Volume 201 Issue 1

Time to take stock of our place in history and adopt a critical yet eager openness to the unbidden

Stephen Leeder

Online publishing provides new opportunities for today’s medical students to develop their research skills

Megan L Hickie BA, MB BS

Health professionals’ duty of care includes combating racism in society as well as in health care settings

Chelsea J Bond PhD, BAppHSc · Geoffrey K Spurling MB BS, MPH, RACGP · Deborah A Askew BAppSci, MHltSci, PhD

What we do and why we do it matters more than how

Frank A Frizelle FRACS, FACS, FNZMA · Jacob J McCormick FRACS

News on the latest Cochrane reviews

Steve McDonald · Tari Turner

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Genomic medicine is set to transform personal health and wellbeing, health economies and national productivity

John S Mattick PhD · Marie A Dziadek DPhil · Bronwyn N Terrill BSc, GradDipSciComm, DipEd · Warren Kaplan PhD · Allan D Spigelman MD, FRACS, FRCS · Frank G Bowling MB BS, PhD, FRCPA · Marcel E Dinger PhD

Authors and other experts reflect on the articles that made Journal history

Diana R McKay MB BS(Hons), FRANZCP, MHM

The Journal’s early support for a Helicobacter pioneer allowed publication of key results

Barry J Marshall MB BS, FRACP, NL

Milestones in Australia’s journey to high-quality care

John D Hamilton MB BS, FRCP · Robert W Gibberd PhD · Bernadette T Harrison MPH(Hons), GradCertMedEd, RN

The need for a national strategy on preventing mental disorders

Anthony F Jorm PhD, DSc

Lithium research continues to yield benefits for treatment of bipolar disorder

Gin S Malhi MD, FRCPsych, FRANZCP

Shifting a whole population towards a healthy weight needs to target the root causes of obesity

Adrian J Cameron GradDipIntlHealth, MPH, PhD · Paul Z Zimmet MD, PhD, FRACP,

Focusing on the health and wellbeing of our children is the most important investment Australia can make

Fiona J Stanley MSc, MD · Carol Bower MB BS, MSc

The MJA archive needs to be fully available online

Paul A L Lancaster

In reply — calling potential donors to preserve all MJA issues

Christine Gee · Jackie Holman · Stephen Leeder

Is debate being constrained by our obsession with universal fee-for-service medical care?

Peter C Arnold

In reply -- We need a more wide-ranging debate about different payment systems

Christopher B Del Mar

Activity-based funding is the most appropriate currently available method of funding hospitals

Ian R Gough

In reply -- Activity-based funding is a tool that might be used by the states, but not by the federal government

Johannes U Stoelwinder

The benefits outweigh the kidney risks

William R Adam

Switching to alternative therapies has downsides

John Saboisky

In reply -- Collaboration with nephrologists is important

Milton Roxanas · Blair S Grace · Charles R P George

Telehealth enables the severely disabled to receive continued support from experienced personnel

Robert D Henderson · Nicole Hutchinson · James A Douglas · Carol Douglas

The modern military approach provides a lesson to civilians on professional ethics

Michael C Reade

Funding needed for venom immunotherapy to protect allergic patients against the effects of jack jumper ant stings

Raymond J Mullins PhD, FRACP, FRCPA · Simon G A Brown MB BS, PhD, FACEM

How clinicians and patients can work together to make good health decisions

Tammy C Hoffmann PhD, BOccThy(Hons) · France Légaré MD, PhD, FCFP · Magenta B Simmons PhD · Kevin McNamara PhD, MSc, BSc · Kirsten McCaffery PhD, BSc(Hons) · Lyndal J Trevena MB BS(Hons), MPhilPH, PhD · Ben Hudson MB BS, MRCGP, FRNZCGP · Paul P Glasziou MB BS, PhD · Christopher B Del Mar MD, FRACGP

Fewer infants are being readmitted to New South Wales hospitals in the first year of life

Samantha J Lain PhD, MPH, BHlthSci(Hons) · Christine L Roberts MB BS, FAFPHM, DrPH · Jennifer R Bowen MB BS, MD, FRACP · Natasha Nassar PhD, MPH, BEc

Objectives: To examine experiences of racism in health settings and their impact on mental health among Aboriginal Australians. Design, setting and participants: A cross-sectional survey of experiences of racism and mental health was conducted in two metropolitan and two rural Victorian local government areas (LGAs) between 1 December 2010 and 31 October 2011. Participants included 755 Aboriginal Australians aged over 18 years who had resided in the relevant LGA for at least a year. The response rate across all LGAs was 99%. Main outcome measures: Being above or below the threshold for high or very high psychological distress on the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale. Results: 221 participants reported experiences of racism in health settings in the past 12 months. The results suggested that people experiencing racism in health settings (OR, 4.49; 95% CI, 2.28–8.86) and non-health settings (OR, 2.66; 95% CI, 1.39–5.08) were more likely than people who did not experience racism to be above the threshold for high or very high psychological distress. Conclusions: Experiencing interpersonal racism in health settings is associated with increased psychological distress over and above what would be expected in other settings. This finding supports the rationale for improving cultural competency and reducing racism as a means of closing the health gap between Aboriginal and other Australians. Capitalising on this investment will require explicitly evaluating the impact of these initiatives on reducing patient experiences of racism.

Margaret A Kelaher BSc, PhD · Angeline S Ferdinand BA, MPH · Yin Paradies PhD

The frequency and severity of adverse effects warrant experienced clinical supervision

Marliese Alexander BPharm(Hons), GradCertPharmPrac, MPH · James D Mellor MPharm(Hons) · Grant McArthur MB BS(Hons), PhD, FRACP · Damien Kee MB BS, FRACP

How does prescribing practice to prevent another stroke measure up against recommendations?

Janet K Sluggett BPharm(Hons), GDipClinEpid · Gillian E Caughey BSc(Hons), PhD · Michael B Ward BPharm(Hons), PhD · Andrew L Gilbert PhD, DipAppPsych, BPharm

Consider a hereditary basis for renal cancer in young patients

Christopher W Toon BSc(Hons), MB BS(Hons), FRCPA · Csilla Hasovits BSc(Med) MB BS(Hons), FRACP · Julie Paik MB BS · Michael Field MB ChB, FRACP · Angela Chou MB BS · Thomas J Hugh MD, FRACS · Nicholas Pavlakis MMed, PhD, FRACP · Anthony J Gill MD, FRCPA

From cowpox virus to global disease eradication, a winning strategy we must fight to protect

John B Best AO, MD BS, PhD, DSc(Hon)

Doctors have been gentlemen, technicians, benefactors and scientists, but now must be leaders

Richard S W Smith FMedSci, FRCPE, FRCGP

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In the MJA’s Centenary Year, we investigate the career pathways of those doctors who choose to enter into the mysterious world of medical publishing

Cate Swannell

Taking time out to practise medicine in a different location is a rite of passage for many, but recent regulation and workforce changes are altering the locum landscape

Annabel McGilvray

Dr Will Milford has been advocating for junior doctors in his role as outgoing chair of the AMA’s Council of Doctors-in-Training. It’s been a busy and contentious 18 months

Cate Swannell

Medical and health professionals featured prominently on the Queen’s Birthday Honours list. Professor Jeffrey Dunn, CEO of Cancer Council Queensland, was proud to be one of them.

Cate Swannell

Med J Aust 2014; 201 (1 Suppl).