In September 2000, we asked:

"PSST!! Know any good topics for theme issues?

We’re trying to break down the walls that divide us.

By and large, journal editors have decided what to publish based on their beliefs about what will be good for their readers. Even before the web, however, the BMJ was beginning to break that mould. For example, in 1994 we asked journal readers which of three possible new designs for the journal they preferred – and then instituted the most popular choice.

But, of course, the web makes such interactivity much easier, and we now frequently canvas our readers’ opinions on journal policies.

We want to take this process one step further and involve our readers in decisions about journal content as well. Initially, we want readers’ suggestions for the topics of theme issues. You can get an idea of past theme issues from our archive, and there’s a list of suggestions for future theme issues at the bottom of this page. At this stage we’d like you to let us know of any topics not included in these lists that you would really like a theme issue devoted to. The next phase – in a few weeks’ time – will be to get readers to vote on the suggestions.

Eventually, we hope to involve readers in the commissioning of ABC series, editorials, and other educational articles - in the selection of both topics and authors. In time, the editorial office could become an efficient machine for working out what readers want and then for giving it to them."

• To read full list of suggestions made by editorial board and website visitors, click here.
  
• To view results of  website and BMA members' vote on shortlist of 20 suggestions, click here.
  
• To view rapid response to this poll click here

Results of website and BMA members' vote on shortlist of 20 suggestions (with selected topics in bold)

* 1576 respondents
** 304 respondents to a postal survey sent to 1000 BMA members

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Depression

Andre Tomlin
bmj.com, 20 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Complementary Medicine

Elizabeth Baguley
bmj.com, 20 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Monopolies and Cartels

Hiran DeSilva
bmj.com, 20 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Theme issue

Ashok Nathwani
bmj.com, 20 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Limits of medicine- medicalisation of the human experience

Michael Bosch
bmj.com, 20 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Doctor-patient communications/relationships

Mark Publicker
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Sexual health

Jan Clarke
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

PSST!!

David Sinclair
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Physician health

Pat Rebbeck
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Patient compliance

Dharani Hapangama
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Limits of medicine- medicalisation of the human experience

Alison King
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

The Relationship Orthopedics-Geriatrics

Luiz Garcez-Leme
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Therapeutics of Aging

Teresa Sterling
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Clinical research in primary care

Philip R Moore
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

New Media's Impact on the Development of Children

Herbert Scheithauer
bmj.com, 20 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Ending the blame culture: the benefits for doctors, nurses and patients

Mitzi Blennerhassett
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Non Governmental non-profit making Healthcare organisations

Amadu A Ali
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Refugee Health

Peter von Kaehne
bmj.com, 22 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Genetically Modified foods; is time to take a position as nutritionist?

Carlo Pedrolli
bmj.com, 22 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Foot problems theme issue

Hylton B Menz
bmj.com, 22 Oct 2000 [Full text]

AVIATION MEDICINE:Keeping up with the changing trends in aviation.

Prashanth Gupta
bmj.com, 21 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Chronobiology

Joseph Watine
bmj.com, 22 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Future theme issues

Sandeep Walia
bmj.com, 22 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Theme issue on physician health, no sooner suggested than delivered

Richard Smith
bmj.com, 22 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Occupational Lung Diseases

Om Prakash
bmj.com, 22 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Outcome based medicine

John Hopkins
bmj.com, 23 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Trauma and Injury

Limor Aharonson-Daniel
bmj.com, 23 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Women's breasts; mens health

Nick Rouholamin
bmj.com, 23 Oct 2000 [Full text]

The Threat of Biological and Chemical warfare.

Munir E Nassar
bmj.com, 23 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Evaluation of medical information on the Internet

Geert Aufdemkampe
bmj.com, 23 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Onset of Disease

Mark Rake
bmj.com, 23 Oct 2000 [Full text]

TQM and hospital services

Dorel Tirt
bmj.com, 23 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Concordance: compliance and communications

Anthony R Cox
bmj.com, 23 Oct 2000 [Full text]

PHILLOSOPHY IN MEDICINE

S Alhabib
bmj.com, 24 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Urgencies and Emergencies

Stephan Larsson
bmj.com, 24 Oct 2000 [Full text]

What is a good doctor? And who decides?

