Do you want to contribute to CanadiEM? We are always looking for quality help! We accept submissions of content that is of national interest for Canadian emergency physicians, covers key medical concepts in emergency medicine, and/or addresses important healthcare issues. If you have content that you would like to contribute to one of our existing sections, content that you are unsure whether will fit into one of our sections, or an idea for a new section – we want to hear from you! All submissions can be sent to [email protected]
[bg_faq_start]
National Interest
This section covers content that is of national interest. A substantial amount of the content is produced by the Academic Section of the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians (CAEP), but we do accept submissions of mentorship articles and exceptional lectures. The criteria for each are outlined below.
1. Mentorship articles
The Mentorship section aims to address the career counselling and need-to-know-but-boring aspects of emergency medicine. Thus far, it has focused on the CaRMS application process and studying for exams, but we are also interested in content advising residents and junior academic clinicians on their careers. Senior clinicians are particularly welcome to share pearls of wisdom, insights and opinions. Length: 1000 words max with up to 10 citations.
2. National rounds
The National Rounds podcast has not launched as of yet, but we have a great idea that needs some help to be realized. Essentially, we want to record the best lectures given at grand rounds presentations across the country. This lecture will be cut and remastered as a podcast with additional commentary from our editorial team. If you have a lecture that you would like to submit, please be in touch. Length: up to 1 hour (note that all submissions will be spliced and diced for maximal educational value).
3. Physicians as Humans
The Physicians as Humans series shares stories that demonstrate our fallibility. If you are a physician or resident who has struggled with substance use, mental health, or other personal crises in the context of your career and are willing to discuss it (either anonymously or otherwise), we want to hear from you. The guidelines for this series are still in development, but we plan to accept both written submissions and conduct interviews that will be published as podcasts.
[bg_faq_end][bg_faq_start]Medical Concepts
The Medical Concepts section focuses on reviewing important topics in emergency medicine. these pieces may cite both literature and review resources (e.g. other FOAM blogs, textbooks, review articles). If it is important to emergency medicine practice, we will publish it here. We publish these pieces under multiple subcategories.
1. Medical Concepts
General medical concepts pieces are our long feature articles. They review a topic and its surrounding literature in more depth and breadth than many of our other article types. Length: 1500 words max with up to 10 citations.
2. Knowledge Translation
While my previous posts have often focused on discussing knowledge translation, moving forward the KT section will translate recent literature into practical, usable knowledge. A KT section piece should be focused only on one paper, but may cite related literature so that readers (and learners) can understand the body of work that lead up to the paper of interest. KT pieces should begin with a PICO question format and then help to guide readers towards controversy (presenting all sides as possible), but may also involve the author’s point of view so long as it is clearly demarcated. Length: 1000 words max with up to 10 citations.
3. Tiny Tips
Tiny Tips is a section that provides a short backgrounder leading up to a SINGLE mnemonic that is meant to be a memory aid for learners. Length: 1 mnemonic, 200 words, and up to 3 citations.
4. Chalk Talks
Chalk Talks is the multimedia component of the site. We welcome videos or podcasts about key, frequently-asked (or frequently-taught) topics that all medical students that come through emergency medicine rotations should hear. Videos and podcasts should be approximately 5-10 minutes and include a text summary for the blog.
5. Clinical Questions
Boring Questions will review one specific clinically relevant question in totality (e.g. What is the role of an abdominal film in a patient with abdo pain?). We particularly would like to invite medical students and junior residents to consider submitting for this section. Length: 500 words max with up to 10 citations.
[bg_faq_end][bg_faq_start]Opinion Pieces
All submissions to CanadiEM’s opinion section are considered on a case-by-case basis. We encourage potential writers to be in touch with the editorial team prior to putting ‘pen to paper.’
1. Commentary
The commentary section is where the CanadiEM community is invited to share whatever is on their mind (in a well-written, thought-out, and clearly referenced way!). Submissions for this section are considered on a case-by-case basis. Length: 1000 words max with up to 15 citations.
2. Counterpoint
See something online or in print and have to respond? Did the publisher decline to publish your response or was that process just too slow?? We understand – it happens to us too! Counterpoint is outlet for disseminating these types of responses to the world. Length: 1000 words max with up to 15 citations.
[bg_faq_end]The CanadiEM Publication Process
While we are welcoming new contributors, we want to ensure our content remains high quality and trustworthy. As such, we will continue to maintain a robust editorial process that includes copyediting, internal peer review, and open peer review. Potential contributors should expect that your work will be reviewed by our team and returned for revisions prior to publication.
There are no absolute prerequisites for contributing to CanadiEM and we would encourage you to contact us!
For trainees, here are a few tips to optimize your article prior to submission:
- Please obtain a local staff physician reviewer to review the content for quality assurance. The staff reviewer should also write a 1-2 paragraph commentary on the clinical importance of the article.
- Please add a fictional clinical case to introduce the article (i.e., illustrate the relevance of the clinical question) and end the article with a case conclusion (i.e., how can the information in the article be applied to the case?)
- Please submit an author profile that includes: a headshot photograph; a 2-3 sentence biography including academic roles, interests, and any conflicts of interest, and; an email address. Please ask your local staff reviewer to provide a similar profile.
- Please obtain a featured image to accompany your blog post. Featured images must not have any copyright restrictions against electronic distribution. Some of the best featured images include those that you may have taken on your own (e.g., of a relevant medical scene, or a general landscape), or an infographic that you have made related to your post content. Any images that feature faces should be accompanied with a written consent form signed by the individual featured.
- We use a Vancouver reference style. For your references, please ensure all references to journal articles are accompanied by a DOI link. Please ensure all references to website are accompanied by a URL and a date accessed.