A Step towards Alignment between Impactful Research and Impact Factors: Annals of Geriatric Medicine and Research Indexed in MEDLINE
Article information
We are pleased to announce that the Annals of Geriatric Medicine and Research (AGMR) has been indexed in MEDLINE on August 24, 2024. This achievement marks a significant milestone, as being indexed in MEDLINE indicates that the journal meets rigorous scientific and technical standards, enhancing the visibility and impact of the research published in the journal. While the Web of Science database covers a broad range of scientific disciplines and citation impacts, MEDLINE specializes in biomedical and life sciences using comprehensive indexing with Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms. In 2024, only 35 journals were listed in the MEDLINE, and we are proud to announce that AGMR was listed alongside esteemed journals such as Aging and Disease and JMIR Aging in the field of geriatrics and gerontology. This inclusion is an important step toward establishing AGMR as a global leading journal in this field. The Scientific Quality Review for MEDLINE indexing highlighted that AGMR occupies a niche that is both important and underrepresented in larger mainstream publications. The journal has been acknowledged for its success in bridging international and regional interests, drawing on diverse authorship and topics that represent both interests.
AGMR is published by the Korean Geriatrics Society and serves as a significant platform for researchers across various geriatric specialties, multidisciplinary areas, and related disciplines of gerontology. The journal has been indexed in Scopus since 2016, in the Emerging Source Citation Index since 2018, and its contents have been available on PubMed since 2018.1) It was announced to have an impact factor of 2.8 from Journal Citation Report 2024 and a CiteScore of 4.9 for 2023, placing it in the second quartile (Q2) of indexed journals in Geriatric and Gerontology category of Scopus. According to the status of papers submitted to AGMR and the bibliometric analysis of published papers, between 50 and 60 were published annually, but the number of published papers has gradually increased, exceeding 60 this year. In the past 3 years, about 600 papers have been submitted, and approximately 150 of them have been published, with an average acceptance rate of 25%. Of these, 70% were original articles and 15% were review papers. As of 2024, research results from more than 40 countries worldwide have been submitted to AGMR with significant contributions from Japan, Korea, Singapore, Turkey, Thailand, Taiwan, the United States, and China listed in the order of number of publications. Submissions and publications in AGMR predominantly originate from Asian countries; however, significant research contributions are emerging from diverse nations across all continents, demonstrating that the journal is open to both developed and developing countries.
The journal encompasses a broad range of topics within geriatrics and gerontology, with a primary focus on geriatric syndromes, frailty, and sarcopenia. More recently, numerous research findings on care systems and healthcare policies have also been reported. Over the past 3 years, we have been encouraging the submissions of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related papers, particularly those focusing on the impact on health of older adults and disease status in the post-COVID era. As a result, we have been rapidly publishing reviews on vaccinations in the geriatric population2) and vaccine-related complications,3) a bibliometric analysis of publications on COVID-19 in older adults,4) and innovative research contributions from the professional geriatric community on promoting healthy aging in the post-pandemic context.5-7)
It is time to continuously enhance the quality and impact of the journal and to seek future development directions to increase its influence as a global journal bridging gaps between international and regional interests in geriatrics and gerontology. The Editorial Boards of AGMR has recognized through editorial seminars that journal metrics, including impact factors, do not necessarily guarantee impactful research.8) They have agreed on steering discourse towards aligning impactful research with impact factors, developing an editorial strategy focusing on shaping research priorities, expanding the boundaries of knowledge, and fostering impactful research addressing specific gaps in the population of a given region. By adopting this strategy, AGMR aims to position itself as the nexus of the geriatric research value chain from hypothesis generation to policymaking and practice in the future of global aging.
Notes
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The author claims no conflicts of interest.
FUNDING
None.