View source for The BMJ

{{redirect|BMJ}}
{{Short description|British peer-reviewed medical journal}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2015}}
{{Infobox journal
| title = The BMJ
| image = Recent front cover of The BMJ.jpg
| editor = [[Kamran Abbasi]]
| discipline = Medicine
| formername = Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal,<br />British Medical Journal,<br />BMJ
| abbreviation = BMJ
| publisher = BMA
| country = United Kingdom
| frequency = Fortnightly in print, daily online
| history = 1840–present
| openaccess = Immediate, research articles only
| license = [[Creative Commons licenses|Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License]]
| impact = 43.0 (restated)
| impact-year = 2024
| website = http://bmj.com
| link1 = http://www.bmj.com/archive
| link1-name = Online archive
| JSTOR = 09598138
| OCLC = 32595642
| LCCN = 97640199
| CODEN = DXRA5
| ISSN = 0959-8138
| eISSN = 1756-1833
}}

'''''The BMJ''''' is a fortnightly<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Abbasi |first=Kamran |date=2024-12-05 |title=The BMJ 2025: fortnightly in print, daily online |url=https://www.bmj.com/content/387/bmj.q2701 |journal=BMJ |language=en |volume=387 |article-number=q2701 |doi=10.1136/bmj.q2701 |issn=1756-1833 |pmid=39638351}}</ref> [[Peer review|peer-reviewed]] medical journal, published by [[BMJ (company)|BMJ Publishing Group Ltd]], which in turn is wholly owned by the [[British Medical Association]] (BMA). ''The BMJ'' has editorial freedom from the BMA.<ref name="Publishing model">{{cite web |title=Publishing model |url=https://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/publishing-model |website=bmj.com |publisher=BMJ |access-date=14 October 2020 |archive-date=1 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101184234/https://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/publishing-model |url-status=live }}</ref> It is one of the world's oldest general medical journals. Previously called the '''''British Medical Journal''''', the title was officially shortened to ''BMJ'' in 1988, and then changed to ''The BMJ'' in 2014.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Payne|first1=David|last2=Abbasi|first2=Kamran|last3=Godlee|first3=Fiona|last4=Delamothe|first4=Tony|date=30 June 2014|title=The BMJ, the definite article|url=https://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g4168|journal=BMJ|language=en|volume=348|article-number=g4168|doi=10.1136/bmj.g4168|issn=1756-1833|pmid=24982510|doi-access=free|access-date=19 November 2018|archive-date=3 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201103110258/https://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g4168|url-status=live}}</ref> The current [[editor-in-chief]] of ''The BMJ'' is [[Kamran Abbasi]], who was appointed in January 2022.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bmj.com/content/375/bmj.n3084 |title=Kamran Abbasi appointed as editor in chief of The BMJ |date=15 December 2021 |doi=10.1136/bmj.n3084 |last1=Kmietowicz |first1=Zosia |journal=BMJ |article-number=n3084 |access-date=22 December 2022 |archive-date=23 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221223134823/https://www.bmj.com/content/375/bmj.n3084 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== History ==
The journal began publishing on 3 October 1840 as the ''Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal'' and quickly attracted the attention of physicians around the world through its publication of high-quality original research articles and unique case reports.<ref name="MoM">{{cite book |title= Mirror of Medicine: A History of the British Medical Journal | first = P.W.J. | last = Batrip | name-list-style = vanc |year= 1990 |publisher= Oxford University Press |location= Oxford |isbn= 0-19-261844-X }}</ref> The ''BMJ''{{'}}s first editors were [[P. Hennis Green]], lecturer on the diseases of children at the [[Hunterian School of Medicine]], who also was its founder, and [[Robert James Nicholl Streeten|Robert Streeten]] of [[Worcester, England|Worcester]], a member of the [[Provincial Medical and Surgical Association]] council.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

[[File:Bmjfirstcovershop.GIF|thumb|left|alt=Image of the cover of 1st issue of the ''Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal''|Cover of the 1st issue of the ''Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal'']]
The first issue of the ''Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal'' (''PMSJ'') was 16 pages long and contained three simple woodcut illustrations. The longest items were the editors' introductory editorial and a report of the Provincial Medical and Surgical Association's Eastern Branch. Other pages included a condensed version of [[Henry Warburton]]'s medical reform bill, book reviews, clinical papers, and case notes. There were {{frac|2|1|2}} columns of advertisements. Inclusive of stamp duty it cost [[ £sd |7d]], a price that remained until 1844. In their main article, Green and Streeten noted that they had "received as many advertisements (in proportion to the quantity of letter press) for our first number, as the most popular Medical Journal [''[[The Lancet]]''], after seventeen years of existence."<ref name="MoM" />

