http://exhibits.library.stonybrook.edu/mfp/files/original/31b0cbd5d66b5a159dc730dc77d4782c.pdf ed53a70736a9f436f38f60e40a1544e3 PDF Text Text For‘i 91.28 Adm. State of New York Department of Mental Hygiene 5}" 41 LONG ISLAND RESEARCH INSTITUTE State University of New York at Stony Brook . fIifij/ 5L y "hf/WI} ”X? Health Sciences Center 101' 9 IL Stony Brook, New York 11794 STANLEY F. YOLLES. M.D. . DIVISION OF CLINICAL SCIENCES MAX FINK, M.D.. DIRECTOR M.P.H. , F.A.C.P. INSTITUTE DIRECTOR (516) 444-2447 (516) 444-2163 February 29, 1980 Florentine Cambridge University Press New York City 10022 Mr. Harry Dear Mr. My Florentine, reasons for cancelling the subscription to Psychological Medicine are many, some general and some quite specific. The general reasons are the usual-- I find few articles of interest to me, and these are generally those of a review type. Such articles are often reproduced elsewhere so that the failure to read the article in this journal is rarely a handicap. for specifics, I have found the attitude of the editors to one issue in medicine, that of convulsive therapy, quite inconsistent with the prevailing experience. The editors seem to find the treatment repugnant and seem to have made efforts to discredit it. In the past As article on ECI' was published by Dr. Crow. I found done, and wrote a critique addressed to the editors as a year, an it poorly letter. It rejected with the statement that letters are not accepted by the journal. If true, then how can the readers redress the balance of bias that may creep into any editorial board or correct errors that may was occur in any article, no matter how well reviewed ? I recently wrote a book on convulsive therapy, which has been reviewed rather favorably by a number of journals, including Lancet, New England Journal of Medicine, and the American Journal of Psychiatry. Yet, your reviewers chose to combine a review of this volume, the result of more than 25 years of research, with a review of an earlier published diatribe written by a psychotic medical resident. In combining the two reviews, the editors did my serious volume a distinct disservice, but more importantly, they exposed what is clearly their bias. �Last year, Professor Ottosson of the University of Goteborg and I submitted a review article on a theory of the mode of action of ECT to the journal. It was rejected as too speculative. While we accepted this response as reasoned, the Crow article appeared subsequently. Its quality is so inferior to our effort, that I believe bias also entered into this decision. (The article has since been published in a fine journal, needless to say.) This experience follows an earlier experience with the editor. In 1977, I co-edited a volume on the effects of chronic hashish use. The study was undertaken by a team of scientists working in two countries over six years. The data were presented carefully. The editors could not agree as to the significance of one of the findings and it was my burden to write a concluding chapter. To indicate the difference in opinion, I entered a footnote that the opinions stated were mine alone. It was this fact that piqued the excitement of Dr. Shepherd, and which was the highlight of the review. At an international meeting I: met Dr. Shepherd before the review appeared and he was gleeful that the reviewer would highlight this point. His glee was matched by my later discomfiture at having a serious effort distorted by the reviewer and the Editor. These are some of the reasons longer interests me. why Psychological Medicine Thank you for your inquiry. Sincerely yours, Max Fink, M— M.D. Professor of Psychiatry cc:Prof. M. Shepherd no � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Correspondence Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Correspondence to: Florentine, Harry Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context mfp-05-00-030-1-036 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1980 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource <a title="Fink, Max, 1923-" href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79039548" target="_blank">Fink, Max, 1923-</a> Subject The topic of the resource Correspondence -- Correspondence Relation A related resource The Max Fink Collection Description An account of the resource Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a title="IN COPYRIGHT - EDUCATIONAL USE PERMITTED" href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/" target="_blank">IN COPYRIGHT - EDUCATIONAL USE PERMITTED</a> Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries. 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