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Open Medicine provides medical knowledge to the public

Palepu believes medical publishing should be free from corporate influence.

Photograph: Eugene Lin

Anita Palepu was an associate editor at the Canadian Medical Association Journal in 2006 when the publisher fired two editors in a conflict over editorial independence. Angry at what she felt was a move to allow advertisers to dictate what appeared in the journal, Palepu and some other colleagues resigned. But she says cheerfully, "Instead of being outraged, I'm doing something about it." Within a year, Palepu became co-founder and co-editor of Open Medicine, a free, independent online quarterly that offers peer-reviewed science and analysis. In the first issue, the editors stated that "medical knowledge should be public and free from undeclared influence."

Palepu, a professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia, emphasizes that renowned medical journals "such as The Lancet and The New England Journal of Medicine derive substantial income from pharmaceutical advertisers." She's concerned this may cause physicians to make decisions based on brand recognition rather than on scientific rigor. Moreover, she adds, "these advertisers may sponsor a trial, pay for publication and then purchase tens of thousands of copies to distribute among medical professionals." That doesn't necessarily mean the science is invalid, she acknowledges, but she does wonder about the "competing interests." With Open Medicine, that's never a question since it doesn't take advertisements. Palepu says the initiative runs on the "labor of love" of many academics, mainly from Canada, plus donations from medical schools and individuals.

Recently, the journal started an experiment in collaborative publishing. One of its articles is set up as a wiki so registered users can edit and add material. Palepu believes it's too early to draw any conclusions, but stresses that "we're very careful, and we're only learning how to execute a wiki in a medical context." Meanwhile, in July, the U.S. National Institutes of Health announced its collaboration with the Wikimedia Foundation to improve the online availability of medical information. Palepu considers her editors part of a broader movement advocating a free culture with open access, something mostly visible in free downloads of music and books. "Medicine is a very traditional profession, so some will think we're quite radical," Palepu says, "but for others it's completely normal what we do."