Assistant Editors

FPIN assistant editors are the first editors who review Clinical Inquiries and work with the author to prepare the CI manuscript for review by the Clinical Inquiries editor-in-chief, Jim Stevermer.  The assistant editors report to the managing editor and associate editor. The associate editor reviews all manuscripts and makes additional recommendations as needed, and is responsible for any training and orientation that assistant editors may need.

FPIN assistant editors have:

1. excellent writing skills,
2. excellent critical appraisal skills,
3. good clinical judgment,
4. ability to provide critical feedback in a constructive manner and
5. complete their work on time. 

The FPIN assistant editor’s role is to ensure:

1. the quality of the manuscript with respect to the critical appraisal of the original research;
2. the integration of the evidence into a clinically useful answer for point of care use;
3. adherence to author instructions regarding content, format, and word count;
4. the use of a clear, concise writing style;
5. that author questions are answered during manuscript preparation;
6. that changes in the clinical question are negotiated as needed.  In some cases a clinical question may turn out to be too broad or too narrow depending on how much evidence and other literature is found for the answer.  The assistant editor works with the author on the revision of the question.  Final changes are subject to the approval of the associate editor.
7. the author(s) have worked closely with the librarian co-author. 
8. that the author has appropriately considered all comments from the peer reviewer and the editorial team.
9. the clinical commentary is reviewed and to provide feedback for revision of that commentary.

FPIN assistant editor expectations:

1. Edit approximately 8-12 manuscripts each year
   1. Occasionally, an author may elect not to finish a Clinical Inquiry or it may be rejected, so an assistant editor may have more than the mininum manuscripts assigned to them.
2. Complete revisions within the timeline
   1. See timeline below
3. Participate in editor team meetings quarterly
   1. Three via conference call
   2. One in person at STFM
4. Maintain open communication with the CI contributors, CI managing editor and associate editor
5. Provide recommendations for peer reviewers, clinical commentators, authors and candidates for editorship.

When the assistant editor forwards the manuscript to the associate editor it should be in publishable form. 

Co-Author Mentor

 If the manuscript does not meet FPIN's high standards for quality (the best possible answer for use at the point of care) and the author has not responded to recommendations (frequently because they do not have the necessary skills), the assistant editor should suggest an FPIN "co-author mentor".  The co-author mentor is an individual with a proven track record in writing CIs who can take responsibility for the quality of the manuscript and can teach the original author writing or appraisal skills.  Co-author mentors also get FPIN credit as authors (e.g. double FPIN credits for the manuscript).

Our philosophy as an organization is to nurture FPIN authors and teach them skills that they are lacking.  We want every FPIN author to be successful in completing and publishing their Clinical Inquiries. However, FPIN assistant editors are expected to serve as an editor primarily, and not as a co-author re-writing the CI or re-analyzing the original research.  That is the role of a co-author mentor, or of organized faculty development programs or resident research projects within FPIN member departments and residency programs.  FPIN assistant editors are excellent co-author mentors and can play that role if they desire, but they are not expected to spend significant amounts of time on text revisions.

If, after reasonable effort at assistance and recommendations and suggesting a co-author mentor, an FPIN author has not been able to meet the high standards for a Clinical Inquiry, the assistant editor should recommend rejection of the manuscript to the associate editor. The associate editor is responsible for the decision to reject a manuscript prior to submission to JFP or AFP.

JFP and AFP editors also will provide feedback and also have the option of rejecting manuscripts.

Each assistant editor is expected to complete a 8-12 manuscripts each year. A manuscript counts toward the total if it is published in the Journal of Family Practice or American Family Physician. Occasionally, an author may elect not to finish a Clinical Inquiry or it may be rejected, so an assistant editor may have more than 12 manuscripts assigned. Generally, the publication schedule allows 2 months for the assistant editing process, including incorporation of peer review comments, and reviewing the clinical commentary.

The assistant editors report to the editor-in-chief. The editor-n-chief reviews all manuscripts and makes additional recommendations as needed, and is responsible for any training and orientation that assistant editors may need.