In their introductory editorial and later statements, Green and Streeten defined "the main objects of promotion of which the ''Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal'' is established". Summarized, there were two clear main objectives: the advancement of the profession, especially in the provinces, and dissemination of medical knowledge. Green and Streeten also expressed an interest in promoting public well-being, as well as maintaining 'medical practitioners, as a class in that rank of society which, by their intellectual acquirements, by their general moral character, and by the importance of the duties entrusted to them, they are justly entitled to hold'.<ref name="MoM" />

In April 1842 the journal was retitled the ''Provincial Medical Journal and Retrospect of the Medical Sciences'', but two years later it reverted to the ''PMSJ'' under the sole editorship of Streeten. In 1857 the ''BMJ'' first appeared, when the ''PMSJ'' was merged with the ''Associated Medical Journal'' (Volumes 1–4;  1853–1856), which had itself evolved from the ''London Medical Journal'' (Volumes 1–4; 1849–1852) under the editorship of [[John Rose Cormack]].<ref name="US National Library of Medicine">{{cite web |title=Archive of "Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal". |url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/journals/535/#brmedj |website=NCBI |publisher=US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health |access-date=16 March 2020 |archive-date=30 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161030130804/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/journals/535/#brmedj |url-status=live }}</ref>

''The BMJ'' published the first centrally randomized controlled trial.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = ((Medical Research Council)) | title = STREPTOMYCIN treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis | journal = British Medical Journal | volume = 2 | issue = 4582 | pages = 769–82 | date = October 1948 | pmid = 18890300 | pmc = 2091872 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.2.4582.769 }}</ref> The journal also carried seminal papers on the causal effects of smoking on health<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = [[ Richard Doll |Doll R]], Hill AB | title = Smoking and carcinoma of the lung; preliminary report | journal = British Medical Journal | volume = 2 | issue = 4682 | pages = 739–48 | date = September 1950 | pmid = 14772469 | pmc = 2038856 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.2.4682.739 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = [[ Richard Doll |Doll R]], Hill AB | title = The mortality of doctors in relation to their smoking habits; a preliminary report | journal = British Medical Journal | volume = 1 | issue = 4877 | pages = 1451–5 | date = June 1954 | pmid = 13160495 | pmc = 2085438 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.1.4877.1451 }}</ref> and lung cancer and other causes of death in relation to smoking.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = [[ Richard Doll |Doll R]], Hill AB | title = Lung cancer and other causes of death in relation to smoking; a second report on the mortality of British doctors | journal = British Medical Journal | volume = 2 | issue = 5001 | pages = 1071–81 | date = November 1956 | pmid = 13364389 | pmc = 2035864 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.2.5001.1071 }}</ref>

For a long time, the journal's sole competitor was ''The Lancet'', also based in the UK, but with increasing globalization, ''The BMJ'' has faced tough competition from other medical journals, particularly ''[[The New England Journal of Medicine]]'' and the ''[[Journal of the American Medical Association]],''<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Mayor | first1 = S. | name-list-style = vanc | doi = 10.1136/bmj.329.7466.592-e | title = BMJ and Lancet rank among the most clinically relevant medical journals | journal = BMJ | volume = 329 | issue = 7466 | page = 592 | year = 2004 | pmc =516693 }}</ref> now known as JAMA.

In 1980, the journal split in two parts - ''British medical journal (Clinical research edition)'' [ISSN 0267-0623] and ''British medical journal (Practice observed edition)'' [ISSN 0267-0631].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog?sort=pubdate&size=200&term=%22Br+Med+J%22%5BTitle+Abbreviation%5D | title="Br Med J"[Title Abbreviation] |website=NLM Catalog - NCBI |access-date= 27 June 2024 }}</ref>

== Journal content ==
''The BMJ'' is an advocate of [[evidence-based medicine]]. It publishes research as well as clinical reviews, recent medical advances, and editorial perspectives, among others.

