Summary
Objectives
To provide an editorial introduction into the special 25th anniversary edition of the IMIA Yearbook of Medical Informatics with discussion of the significance of the Yearbook, past and current editorial teams, and a look into the future.
Methods
A brief overview of the 2016 anniversary edition of the Yearbook allows for a discussion of the significance and value of the Yearbook to the Biomedical Informatics community as well as a review of changes in Yearbook team and format over time.
Results
The IMIA Yearbook celebrates its 25th edition bearing witness to the quality of the IMIA brand, the Yearbook content, as well as to the dedication of and the inordinate amount of labor from the authors and editors of the Yearbook. Editorial teams are to be applauded for their hard work and for their foresight in steering the Yearbook from a paperback to an open access online publication. The special edition provides reviews of past editorials with the knowledge of today.
Conclusions
The IMIA Yearbook celebrates a remarkable milestone providing a testament to the maturity of the Biomedical Informatics field. Informaticians across the world are encouraged to thank past editorial teams and celebrate with IMIA.
Keywords: International Medical Informatics Association, Yearbook, silver anniversary, biomedical informatics
Silver Anniversary
Please celebrate with us the 25th Anniversary of the IMIA Yearbook. In our relatively young field, 25 years of publishing an annual book in Biomedical and Health Informatics is an extraordinary achievement and a mark of perseverance and quality. Twenty-five years of the IMIA Yearbook show the maturity of the field, corroborate the quality of the IMIA brand, confirm the quality of the content, and demonstrate the dedication of and the inordinate amount of labor from the authors and editors of the Yearbook. So, please extend your congratulations to IMIA and be one of the first to offer your best wishes on the IMIA Facebook page.
Significance
The significance of the Yearbook to the field of Biomedical Informatics is hard to overestimate. Every year, experts in the various domains review the literature of the last year and highlight in one place the most important works, allowing others to quickly identify the seminal publications in the domain for the prior year. Every year’s special section focuses on a particular relevant topic that is timely and important. Historical reviews and news from the different IMIA regions round out the content of the Yearbook.
Special Edition
This year, we will have a special edition of the Yearbook. Besides our regular edition, we have an Anniversary Edition, which includes leaders in our field rethinking their keynote papers from the past. We will also feature review papers on the main domains of Biomedical Informatics that look back at 25 years to describe where these domains were in 1992, explore the barriers and incentives that shaped their evolution until today, and dare to predict the changes in the coming 25 Years. This should make interesting reading for the future editors of the 50th anniversary edition of the Yearbook.
Past Editorial Teams
Of course, at such an important milestone, we have to mention the individuals, who established and guided the yearbook. Praise must go to Alexa McCray (Figure 1) and Jan van Bemmel (Figure 2) – the first editors of the Yearbook, who still show great interest in its operation and well-being. Other important individuals, who were important stewards of the Yearbook, include Reinhold Haux (Figure 3), Casimir Kulikowski (Figure 4), and Antoine Geissbuhler (Figure 5). With the current team of Marie-Christine Jaulent, Christoph Lehmann, and Brigitte Séroussi, for the first time in its history does the Yearbook have a majority female leadership.
Fig. 1.
Alexa McCray
Fig. 2.
Jan van Bemmel
Fig. 3.
Reinhold Haux
Fig. 4.
Casimir Kulikowski
Fig. 5.
Antoine Geissbuhler
The unsung heroes of the Yearbook are the managers of the Editorial Office. Past managers include Desiree IM de Jong (1992 – 1999, Figure 6) and Rosa JJR Scholte (1992 – 1999, Figure 7) from the Erasmus University. This editorial team wants to thank Martina Hutter (2000 – Present, Figure 8) for her tremendous contribution, for her dedication, her ability to hold us accountable and to deliver on time. Without her, the Yearbook would not be possible. Thank you, Martina!
Fig. 6.
Désirée de Jong
Fig. 7.
Rosa Scholte
Fig. 8.
Martina Hutter
Yearbook Format
The Yearbook’s format has changed over the years. Initially printed and distributed as a paperback at IMIA conferences like MedInfo, the Yearbook went to free online access in 2014 – an achievement we are proud of since it allows all IMIA members, including those in resource poor areas of the globe, to use the valuable articles. The current editors thank the IMIA Board and the General Assembly for their wisdom, foresight, and generosity to make this possible!
Gratitude is also in order for the wonderful contributions by Professor Haux and the Peter L Reichertz Institute in Braunschweig for bringing the old Yearbook editions online in an open access format. As we are writing this editorial, copies of past Yearbooks are being scanned, and will be available online in part due to the help and generosity of our friends at Schattauer Publishing.
Looking into the Future
Looking at the 12-year reign of Prof. Kulikowski as editor of the Yearbook, at least one member of the current editorial team is embarrassed of leaving after only four years to take over the position of IMIA president in 2017. Being a Yearbook editor is a great challenge but also an enormous honor and we are proud to serve the IMIA and the Biomedical Informatics community. Please be merry with us this fall at the IMIA General Assembly as we celebrate the 25 years of the IMIA Yearbook!
Chris, Marie-Christine, Brigitte
Table 1.
MIA Yearbook editions, their special topic, and their editors
| Year | Special Topic | Editors |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Advances in an Interdisciplinary Science | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 1993 | Sharing Knowledge and Information | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 1994 | Advanced Communications in Health Care | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 1995 | The Computer-based Patient Record | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 1996 | Integration of Information for Patient Care | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 1997 | Computing and Collaborative Care | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 1998 | Health Informatics and the Internet | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 1999 | The Promise of Medical Informatics | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 2000 | Patient-centered Systems | Jan van Bemmel, Alexa McCray |
| 2001 | Digital Libraries and Medicine | Reinhold Haux, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2002 | Medical Imaging Informatics | Reinhold Haux, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2003 | Quality of Health Care: The Role of Informatics | Reinhold Haux, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2004 | Towards Clinical Bioinformatics | Reinhold Haux, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2005 | Ubiquitous Health Care Systems | Reinhold Haux, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2006 | Assessing Information Technologies for Health | Reinhold Haux, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2007 | Biomedical Informatics for Sustainable Health Systems | Antoine Geissbuhler, Reinhold Haux, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2008 | Access to Health Information | Antoine Geissbuhler, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2009 | Closing the Loops in Biomedical Informatics | Antoine Geissbuhler, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2010 | Biomedical Informatics: Building Capacity Worldwide | Antoine Geissbuhler, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2011 | Towards Health Informatics 3.0 | Antoine Geissbuhler, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2012 | Personal Health Informatics | Antoine Geissbuhler, Casimir Kulikowski |
| 2013 | Evidence-based Health Informatics | Marie-Christine Jaulent, Christoph U. Lehmann, Brigitte Séroussi |
| 2014 | Big Data - Smart Health Strategies | Marie-Christine Jaulent, Christoph U. Lehmann, Brigitte Séroussi |
| 2015 | Patient-Centered Care Coordination | Marie-Christine Jaulent, Christoph U. Lehmann, Brigitte Séroussi |
| 2016 | Unintended consequences: new problems & new solutions | Marie-Christine Jaulent, Christoph U. Lehmann, Brigitte Séroussi |