We are delighted to announce that Journal of Tropical Medicine has been accepted into the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE), the multidisciplinary index of top tier journals ran by Clarivate Analytics. Inclusion in SCIE means that the journal will reach a wider audience and will receive its very first Impact Factor in the 2020 Journal Citation Report.
As a signatory of DORA, we agree that the Impact Factor should not be used as a surrogate measure of the quality of individual research articles, to assess an individual scientist’s contributions, or in hiring, promotion, or funding decisions. We also believe that journals shouldn't be judged by any single metric but by thorough assessment of scope, content and a journal's editorial processes, alongside other journal- and article-level metrics (such as usage and citations). Readership is also an important indicator of impact and so all of our journals publish article-level metrics to help you better understand the impact articles have had. All journal-level metrics for Journal of Tropical Medicine are clearly displayed on its homepage – its current accept rate is 23%, the time from submission to final decision is 110 days and it has a CiteScore of 1.290. Last year Journal of Tropical Medicine was accessed by more than 131,000 readers from 90 countries around the world, producing more than 211,000 article views.
In order to be included in SCIE, the journal had to meet a number of stringent requirements, including quality of publications, citation impact, having a respected international Editorial Board and following rigorous ethical publishing standards. While meeting these high standards, Journal of Tropical Medicine continues to be dedicated to advancing Open Science. We hope that this inclusion of the journal in SCIE means that all those interested in the research of this important field of medicine will access the openly available top research and reviews published in the journal.
This exciting new development would be impossible without the work of all those involved in the running of the journal, and in particular our board of valued Academic Editors. With duties ranging from coordinating the review process of manuscripts, ensuring the integrity of research and contributing to our development plans, our Academic Editors have been at the forefront of growing Journal of Tropical Medicine to the level of quality and success it has reached now.
The Board boasts a group of experts from around the globe including Africa, Asia, Europe and North and South America. One of our longest standing Editors Dr Shyam Sundar, an expert in visceral leishmaniasis, has handled a record 123 manuscripts for the journal, playing a pivotal role in the direction of the journal’s content. Similarly, renowned virologist Dr Jean-Paul J. Gonzalez and malarial research expert Prof Aditya Prasad Dash have played pivotal roles as Editors on the journal for the past 13 years. Along with the rest of our valued Editorial Board, authors and peer reviewers, the journal has continued to develop and publish high-quality manuscripts over the years.
One of our most interesting recent pieces of research published in the journal is an article on small molecule therapies for treating snakebites, which are now considered a high priority Neglected Tropical Disease (NTDs). Another key piece of research from this year looked at malaria prevention and control in reproductive aged women in Ghana. Finally, an important study from 2018 reviewed ocular bartonellosis in Malaysia, looking at the visual complications of the disease.
We hope that following this exciting new development for Journal of Tropical Medicine, the journal will further grow and publish research addressing the control and prevention of tropical diseases around the globe. To this end, we will continue to collaborate with authors, reviewers and editors involved in tropical medicine research to ensure the journal covers all diseases within this category. With inclusion in SCIE boosting the visibility of the journal, and through our Open Science mission, the journal can reach more and more readers without facing any barriers to the research, helping to make a global impact on tropical diseases.
This blog post is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). The illustration is by Hindawi and is also CC-BY