Understanding Authorship in a Changing World

AMWA acknowledges the contributions of Crystal Herron PHD, ELS, as lead content developer, and Michelle Sauer Gehring PHD, ELS, for peer review, in the development of this AMWA resource.

As the world moves in a more interconnected, digital, and collaborative direction, best practices in authorship have become less straightforward. 

Medical writers may find themselves contributing to manuscripts in many ways and might encounter problematic examples of ghost authorship, gift authorship, and guest authorship.

Furthering the Public’s Understanding of Science with Plain Language Summaries

In recent years, medical communicators have been creating documents called plain language summaries (PLS) to help patients, caregivers, and the general public to better understand the latest scientific findings and clinical trial results. 

The terms plain language summaries (PLS), plain language summaries (PLS) for clinical trials, plain language summaries for publication (PLSP), and plain language writing can be confusing — and are sometimes used interchangeably. Although each term has a different application, the documents share a single goal: to work toward inclusion and empowerment of nonexpert audiences.

A Question of Style: Writing Style Guides

What’s your style? Are you an AMA person? An APA aficionado? Does your employer use a house style guide? 

For freelancers, perhaps the more important question is: What writing style guide does your client want you to use?

An Introduction to Equity Science and Medical Writing

We do not live in a world where everyone — regardless of race, gender, gender identity, disability status, or income level — has the same access to high-quality health care, adequate housing, or nutrition. As a result, health outcomes are vastly unequal, causing marginalized populations to experience lower life expectancies and higher levels of preventable diseases.

Resources for Writing for a Global Audience

We live in an increasingly globalized world, and the field of medical communication is no exception. In fact, most medical writers and editors are creating materials for a global scientific audience.

A number of helpful resources, online and in print, exist to help people write clear, translatable prose for global audiences.

Brave New World: Authorship and AI in Medical Writing

There’s plenty of reason for concern about the evolving role of artificial intelligence (AI) in almost every aspect of our culture and economy. In medical communication, concerns about the increased use of AI intersect with issues on authorship.