One year—four issues. I guess that doesn't seem like a lot, but I feel a definite sense of accomplishment—and a bit of relief—at having gotten through my first year as editor of JNMT. There have been some glitches along the way, and I have made some mistakes. All-in-all, things have turned out pretty well, but I would be naïve to expect that there will not continue to be problems. Feel free to let me know how you think things are going; this is your journal, and you should have more input into it.
I believe we have a pretty good issue here. Besides a continuing education article on CT, there are articles on quality control in a mobile PET/CT scanner, SPECT imaging, myocardial imaging, PET imaging with a NEMA phantom, renal studies, and order entry systems. Also, in this issue we begin publishing the SNM Procedure Guidelines.
Thanks to all of these submissions, this issue should have a few extra pages. This has always been my goal for JNMT. Not only do I want to increase the informational substance of the journal, but also I would like the journal to have more physical substance. This means we all have to do our part to keep this trend going—whether that means submitting manuscripts ourselves or encouraging those around us to publish.
There is always some timeline disconnect when I write these editorials. For example, I am writing the December editorial in early October to meet publishing deadlines. It occurs to me that before my next editorial appears in the March issue, SNM will have held its Mid-Winter Educational Symposium. The meeting will be held in Newport Beach, CA, February 14–17. It would be great to see more of you there. We are publishing the planned continuing education program for technologists in this issue. For this meeting and other scheduled meetings, check out “Events of Interest to the Nuclear Medicine Community” in the back of this issue and also the online SNM Calendar of Events at www.snm.org/calendar.
Editing JNMT is not exactly a solitary endeavor. Much of my success and some of my anguish are shared by my consulting and associate editors whose names appear on the title page of each issue. They always graciously respond to my questions and to my requests for assistance. In the Communications Department at the SNM office in Reston, VA, Susan Alexander, Susan Nadolny, and Ann Coleman instruct me, encourage me, and keep me on deadline.
However, the true unsung supporters of JNMT are the many professionals who review submitted manuscripts. My position and the journal itself would not be possible without their involvement and input. Sometimes I do not even know whether they are physicians, scientists, or technologists; I choose them and value them for their expertise and willingness to help. To see a list of 2007 reviewers, go to http://tech.snmjournals.org/misc/edboard.shtml. There is no way to thank each of these individuals sufficiently, but I hope that they realize how much their efforts are appreciated.