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Emerg Med J 2003;20:352-353 doi:10.1136/emj.20.4.352
  • Short report

Is email a reliable means of contacting authors of previously published papers? A study of the Emergency Medicine Journal for 2001

  1. F O’Leary
  1. Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia
  1. Correspondence to:
 Dr F O’Leary, PO Box 109, Concord, NSW 2137, Australia; 
 fmoleary{at}bigpond.com
  • Accepted 30 October 2002

Abstract

Objectives: To determine whether it is possible to contact authors of previously published papers via email.

Methods: A cross sectional study of the Emergency Medicine Journal for 2001.

Results: 118 articles were included in the study. The response rate from those with valid email addresses was 73%. There was no statistical difference between the type of email address used and the address being invalid (p=0.392) or between the type of article and the likelihood of a reply (p=0.197). More responses were obtained from work addresses when compared with Hotmail addresses (86% v 57%, p=0.02).

Conclusions: Email is a valid means of contacting authors of previously published articles, particularly within the emergency medicine specialty. A work based email address may be a more valid means of contact than a Hotmail address.

Footnotes

  • Funding: none.

  • Conflicts of interest: none declared.

Responses to this article

  • Authors' response to emails
    • K.M. Marya
    Emerg Med J published online October 1, 2003

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