Date:27/08/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/08/27/stories/2006082717200600.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Open access electronic journal gaining acceptance

Staff Reporter

It may become an important tool in empowerment of people: expert

HONOURED: M.V. Murugappan, trustee, Vellayan Chettiar Trust (left), presents the fourth M.V. Arunachalam Endowment Oration Award to K. Srinath Reddy, president, Public Health Foundation of India, in Chennai on Saturday. Krishnamoorthy Srinivas, chair man, Institute of Neurological Sciences, and N.S. Murali honorary secretary, Voluntary Health Services, are also in the picture. — PHOTO: N. Sridharan

CHENNAI: The open access electronic journal is an indication of how science communication will shape up in the 21st century, K. Srinath Reddy, president, Public Health Foundation of India, said on Saturday.

Delivering the fourth M. V. Arunachalam endowment lecture on `Medical and scientific journalism-A 21st century perspective,' he pointed out that the open access format was gaining wide acceptance as opposed to the user-paid mode of accessing scientific journals.

The open access format, whose advocates include even the United Nations, could become an important tool in people's empowerment and straightening out the asymmetry of knowledge in the doctor-patient relationship.

The lecture, instituted by the Vellayan Chettiar Trust and the Murugappa Group, was co-hosted by the MV Arunachalam Centre for Information and Education and Education in the Neurosciences and the Institute of Neurological Sciences at Voluntary Health Services.

On the speculation over the future of the printed journal in relation to its electronic equivalent, Dr. Reddy cited a British Medical Journal article that posited four possible scenarios — a status quo, the electronic journal assuming the role of the primary communication channel while print versions synthesised the key elements into a magazine format, a domination by a corporates-controlled electronic media over the print medium or a total fade-away of the printed journal.

According to Dr. Reddy, print publications had the disadvantages of delayed communication and space restrictions — the same issues that favoured the electronic medium.

Among the advantages of the printed journal such as the comfort of settling down anywhere to read, the most important attribute was the process of pre-publication peer review that lent authenticity to the scientific literature. The absence of gate-keeping to uphold the integrity of science was also the big drawback held against electronic publishing, he said.

However, these days more scientists, particularly those in higher energy physics, were prepared to post their findings for evaluation on web sites prior to publication, or sometimes even prior to submission of the research. These scientists encouraged an extended critique before they finalised their conclusions.

Dr. Reddy also underscored the importance of having a balance between content expertise and method expertise, citing recent controversies in science. The general media could help itself to a dose of scepticism to more effectively play the role of critical purveyors of knowledge.

According to Dr. Reddy, future research would increasingly go trans-disciplinary and involve exploration of common pathways by diverse streams of knowledge.

Earlier, M. V. Murugappan, trustee, Vellayan Chettiar Trust, called for greater emphasis on preventive health in a country like India. Alongside the need to create more paramedical staff to support doctors was the requirement for medical services in rural areas. The rural service obligation should be incorporated in the State policy and inculcated in the medical fraternity.

N. S. Murali, honorary secretary, VHS; A. Vellayan, director-marketing, Murugappa Group; and Krishnamoorthy Srinivas, chairman, The Institute of Neurological Sciences and regional adviser, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh, were present.