The Southern Medical Journal (SMJ), the official peer-reviewed journal of the Southern Medical Association, seeks applicants interested in serving as reviewers. The Journal is especially interested in reviewers who have expertise and interest in the following specialties and clinical topics: anesthesiology, cardiology, dermatology, gastroenterology, geriatrics, nephrology, neurology, obesity, orthopedics, pediatrics, rheumatology, urology, and women's health/OB-GYN and in areas pertaining to the business of medicine: accountable health care, best practices, healthcare administration, healthcare delivery models, health policy, performance measures, and quality of care.

The charge of reviewers is to evaluate the quality, relevance, and merit of submitted papers. Comments should be as complete and detailed as possible and contain clear opinions about strengths, weaknesses, relevance, and importance to the field. Reviewers should consider themselves as mentors to the author(s) and comments should be specific and constructive and suggestions should be intended to enhance the manuscript. Reviewers should be prepared to confirm the levels of evidence classified by the authors and reflected in the manuscript's contents. Reviewers may be requested to review manuscripts up to four times a year, and may be requested to author a commentary for publication related to the manuscript which they reviewed. Reviewers who consistently exhibit excellent reviews and respond promptly to the editorial requests are considered for invitation to the Editorial Board.

Requirements

To ensure the  Southern Medical Journal's continuing tradition of scientific excellence, applicants must meet the following requirements:

Professional Requirements

  • Possess a very strong command of the English language, including verbal and written fluency;
  • Provide a current electronic resume or curriculum vitae;
  • Provide as areas of expertise/specialty a listing of no more than five (5) classifications (i.e., endocrinology) and no more than three (3) sub-classifications for each classification (i.e., diabetes, metabolic disoders, and thyroid disorders). An additional, optional submission of the applicant's publications and presentations for the past 10 years relevant to his/her indicated areas of expertise/specialty accompanying the required classification listing will greatly increase the likelihood of being selected as a reviewer;
  • Provide a brief summary outlining previous peer review/editing experience and why he/she is interested in reviewing for the  Southern Medical Journal.  Such initiative of interest, in addition to excellent and frequent reviewing, is taken into consideration when the Editor-in-Chief extends invitations to join the Editorial Board.

Editorial Requirements

  • Agree to complete and sign the  Southern Medical Journal  "Authorship Responsibility, Disclosure, and Copyright Transfer" form;
  • Agree to return manuscripts in a timely manner;
  • Agree not to distribute the manuscript or to disclose information within the manuscript;
  • Agree to review the first revision of a manuscript for which he/she provided the initial review;
  • Agree to be released as a reviewer after two refusals to review, two failures to review, or three late reviews;
  • Agree to be rated as a reviewer this will reflect future selection to review.

If interested in serving as a reviewer, please email  SMJreviewer@sma.org  and include with your message the following attachments in Microsoft Word format:

  • Current electronic resume or curriculum vitae (required);
  • Areas of expertise/specialty classification listing (required)*;
  • Brief summary outlining previous peer review/editing experience and one's interest in being selected as a reviewer (required).

Note: An additional, optional submission of the applicant's publications and presentations for the past 10 years relevant to his/her indicated areas of expertise/specialty listing will greatly increase the likelihood of being selected as a reviewer and adds to the body of information considered when inviting new Editorial Board Members.

Please contact the SMJ Editorial Office at smj@sma.org with any questions.

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