A special "Christmas Edition" is published annually on the Friday before Christmas. This edition is known for research articles which apply a serious academic approach to investigating less serious medical questions.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-best-of-the-british-medical-journals-goofy-christmas-papers-180948177/ |title=The Best of the British Medical Journal's Goofy Christmas Papers |first=Rose |last=Eveleth |name-list-style=vanc |work=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|The Smithsonian]] |date=23 December 2013 |access-date=14 January 2016 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304080439/http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-best-of-the-british-medical-journals-goofy-christmas-papers-180948177/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Tis>{{cite web |url=http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/005246.html |title=Language Log: 'Tis the season |work=Language Log |date=21 December 2007 |last=Liberman |first=Mark |name-list-style=vanc |access-date=30 January 2009 |archive-date=9 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109042903/http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/005246.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Delamothe |first=Tony |title=Orthopaedic gorillas no more |journal=BMJ |volume=335 |number=7633 |page=0 |date=2007-12-22 |url=https://www.bmj.com/content/335/7633/0 |doi=10.1136/bmj.39430.559375.47 |pmc=2151146 |access-date=2024-03-10}}</ref> The results are often humorous and widely reported by the mainstream media.<ref name=Tis /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Bronson |first1=Po |last2=Merryman |first2=Ashley |url=http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/nurtureshock/archive/2009/12/18/santa-s-a-health-menace-media-everywhere-are-falling-for-it-but-the-entire-study-is-a-fake.aspx |date=2014-12-15 |title=Santa's a Health Menace? Media Everywhere Are Falling for It—But the Study Was Meant as a Joke |work=Newsweek blog |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106204949/http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/nurtureshock/archive/2009/12/18/santa-s-a-health-menace-media-everywhere-are-falling-for-it-but-the-entire-study-is-a-fake.aspx |archive-date=2010-01-06 }}</ref>

''The BMJ'' has an [[open peer review]] system, in which authors are told who reviewed their manuscript. About half of all submitted articles are rejected without external review.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://resources.bmj.com/bmj/reviewers |title=BMJ peer reviewers: resources — BMJ resources |website=The BMJ |access-date=2011-01-07 |archive-date=2011-04-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110406115100/http://resources.bmj.com/bmj/reviewers |url-status=live}}</ref> Manuscripts chosen for peer review are then reviewed by external experts, who comment on the importance of the work and its suitability for publication, before the final decision on a manuscript is made by the editorial ("hanging") committee, so called because of its similarity to committees that decide which works of art should be hung in an exhibition. The acceptance rate is less than 7% for original research articles.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/resources-authors/forms-policies-and-checklists/bmj-right-journal-my-research-article | title=Is The BMJ the right journal for my research article? | website=The BMJ | access-date=7 September 2015 | quote=Our rejection rate for research is currently around 93%. | archive-date=31 August 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150831110905/http://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/resources-authors/forms-policies-and-checklists/bmj-right-journal-my-research-article }}</ref>

At the beginning of February 2021, ''The BMJ'' introduced a charge of £299 for publishing obituaries. This was widely criticized on social media, by the British Medical Association among others, because of the large number of medical staff being killed by COVID-19.<ref>{{Cite web|date=22 February 2021|title=British Medical Journal slated over 'disgraceful' obituary charge|url=http://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/feb/22/british-medical-journal-slated-over-disgraceful-obituary-charge|access-date=2021-02-22|website=the Guardian|language=en|archive-date=22 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210222235231/https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/feb/22/british-medical-journal-slated-over-disgraceful-obituary-charge|url-status=live}}</ref> The decision was explained, but reversed, by the end of the month.<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Reversing our decision to charge for placing a BMJ obituary |last=Godlee |first=Fiona |journal=The BMJ |date=23 February 2021 |url=https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/02/23/reversing-our-decision-to-charge-for-placing-a-bmj-obituary/ |access-date=22 March 2022 |archive-date=25 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220625142549/https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/02/23/reversing-our-decision-to-charge-for-placing-a-bmj-obituary/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Rapid Recommendations===
In response to the many problems with traditional [[medical guideline]]s, the journal introduced ''BMJ Rapid Recommendations'', a series of trustworthy guidelines focused on the most pressing medical problems.<ref name="siemieniuk1">{{cite journal | vauthors = Siemieniuk RA, Agoritsas T, Macdonald H, Guyatt GH, Brandt L, Vandvik PO | year = 2016 | title = Introduction to BMJ Rapid Recommendations | url = http://www.bmj.com/content/354/bmj.i5191.long | journal = BMJ | volume = 354 | article-number = i5191 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.i5191 | pmid = 27680768 | s2cid = 32498374 | access-date = 22 March 2022 | archive-date = 17 July 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180717041606/https://www.bmj.com/content/354/bmj.i5191.long | url-status = live | url-access = subscription }}</ref>

