Most medical journals publish high-quality scientific articles (both research and practice papers) that are of great significance to the readers to achieve their primary objective of improving medical care.1 Medical publication in reputable journals is routinely discussed at the medical policy-making level. For example, the cost-effectiveness between sildenafil and the readily available beraprost in the universal health coverage system (Jaminan Kesehatan Nasional [JKN]) is being studied and discussed in the technology screening division of the Ministry of Health. Sildenafil is currently included in the JKN coverage for treating patients with pulmonary hypertension due to better outcomes. Several papers have also called for Indonesia to incorporate international guideline-approved medications for pulmonary hypertension other than beraprost into our regimen.2,3 Furthermore, the prospects for the organ transplantation network and system in Indonesia are being studied to overcome the soaring cost of treatment of end-stage kidney disease using hemodialysis and end-stage heart failure using medications.⁴ Considerations are also made on transplantation-bridging therapy in end-stage heart failure using a left ventricular assist device. In addition, medical publications are used at the policy-making level, not only for innovations in medical policy but also to improve the existing policy. This is the case for the current investigation of the prospect of using locally made coronary stents instead of imported coronary stents to help suppress costs in coronary heart disease treatment using stent implantation. This approach was advocated by one publication in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.5,6 Keeping down costs of care means that more people can be treated using the same amount of budget.
With the high availability of medical information nowadays, policymakers require solid evidence and engage in lengthy discussions before making a decision. Keeping up with advances in the medical world, the Ministry of Health, with its various divisions, are adapting between the ever-changing advances in the medical world and the country’s need. These changes are studied by the Research and Development Institute (Litbangkes) and the health technology assessment of the Ministry of Health. As the fourth most populated country in the world with an extensive maritime frontier, public health policy in Indonesia needs to be thoroughly discussed to meet the needs of all its citizens. Therefore, the research and development division and the health technology assessment at the Ministry of Health hold monthly briefing regarding public health policy and study articles from various medical journals, either international or Indonesian, for their impact on our public health policy.
During the current digital era, physicians are faced with easy access to information worldwide. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic changes our lifestyle, including our behaviors in seeking information about medicine.7,8 Evidence-based medicine has always been utilized to avoid errors on clinical decision and health-related policymaking. Currently, physicians can easily access valid and reputable guidelines and studies for all medical conditions from medical journals worldwide. These journals are kept to standard by stringent editorial policies and boards to avoid disseminating wrong information.
Medical Journal of Indonesia (MJI), with its global readership, needs to improve the citation index to be more influential in the health-related policy-making process since many Indonesian medical research is published in the journal. In doing so, the journal’s editorial board needs to reach out to editors of medical journals overseas to study ways to improve the journal. These are necessary for MJI to contribute to accelerating the health transformation in Indonesia.
REFERENCES
- Hudzik B. What makes a good medical journal great? CMAJ. 2016;188(7):531.
- Dinarti LK, Anggrahini DW, Lilyasari O, Siswanto BB, Hartopo AB. Pulmonary arterial hypertension in Indonesia: current status and local application of international guidelines. Glob Heart. 2021;16(1):23.
- Yonas E, Pranata R, Yamin M, Nusarintowati N, Nauli SE, Abdulgani HB, et al. Clinical and hemodynamic effect of endothelin receptor antagonists in eisenmenger syndrome. Ann Pediatr Cardiol. 2020;13(4):309–19.
- Yonas E, Alwi I, Pranata R, Huang I, Lim MA, Gutierrez EJ, et al. Effect of heart failure on the outcome of COVID-19 - A meta analysis and systematic review. Am J Emerg Med. 2021;46:204–11.
- Beshchasna N, Saqib M, Kraskiewicz H, Wasyluk Ł, Kuzmin O, Duta OC, et al. Recent advances in manufacturing innovative stents. Pharmaceutics. 2020;12(4):349.
- Giri J, Halaby R. Coronary stents. J Am Coll Cardiol Intv. 2021;14 (22):2474–6.
- Pranata R, Lim MA, Yonas E, Siswanto BB, Meyer M. Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest prognosis during the COVID-19 pandemic. Intern Emerg Med. 2020;15(5):875–7.
- Lim MA, Huang I, Yonas E, Vania R, Pranata R. A wave of non-communicable diseases following the COVID-19 pandemic. Diabetes Metab Syndr. 2020;14(5):979–80.