Digesting journals

As medical students, you might well be familiar with the scenario where colleagues discuss a recent paper they read in the New England Journal of Medicine, BMJ, or Lancet with their hospital consultants. Medical journals are a way for doctors to keep abreast of the most recent and relevant developments in their field. This is essential for long term medical practice, as medicine is a constantly changing field. The first line treatment for an infectious disease yesterday might well be contraindicated today, and any textbook will be out of date by a couple of years when a new edition appears.

Journals are an important way of disseminating relevant medical information to clinicians and researchers alike—from recent case reports to potentially dangerous drug interactions. Critical appraisal of research articles will help to develop the most valuable skills used in everyday medical practice.

However, the already overburdened medical student will not find the idea of reading weekly journals appealing, even if it is part of the learning requirements at undergraduate level. But contrary to what many of you might think, “giving medical students their own weekly copies of [medical] journals and having them present articles for discussion proved to be a huge success, as shown by increased journal reading, rates of subscription, and interest.”1

So, why should you start reading journals now, at undergraduate level, rather than when you finish medical school? Well, for the simple reason that practice makes perfect. By starting early, you stand to gain a good reading habit, which is perhaps the hardest thing to achieve. Admittedly, students need to go through a long …