The troubled Canadian Medical Association Journal finally has a new editor in chief, Paul Hébert, an author, clinician, and professor at the University of Ottawa. According to a news release issued by the journal, he will take office next month, replacing an interim editor who has served since last winter.
The journal’s trouble started in February, with the very public departure of nearly all of its top editors, either by firing or quitting. In a protest of the perceived attack on editorial independence by the journal’s owners, 15 of 19 members of its editorial board then resigned. After months of turmoil, the Canadian Medical Association agreed to carry out recommendations to assure the journal’s independence. The appointment of a new editor appears to signal the end of the controversy.
