The conflict of interest statement shown here is signed by all JAMA and Archives Journals editorial staff, including JAMA print and multimedia editors and manuscript editors and Archives Journals manuscript editors, as part of our efforts to identify and minimize the influence of conflicts of interest on all aspects of manuscript submission, review, and publication. As part of the submission and revision processes, all authors are required to disclose all “conflicts of interest, including specific financial interests and relationships and affiliations relevant to the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript.” ^1-4 These disclosures (or an indication that none were reported) are published following the author contributions at the end of articles accepted for publication. Peer reviewers are asked to disclose any conflicts of interest, “either financial or otherwise,” related to reviewing a particular manuscript and to contact the reviewing editor if they believe they have a disqualifying interest. ^3,4 Members of the JAMA Editorial Board, including the chief editors of the Archives Journals, sign a conflict of interest and financial disclosure statement asking them to disclose “all potentially conflicting financial or other relevant interests pertaining to JAMA,” noting that financial interests to be disclosed “can include, but are not limited to: honoraria, employment, stock ownership or options, patents, patent applications, grants, royalties, consultancies, expert witness activities, large gifts, or paid travel and accommodations.”

Each of the Archives Journals has its own conflict of interest policies for authors, peer reviewers, and editorial board members, although they are similar to the JAMA policies described here.

Perhaps the least transparent conflicts of interest in biomedical publishing are those of editors, whose central role in decisions is confidential except to authors and peer reviewers and is usually not individually specified for readers even in published articles. Disclosure alone is thus not a satisfactory (or, in many circumstances, even a possible) mechanism for dealing with potentially conflicting interests on the part of editors. For that reason the main provision of our editorial staff conflict of interest statement is that editors and other editorial staff will disqualify themselves “from reviewing, editing, or participating in editorial decisions about” any submission that deals with a matter in which either the individual or a member of his or her immediate family (defined as spouse, domestic partner, or minor children) has a direct or competing conflict of interest.

Although the disclosure statement emphasizes and defines financial conflicts of interest because those have been of central concern in biomedical publishing, we recognize that there are “other potentially conflicting interests,” including personal relationships and affiliations, that should be considered. Editorial staff are asked to list any potential conflicts, both as a matter of record and to raise consciousness about potential conflicts. However, it is the recusal from any involvement with a manuscript that is relevant to any potential conflicting interests that is the key aspect of our policy.

The statement also includes a complete prohibition against use of any insider information to “further my own or any others’ financial interests,” an important consideration in view of the early availability of commercially important biomedical information that regularly arrives at major medical journals. The conflict of interest statement was most recently distributed in April 2008 and is updated at least annually, more frequently as necessary.

This statement is a snapshot that records whether there are potential conflicts that may prompt recusal from a role in the review process for, editing of, or publication decisions regarding particular manuscripts or a category of topics. Submitting an accurate and complete statement is an important temporal exercise that further implies an ongoing mental process of self-assessment and then disclosure to the Editor in Chief if circumstances change. It is thus a living pledge to continually assess whether a potential conflict has arisen when none first appeared and a recognition that others are better judges of whether actual influence or mere perception compel one to “step out” for the sake of all.

The editorial staff conflict of interest statement indicates the seriousness with which we take this issue and illustrates our approach to it.

References

• 1. Fontanarosa PB, Flanagin A, DeAngelis CD. Reporting conflicts of interest, financial aspects of research, and role of sponsors in funded studies. JAMA. 2005;294(1):110-111. FULL TEXT
• 2. Flanagin A, Fontanarosa PB, DeAngelis CD. Update on JAMA’s conflict of interest policy. JAMA. 2006;296(2):220-221. FULL TEXT
• 3. DeAngelis CD, Fontanarosa PB, Flanagin A. Reporting financial conflicts of interest and relationships between investigators and research sponsors. JAMA. 2001;286(1):89-91. FULL TEXT
• 4. Conflicts of interest. In: Iverson C, Christiansen S, Flanagin A, et al. American Medical Association Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors. 10th ed. New York, NY: Oxford University Press; 2007:168-179.

Conflict of Interest Statement for JAMA and Archives Journals Editorial Staff

I hereby disclose all of my conflicts of interest and other potentially conflicting interests, including specific financial interests and relationships and affiliations relevant to JAMA and Archives Journals (eg, employment/affiliation, grants or funding, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or stock options, expert testimony, royalties, or patents filed, received, or pending). This applies to the past 5 years and the foreseeable future. I also agree that I will promptly notify the Editor in Chief in writing about any additional potential conflicts of interests that occur.

I agree that I will disqualify myself from reviewing, editing, or participating in editorial decisions about any JAMA and Archives Journals submission that deals with a matter in which either I or a member of my immediate family (ie, my spouse, domestic partner, or minor children) have direct financial interest or a competing financial interest (eg, employment or affiliation, grants or funding, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or stock options, expert testimony, royalties, or patents filed, received, or pending). This also applies to the past 5 years and the foreseeable future.

I also agree that I will not use any confidential information obtained from my activities with JAMA and Archives Journals to further my own or others’ financial interests.

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Please list any potential conflicts of interest:

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