Gained in Translation - Volume 24, Issue

We often write articles to satisfy two states of mind: pleasure and curiosity. In my case, this means the curiosity to delve into some of the intricacies of translation on the one hand, and, on the other, the desire to work together with colleagues…

Combined workshops on medical writing and publication ethics for Japanese postgraduate students and faculty members - Volume 22, Issue

Although the importance both of skills in medical writing in English and of an understanding of ethics in medical publishing is increasingly recognised, these subjects are not comprehensively taught to Japanese medical doctors and students. Limited…

In the Bookstores - Volume 22, Issue

The Spirit Level

Ever had a ‘ping’ moment? This book might have been mine. I'm not a natural pessimist, but Western society today seems less cohesive and people more materialistic, stressed, unhealthy, and unhappy than in times gone by. Wealth and s…

Writing Matters - Volume 21, Issue

Writing matters to medical writers … or at least it should. But sometimes we are more consumed with the content of a document than the writing itself. And some might even argue that detailed medical or scientific information cannot be written as…

EMWA's position on ghostwriting - Volume 22, Issue

The European Medical Writers Association would like to make it clear that, contrary to what you may have read in a recently published popular science book, it is not a ‘ghostwriters' association’. EMWA is an association for professional medical…

Out On Our Own - Volume 22, Issue

The EMWA autumn conference is always so well placed in November, giving us the chance to meet friends and colleagues before the onslaught of traditional end of year festivities. Barcelona's conference was no exception. We were pleased to welcome new …

The launch publication for Clarity and Openness in Reporting: E3-based (CORE) Reference

The 2 year EMWA-AMWA CORE Reference project resulted in the publication of the open-access CORE Reference at http://www.core-reference.org on 03 May 2016. The full peer-reviewed publication supporting the launch of CORE Reference: Hamilton S,…

Non-clinical health writing - Volume 23, Issue

We medical writers have a unique and valuable skill set, which includes, most notably, the ability to understand and clearly communicate complex medical information. We are also experts at working with multifunctional teams, compiling detailed…

The horror and the pity: Obesity and diabetes - Volume 21, Issue

Something less beguiling for a horror-story addict than the emergence of obesity would be hard to imagine. Start by reading the 27 August 2011 issue of the Lancet. One article predicts that the obesity rate in the UK will make the tremendous leap fro…

What can twitter do for me? - Volume 22, Issue

Like everything, the usefulness of twitter depends on what the user does with it. Here is an assortment of information that can be obtained if you selectively follow organisations with twitter accounts relevant to your interests or…