===Rapid Responses===
''The BMJ'' publishes most e-letters to the journal on its website under the heading Rapid Responses,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bmj.com/rapid-responses |title=All Rapid Responses |website=The BMJ |access-date=2024-03-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240224090115/http://www.bmj.com/rapid-responses |archive-date=2024-02-24 |url-status=live}} Constantly updated list.</ref> organized as a fully moderated Internet forum. Comments are screened for unacceptable content, such as libel or obscenity, and contributors may not remove or edit contributions once they have been published.<ref name="BMJ RR Jan2013"/> {{asof|January 2013|post=,}} 88,500 rapid responses had been posted on the BMJ's website.<ref name="BMJ RR Jan2013">{{cite web |url=http://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2013/01/31/sharon-davies-why-were-reluctant-to-remove-rapid-responses-from-bmj-com/#more-24165 |title=Sharon Davies: Why we're reluctant to remove rapid responses from bmj.com |website=The BMJ opinion |date=31 January 2013 |access-date=14 January 2016 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305033803/http://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2013/01/31/sharon-davies-why-were-reluctant-to-remove-rapid-responses-from-bmj-com/#more-24165 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Indexing and citations ==
''The BMJ'' is included in the major indexes [[PubMed]], [[MEDLINE]], [[EBSCO Industries|EBSCO]], and the [[Science Citation Index]]. The journal has long criticized the misuse of impact factors to award grants and in the recruitment of researchers by academic institutions.<ref name="pmid9056804">{{cite journal | vauthors = Seglen PO | title = Why the impact factor of journals should not be used for evaluating research | journal = BMJ | volume = 314 | issue = 7079 | pages = 498–502 | date = February 1997 | pmid = 9056804 | pmc = 2126010 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.314.7079.497 }}</ref>

The five journals that cited ''The BMJ'' most often in 2008 were (in order of descending citation frequency) ''The BMJ'', the ''[[Cochrane Collaboration|Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews]]'', ''[[The Lancet]]'', ''[[BMC journals|BMC Public Health]]'', and ''[[BMC Health Services Research]]''.<ref name=WoS>{{Cite web | title = Web of Science | url = http://isiwebofknowledge.com/ | access-date = 23 February 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100214003244/http://isiwebofknowledge.com/| archive-date= 14 February 2010 | url-status= live}}</ref> In the same year the five journals most often cited in articles published in ''The BMJ'' were ''The BMJ'', ''[[The Lancet]]'', ''[[The New England Journal of Medicine]]'', ''[[Journal of the American Medical Association]]'' and the ''[[Cochrane Collaboration|Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews]]''.<ref name=WoS/>

