from The JAMA Network. JAMA. 2017;318(13):1230-1232. doi:10.1001/jama.2017.11830
http://jamanetworkopen.com
JAMA Network Open is introducing a new general medical journal that will include content from many disciplines, featuring scientific, medical, and health content in more than 40 subject areas.
Publishing has changed dramatically as the Internet and digital print formats connect readers in more efficient ways. Open access publishing has grown substantially. These changes serve to make research findings more accessible on a global scale. As research efforts increase globally, JAMA Network Open will provide another high-quality option for authors of research articles in disciplines already represented by this publisher. In addition, it will expand opportunities for authors in other disciplines.
JAMA's mission statement for this new journal reflects a commitment to international peer review and open access. The journal aims to be a general medical journal that publishes research and commentary on clinical care, health policy, and global health across all health disciplines and countries for clinicians, investigators, and policy makers.
Their vision is to use new and emerging technologies to enhance communication, and their hope is that it will be the leading open-access general medical journal in the world. JAMA Network Open will begin accepting manuscripts in early 2018.
Didion J. Blue Nights. New York, NY: Knopf Publishing; 2011.
Blue Nights is a memoir on mortality that gives us insights into the complicated bereavement process.
There are many books that offer a patient and family perspective, such as The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, The Immortal life of Henrietta Lacks, A Farewell to Arms, Bed Number Ten, and A Year of Magical Thinking.
Blue Nights should be added to that list. Medscape Nurses Advisory Board member Jane Rothrock recommended it for nurses and caregivers and suggests that readers approach this book openly as Didion expresses what it means to watch a child slip away. Didion is also the author of A Year of Magical Thinking, a personal account of her life after the sudden death of her husband in 2003. Magical thinking teaches us about personal grief and loss of a spouse. Blue Nights is a companion book; sadly, it is an account of the death of her daughter Quintana in 2005. Didion's struggle to cope with 2 unthinkable losses allows us to stand in the shoes of the patient and family in a unique way. When John Dunne died, their daughter was in the intensive care unit, having viral pneumonia. Although she recovered after her father's death, she became ill with acute pancreatitis 20 months later and did not survive.