Aims and Scope of the Journal Medicinski razgledi

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“Young blood leads the change. In their editorial work, the new students-editors strive to change the world, to implement their ideas, to question themselves, and to know their limits,” wrote prof. Zvonka Zupanič-Slavec, historian of medicine, in her review of the journal’s history on the occasion of the 40th anniversary. In 1962, this same thought lead a group of aspiring medical students to launch the first issue of the today acclaimed professional medical journal. The editorial team had its offices in the well-known medical students’ meeting room and the journal was printed by the Triglav Printing House in Ljubljana.

Medicinski razgledi (Slovene for “Medical Outlooks”) started as a professional newsletter where the best student contributions in medicine or dental medicine were published among other also to encourage high-quality work in the fields. From the very beginning, the editorial team welcomed collaboration with the professors, who in their articles shed light on those specific medical areas of expertise that were poorly covered in the existing study literature. At the same time, the journal also accepted political contents by addressing those socio-political issues that were directly related to the health-care.

From the 1962 onwards, the journal has kept the tradition of launching four issues per year. Its structure has been changing and improving constantly throughout the 47 years; mostly with respect to the proportion of original research and review articles on the one side and the number of articles written by students and professors on the other. Occasionally, book reviews were also published in the journal.

It should be emphasized that the editors and collaborators of Medicinski razgledi, i.e. students of medicine and dental medicine, are volunteers. For their effort and high-quality professional work, the reward comes mainly in the form of numerous approvals by the professors, professional collaborators as well as students who are after all the target audience of the journal.

Since 1949, the students of medicine and dental medicine have worked on research projects for the Prešeren student awards. The research reports based on such projects have been published in the journal since its beginning. We thereby encourage and strengthen research interest among the students and help them with their professional career.

Medicinski razgledi additionally widened their professional scope by publishing the so-called supplements, i.e. various conference or seminar proceedings in dental medicine and other medical specializations. In this, the journal team was entrusted with responsible and professional work. This also confirms that the effort of all involved is recognized, respected and appreciated in the medical community. In 35 years, more than 140 supplements have been published.

Another important activity is the publication of student textbooks—the fundamental resource for students. Unfortunately, medical texts in Slovene are still rarely published and each new publication represents an invaluable contribution to the field. Some of the textbooks have seen several editions and reprints while new ones are being published on a regular basis.

Medicinski razgledi is a peer-reviewed journal now heading toward its 48th volume and has become one of the leading Slovene biomedical journals. The contents are now even broader than before; we publish original research and professional papers from a wide range of biomedical sciences together with case studies from clinical practice. The journal is indexed in bibliographic databases such as Biomedica Slovenica, Chemical Abstracts, Bowker International, Biological Abstracts and others.

The members of the editorial board are ambitious students of medicine and dental medicine who learned from their older peers and we will make sure to transfer the knowledge to younger generations. One of our goals was to bring our format up to date and present Medicinski razgledi on the worldwide web where you can read them right now.

Editorial board of Medicinski razgledi, May 2009