== Impact ==
In the 2024 ''[[Journal Citation Reports]]'' ''The BMJ's'' [[impact factor]] was reported to be 43.0.<ref>{{cite web |title=About BMJ |publisher=bmj.com |url=http://resources.bmj.com/bmj/about-bmj |access-date=22 June 2015 |archive-date=7 October 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007160528/http://resources.bmj.com/bmj/about-bmj |url-status=live }}</ref> ranking it 4th among the research journals in the general medical category.<ref name="2012-journal">2022 Journal Citation Report Science Edition, Clarivate, 2023.</ref> However, ''The BMJ'' in 2013 reported that it had become a signatory to the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (commonly known as the [[San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment|Dora Agreement]]), which deprecates the inappropriate use of journal impact factors and urges journal publishers to  "greatly reduce the emphasis on the journal impact factor as a promotional tool, ideally by ceasing to promote the impact factor or by presenting it in the context of a variety of journal-based metrics."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Mayor|first=Susan|date=3 July 2013|title=BMJ joins campaign to put "science into assessment of research," as its impact factor rises|url=https://www.bmj.com/content/347/bmj.f4327|journal=BMJ|language=en|volume=347|article-number=f4327|doi=10.1136/bmj.f4327|issn=1756-1833|pmid=23824094|doi-access=free|access-date=11 July 2019|archive-date=1 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801175744/https://www.bmj.com/content/347/bmj.f4327|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Cello scrotum hoax article ==
In 1974, [[Elaine Murphy, Baroness Murphy|Elaine Murphy]] submitted a brief case report  under her husband's name [[John Murphy (branding consultant)|John]] which suggested a condition known as "[[cello scrotum]]", a fictional condition that supposedly affected male cellists. It was originally submitted as a joke in response to "guitar nipple",<ref>{{cite journal |last=Curtis | first=P. |title=Letter: Guitar nipple |journal=The BMJ|volume=2 |issue=5912 |page=226 |date=27 April 1974 |pmid=4857619 |pmc=1610876 |doi= 10.1136/bmj.2.5912.226-a}}</ref> a condition similar to [[jogger's nipple]] in which some forms of guitar playing causes irritation to the nipple, which Murphy and her husband believed was also a joke. The case report was published in ''The BMJ,''<ref name="BMJ, Murphy, 1974" >{{cite journal|journal=The BMJ|last=Murphy |first=John M. |author-link=John Murphy (branding consultant)|title=Letter: Cello scrotum|date=11 May 1974|volume=2|issue=5914|page=335|pmid=4827125|pmc=1610985|doi=10.1136/bmj.2.5914.335-a}}{{Retracted|doi=10.1136/bmj.b379|http://retractionwatch.com/2011/05/27/retraction-of-an-idea-did-picasso-suffer-migraines-do-guitar-nipple-and-cello-scrotum-exist-ask-a-pigeon/ ''Retraction Watch''|http://retractionwatch.com/2013/10/29/off-with-his-paper-some-authors-want-to-retract-claim-to-have-identified-henry-ivs-head/ ''Retraction Watch''|intentional=yes}}</ref>  and although not widely cited, it was cited  occasionally, often by sceptics,<ref name="BMC Dermatology, Gambichler, 2004" >{{cite journal|journal=BMC Dermatology |last1=Gambichler |first1=Thilo | last2= Boms| first2=Stefanie |last3= Freitag| first3=Marcus| title=Contact dermatitis and other skin conditions in instrumental musicians |year=2004 |issue=4 |page=3 |doi=10.1186/1471-5945-4-3 |volume=4|pmid=15090069|pmc=416484 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name="J Am Acad Derm, Rimmer, 1990" >{{cite journal |journal=[[Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology|J. Amer. Acad. Dermatology]] |date=April 1990 |volume=22 |issue=4 |last1=Rimmer  |first1=Steve |last2=Spielvogel  |first2=Richard L. |title=Dermatologic problems of musicians |pages=657–663   |doi=10.1016/0190-9622(90)70093-W |pmid=2138638}}</ref> because, for example, "when the cello is held in typical playing position, the body of the instrument is not near the scrotum."<ref name="J Am Acad Derm, Shapiro, 1991" >{{cite journal|journal=[[Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology|J. Amer. Acad. Dermatology]]|last=Shapiro  |first=Philip E.|title='Cello scrotum' questioned|year=1991|volume=24|issue=4|page=665|pmid=1827803|doi=10.1016/s0190-9622(08)80178-8|doi-access=free}} (in reference to {{harvnb|Rimmer|Spielvogel|1990}})</ref>

In 2009, 35 years after the original case report was published, Murphy wrote a letter to ''The BMJ'' revealing that the report had been a hoax.<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Murphy |first1= Elaine |last2= Murphy |first2= John |s2cid= 34252130 |title= Murphy's lore |journal=The BMJ |volume= 338 |pages= b288 |date=January 2009 |pmid= 19174435 |doi= 10.1136/bmj.b288 |url= http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/extract/338/jan27_4/b288?ijkey=d66a81e8bf7a5b950326396c2bf897e38c8b6424&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha |url-access= subscription }}</ref>

== Website and access policies ==
''The BMJ'' went fully online in 1995 and archived all its issues on the [[World Wide Web]]. In addition to the print content, the site contains supporting material for original research articles, additional news stories, and electronic letters to the editors.