Peter Davies
bmj.com, 24 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Kathleen King
bmj.com, 24 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Endometriosis

K Kelly
bmj.com, 24 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Weight loss diets

Rachelle Wirth
bmj.com, 24 Oct 2000 [Full text]

education, education, education

George Taylor
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Women's Breasts and the health of women and children

Magda Sachs
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

hepatitis C pregnancy and foetal consequences

William Minnow Simmons
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Impact of Osteoporosis

Terry Ann Glause
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

So who in YOUR practice is addicted?

Terry Ann Glauser
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Gillian Anne Privett
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Norma Hart
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

THe Disproven

Stephen Workman
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Weight Management - Its Medical & Psychological Effects and Solutions

Jeremy Sims
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Human perspectives

Peter Morrell
bmj.com, 24 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Women's breasts; mens health

Joseph Watine
bmj.com, 24 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Drug trials in children

Geert W T Jong
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

The consultation

Ben Lloyd
bmj.com, 25 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Sarah Lennon
bmj.com, 26 Oct 2000 [Full text]

historical contributions to modern medicine understanding

David Schlect
bmj.com, 26 Oct 2000 [Full text]

The Obesogenic Environment.

Colin Guthrie
bmj.com, 26 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Specialist Training

Sean Tierney
bmj.com, 26 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Orphan diseases, frustration and hope

F J Peteiro-Cartelle
bmj.com, 26 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Links between the voluntary sector and medicine

Cathy Gritzner
bmj.com, 26 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Elin Ross Pedersen
bmj.com, 27 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Status of the blood supply: past present and future

Mark E Brecher
bmj.com, 27 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Cara Law
bmj.com, 27 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Hazel Bascombe
bmj.com, 27 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: historical contributions to modern medicine understanding

Peter Morrell
bmj.com, 27 Oct 2000 [Full text]

candidiasis

Phyll Buchanan
bmj.com, 27 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: candidiasis

Gillian Anne Privett
bmj.com, 28 Oct 2000 [Full text]

SHOULD NON-CLINICAL FACTORS BE INCORPORATED IN WAITING-LISTS MANAGEMENT?

Aldo Mariotto
bmj.com, 28 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Wendi Walker
bmj.com, 28 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Donna Hutchinson
bmj.com, 28 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Emotional intelligence for Doctors

Peter Davies
bmj.com, 29 Oct 2000 [Full text]

The Creation of a Doctor.

Ali Al-Ibrahim
bmj.com, 29 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Theme issue on clinical adverse events

Leslie Reti
bmj.com, 30 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Lesley Ironside
bmj.com, 30 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Normal birth

Jilly Rosser
bmj.com, 30 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Screening for disease: current state of the art

Tom Snow
bmj.com, 30 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Disease Surveillance - past, present and future

Ebere Okereke
bmj.com, 31 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Themes related to Continued Professional Development and Personal Medical Education

Rajesh Varma
bmj.com, 31 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Antibiotic Resistance-Back to square one?

Shilpa Patil
bmj.com, 30 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Why Health Inequalities?

Colin Guthrie, et al.
bmj.com, 31 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Getting Research into Practice

Colin Prouse
bmj.com, 31 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Emperical treatment of diseases in developing countries

Buddha Basnyat
bmj.com, 1 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Old themes revived through integrity

John P Heptonstall
bmj.com, 1 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Scrap the NHS? Profiles of healthcare systems around the world.

Mike Griffiths
bmj.com, 31 Oct 2000 [Full text]

Rational Prescribing

Susan Coyle
bmj.com, 1 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Is the environment responsible for much of 'genetic ' variation?

Somnath Mukhopadhyay
bmj.com, 2 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Entrails of Healthcare: where researchers fear to tread?

James Mason
bmj.com, 2 Nov 2000 [Full text]

What about 'Health'?

Harry Rutter
bmj.com, 3 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Re: Women's breasts; mens health

Jan Sambrook
bmj.com, 4 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Re: Women's breasts; mens health

Jonathan Sambrook
bmj.com, 4 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Re: Endometriosis - A current perspective.

Belle Browne
bmj.com, 9 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Using Health Information to Improve Care

David Zitner
bmj.com, 9 Nov 2000 [Full text]

Re: Re: Limits of medicine- medicalisation of the human experience

Tom Marshall
bmj.com, 1 Oct 2003 [Full text]

Re: Women's breasts; mens health

g aljabali
bmj.com, 12 Nov 2004 [Full text]

Vital signs

Richard G Fiddian-Green
bmj.com, 14 Nov 2004 [Full text]