Some of you who have been receiving the journal for a while may have a sense of déjà vu as you read my editorial …
… Yes I’m delighted to reprise my role from earlier this century as editor-in-chief and I will try to carry on the good work done in the last few years by Dr Kevin Martin, and more recently, Mr Bid Kumar and the team of hard-working deputy editors. The journal is attracting greater numbers of original research submissions from around the world and is growing in status as a respected forum from which to disseminate results. It is also a valuable resource for sharing issues related to professional practice and education of the ultrasound workforce both in the United Kingdom (UK) and overseas. There is growing interest around the world in the unique role held by UK sonographers and in their responsibilities working alongside medical ultrasound practitioners including radiologists. I welcome articles featuring not only original clinical research, case studies and educational reports but also audits of training, practice, and performance of any users of ultrasound. Good examples in this edition include that offered by Hayward et al. who investigated the use of ultrasound by respiratory physiotherapists, and that by Weller et al. who report on multi-professional inter-observer agreement when applying the British Thyroid Association guidelines for scoring thyroid nodules.
I anticipate this new decade will herald many new changes and developments to existing ultrasound practice and applications, and I look forward to offering a broad and eclectic mix of articles that reflect these changes, thus ensuring there is something of interest to all our readers. Original research in this first issue of 2020, in addition to those mentioned above, include a study by Tomlin et al. on breaking bad news and how to do it better, an investigation by Tung-Chen et al. on the prevalence of deep vein thrombosis one week after a negative ultrasound scan, and research by Coiffier et al. who describe the impact of a point-of-care ultrasound training module on medical students in Hong Kong. Some excellent interesting and unusual case reports are featured, as always, in the latter pages.
Accepting the role of editor-in-chief means there are not enough hours in the day to continue writing the traditional Echoes column. Rest assured though that Ms Allison Harris, Ultrasound Clinical Coordinator at City, University of London, has kindly agreed to take up the baton and run with it in a similar format to that which Dr Mike Weston, initially, and then myself have done over the last 20 years or so. Many thanks indeed to Allison for finding the time to keep us aware of what is new and relevant in other journals.
I hope very much that you enjoy this edition of the journal, and I welcome your thoughts and ideas on how to improve future issues.
As I make final preparations for this issue, I've heard the sad news that Tom Brown, one of the greatest pioneers in the invention of medical ultrasound, has passed away at the age of 86. There will be a fitting tribute to this visionary and tenacious innovator in the May issue of Ultrasound. In the meantime my thoughts and condolences are with his family.