In 1999, all content of ''The BMJ'' was made freely available online; however, in 2006 this changed to a subscription model. Original research articles continue to be available free, but from January 2006 all other "added value" contents, including clinical reviews and editorials, require a subscription. ''The BMJ'' allows complete free access for visitors from economically disadvantaged countries as part of the [[HINARI]] initiative.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

In October 2008 ''The BMJ'' announced that it would become an [[Open access (publishing)|open access]] journal for research articles. A subscription continued to be required for access to other articles.<ref name="Suber-OA">{{cite web | url = http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/2008/10/bmj-converts-to-gratis-oa.html | title = BMJ converts to OA | first = Peter | last = Suber | name-list-style = vanc | work = Open Access News | date = 20 October 2008 | access-date = 20 October 2008 | archive-date = 10 November 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121110201218/http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/2008/10/bmj-converts-to-gratis-oa.html }}</ref>

== Editions ==
''The BMJ'' is principally an online journal, and only the website carries the full text content of every article. However, print editions are produced, targeting different groups of readers with selections of content, some of it abridged, and different advertising.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/resources-subscribers/bmj-and-student-bmj-issns |title=The BMJ and Student BMJ ISSNs |publisher=The BMJ |access-date=14 January 2016 |archive-date=17 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160417053139/http://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/resources-subscribers/bmj-and-student-bmj-issns }}</ref> The print editions are:
* ''General Practice'' (weekly) for [[general practitioner]]s
* ''Clinical Research'' (weekly) for hospital doctors
* ''Academic'' (monthly) for institutions, researchers, and medical academics

''The BMJ'' also publishes a number of overseas/ foreign language editions: Argentine (in Spanish), Greek, Romanian, Chinese, and Middle Eastern (in English). There is also the ''[[Student BMJ]]'', an online resource for medical students and junior doctors, which publishes an annual print edition each September.

=== Other services and information ===
''The BMJ'' offers several alerting services, free on request:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/resources-readers/receiving-email-alerts |title=Receiving email alerts |publisher=The BMJ |access-date=14 January 2016 |archive-date=14 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151114073313/http://www.bmj.com/about-bmj/resources-readers/receiving-email-alerts |url-status=live }}</ref>
* ''This Week In The BMJ'': A weekly table of contents email, latest research, video, blogs and editorial comment.
* ''Editor's choice'': The Editor-in-Chief or an Associate Editor introduces a selection of the latest research, medical news, comment, and education each week.
* ''Today on bmj.com'' A daily alert with links to a short selection of articles published in ''The BMJ'' in the previous 24 hours.

== Editors ==
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[P. Hennis Green]] and Robert Streeten (1840–1844)
* Robert Streeten (1844–1849)
* [[William Harcourt Ranking|W.H. Ranking]] and J.H. Walsh (1849–1853)
* [[John Rose Cormack]] (1853–1855)
* [[Andrew Wynter]]  (1855–1861)
* [[William Orlando Markham]] (1861–1866)
* [[Ernest Abraham Hart|Ernest Hart]] (1866–1869)
* [[Jonathan Hutchinson]] (1869–1871)
* [[Ernest Abraham Hart|Ernest Hart]] (1871–1898)
* Sir [[Dawson Williams]] (1898–1928)
* [[Norman Gerald Horner]] (1928–1946)
* [[Hugh Clegg (doctor)|Hugh Clegg]] (1947–1965)
* [[Martin Ware]] (1966–1975)
* [[Stephen Lock]] (1975–1991)
* [[Richard Smith (editor)|Richard Smith]] (1991–2004)
*  [[Kamran Abbasi]] (Acting E-i-C) (2004– 2005)
* [[Fiona Godlee]] (2005–2021)
*  [[Kamran Abbasi]] (2022–present)
{{div end}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website}}
* [https://www.jstor.org/journal/bmjbritmedj ''BMJ''] at [[JSTOR]]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bmj}}
[[Category:1840 establishments in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:BMJ Group academic journals]]
[[Category:Creative Commons Attribution-licensed journals]]
[[Category:English-language journals]]
[[Category:General medical journals]]
[[Category:British medical websites]]
[[Category:Open access journals]]
[[Category:Publications established in 1840]]
[[Category:Weekly journals]]