BMJ  2005;330:256 (29 January), doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7485.256

Letter

Why doctors don't read research papers

Editors' behaviour might have something to do with it

The first 100% of the full text of this article appears below.

EDITOR—Having written or co-written several original research papers and review articles during my professional life, I believe that one of the reasons that we don't read research papers is because, despite protestations to the contrary, editors regularly seem to indulge in behaviour that goes against all the principles of good writing, including insisting on the use of po-faced titles which do not even attract the reader's attention in the first place.1

Christopher W Ide, medical adviser

Strathclyde Fire Brigade, Hamilton ML3 0EA christopher_ide@yahoo.co.uk

Competing interests: None declared.

  1. Barraclough K. Why doctors don't read research papers. BMJ 2004;329: 1411. (11 December.)[Free Full Text]

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