Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine
 | |
Abbreviated title (ISO 4) | J. Altern. Complement. Med. |
|---|---|
| Discipline | Alternative medicine |
| Language | English |
| Publication details | |
| Publisher | |
Publication history | 1995-present |
| Frequency | 10 issues per year |
| 1.518 | |
| Indexing | |
| ISSN |
1075-5535 (print) 1557-7708 (web) |
| CODEN | JACPFP |
| OCLC no. | 45694924 |
| Links | |
The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine is a peer-reviewed medical journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. since 1995. It includes observational and analytical reports on alternative medicine treatments.[1]
Content, selection, and impact
Content
The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine publishes peer-reviewed research reports regarding patient care strategies, therapies, and protocols, with a stated aim of "improving the quality of healing," doing so by seeking to "evaluate and integrate" complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) into mainstream traditional medical practice.[2] The Journal's self-described list of subjects covered include:[2]
- acupuncture,
- Ayurveda,
- botanical medicine,
- use of dietary supplements/nutritionals,
- energy medicine and subtle energies,
- homeopathy,
- integrative biophysics,
- massage therapy,
- mind-body medicine,
- naturopathy,
- neurostimulation, and
- studies of Qi Gung,
- Tai Chi,
- traditional Chinese medicine, and
- yoga.
The audience at which the journal aims is scientists and healthcare professionals and practitioners in conventional medicine and nursing, including psychiatric and psychology practitioners, industry professionals in pharmaceutical, herbal, and related areas, as well as "alternative medicine practitioners, researchers, and specialists… and schools of Oriental medicine."[2]
Editorial staff, process
The journal does not make readily apparent the process by which manuscripts are judged; manuscript submission $49 USD is required, and manuscripts cannot be submitted that have been submitted elsewhere. The journal will "NOT publish studies containing animal models, lab-based cellular work, or en vitro studies.[sic]…" nor does it "typically… publish questionnaire results, 'knowledge,' opinion or attitude papers, or perception pieces."[2] As of November 2015, the editor in chief of the journal is Kim A. Jobst, who earned an MBBS (equivalent of a U.S. MD) from St Thomas' Hospital, London, after a BA and MA from the University of Oxford. Executive editors to the journal include Claire M. Cassidy and Richard Hammerschlag with research doctorates and Mitchell W. Krucoff and George T. Lewith with medical doctorates; as of this date there are 14 associate editors (3 of which are MDs, and 4 of which are PhDs), assisted by a widely drawn, 52 member editorial board (with 2 MD-PHDs, 6 MDs, and 27 PhDs).[2]
Impact
The 2014 Thomson Reuters (formerly ISI) impact factor of the journal is 1.585.[2]
Society affiliations
The journal has an official affiliation with the Society for Acupuncture Research.[2]
Abstracting and indexing
The journal is abstracted and indexed in MEDLINE, Current Contents/Clinical Medicine, Science Citation Index, Journal Citation Reports/Science Edition, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Scopus, CINAHL, PsycINFO, CAB Abstracts, and the Mantis database.
Reception
The journal and the role that it fills is spoken of in positive terms by some members of reputable traditional medical school faculties. Laurence Demers, Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Medicine at the Penn State Hershey College of Medicine has written that the journal "presents topics and issues... not [to] be found in other journals… [and] provides detailed insight into the status of alternative and complementary medicines" in relation to the treatment of human disease, and Arthur Margolin of the Yale University School of Medicine writes that the journal "is a leading periodical in its area" offering a "combination of qualities—informative, provocative, rigorous, and relevant" that makes it valuable reading for research and clinical medical professionals.[2]
In 2005 the BBC used a report published by the journal as the basis of a story claiming that the pseudoscientific practice of homeopathy was effective for some patients.[3] The article contradicted the findings of a study that had recently appeared in The Lancet, reporting that homeopathy was ineffective.[3] Pharmacologist David Colquhoun has criticized the methodology of the article in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, saying its questionnaire-based approach was "not really research at all" and that the published conclusion drawn from it was "quite ludicrous". In his view, "papers like this do not add to human knowledge, they detract from it".[4] Quackwatch includes the journal among its list of "nonrecommended periodicals", characterizing it as "fundamentally flawed".[5]
See also
References
- ↑ "Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine". SCIMago. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 LiebertPub.com (2015). "Overview, Testimonials, Manuscript Submission". Retrieved 18 November 2015.
- 1 2 "New study is boost to homoeopathy". BBC News. 21 November 2005. Retrieved September 2013.
- ↑ David Colquhoun. "Homeopathy on the NHS in Bristol: Dr Spence's paper". Retrieved September 2013.
- ↑ "Nonrecommended Journals". Quackwatch. Retrieved September 2013.