Time to Step Aside

Fifteen years, four issues a year, approximately ten articles per issue. For the last thirteen years, I have been the Editor-in-Chief of Seminars in Interventional Radiology and had the privilege of reading the above-mentioned articles and issues as they have been produced by several excellent guest editors and interventional radiologists. I sometimes joke that I'm the most hated interventional radiologist in radiology, because I begged and prodded so many people to get their articles in on time. It has been an incredible learning experience and for the most part, enjoyable.

However, just as I have suggested in past editorials, athletics often can provide lessons for life. I find that I personally am not as involved with the journal as I have been in the past thirteen years. While I have had substantial help from my Associate Editor, John Kaufman, and other people from Thieme Medical Publishers, I feel the time has come to step aside and help Thieme find a new editor-in-chief.

This decision does not come lightly. I sometimes think of the athletes that I have seen in numerous sports, whether it is baseball, European football (soccer), ice hockey, etc. Many times I have questioned why an athlete continues to try to perform for a certain professional team. Sometimes it may be the money, but I think more often it is pride and a difficulty in accepting the fact that time moves forward, things change, and new blood is needed. I have certainly seen this in athletics and I know I have seen this in radiology. I can't tell you how many times I have seen an older radiologist at a RSNA meeting giving a refresher course, using old slides, old ideas and, in fact, old thought processes. It is obvious that this person is on the refresher course list because of past accomplishments and this may be understandable. But as a younger radiologist, I remember saying I hope that when I get to that stage I would be able to step aside. As someone who has given a lot of refresher courses at the RSNA and other meetings, and as someone who has been editor of this journal for a long time, I realize now how these other people and athletes feel. It is hard to give up something and step back emotionally, even when intellectually you know this should happen. Personally, I think I have been fighting this for a while. When I step back it is clear that the journal needs a strong and involved editor-in-chief. After thirteen years, I think it needs an introduction of new blood.

I would like to thank my former guest editors and Thieme, particularly Brian Scanlan, for their input throughout the years. The issues always looked clean and I think the production and appearance of the figures are as good as in any journal out there. Like many journals, Thieme has made the transition to digital imaging and electronics, and this has gone relatively smoothly.

We have tried several times to become part of Index Medicus, and I regret that we have not been successful. I'm not sure the exact reason for this and frankly, I think it has been unfair. This has particularly been unfair to the numerous young authors who have produced some very good literature. Clearly there are unknown factors that go into this decision; however, Seminars in Interventional Radiology remains, and hopefully will remain, the only quarterly review journal on interventional radiology. It's subscription rate remains constant despite the pressures that make radiologists, I think, less likely to read and have time to enjoy such journals. I sincerely hope that whoever takes over as editor-in-chief has as much fun and cooperation as I did.