Laboratory Medicine Celebrates 50 Years of Educating Pathologists and Laboratory Professionals

Since its inception 50 years ago, Laboratory Medicine has offered a glimpse into the world of clinical laboratories—how their practice has evolved and how they have been affected by political and economic factors.   

From the start, the journal broke new ground by crossing boundaries between pathology and laboratory medicine.

In 2014, the journal reached a new milestone when it was selectedby the National Library of Medicine (NLM) for inclusion in their MEDLINE database, which provides the references searchable by the PubMed interface. Only a third of medical journals achieve that distinction.

“I’m proud of the fact that Laboratory Medicine is now among the group of scientific publications that are recognized by the National Library of Medicine,” says Roger Bertholf, PhD, the journal’s Editor in Chief. “The quality of our papers has increased as we focus on reviews and publishing more original research.” 

Over the years, the print journal has had seven editors and undergone seven redesigns. The name on the journal cover evolved from Laboratory Medicine to Lab Medicine in the early 2000s, although the NLM listing remains the official name. When Dr. Bertholf took over as editor in 2012, he was charged with changing the journal’s appearance, content, and the composition of the editorial board, as well as developing an improved companion website for the journal.

“We revamped the Lab Medicine website to include not only the journal’s content, but additional stories and features that would be of more interest to practicing technologists,” he says. The Lablogatory is an example of content aimed at practicing medical technologists. “We didn’t give up on trying to serve multiple audiences, but instead we reconfigured how we presented those materials.”

The redesigned Lab Medicine website receives over 200,000 visits per month, which speaks well for the visibility of the journal.

Looking forward, Dr. Bertholf is enthusiastic about the future of Laboratory Medicine. Its circulation stands at 60,000, an enviable position when compared with other journals in the medical laboratory field. It also has had a steadily increasing impact factor, which reflects how often the journal’s content is cited in other publications.

As the profession of laboratory medicine evolves, so too will the journal. “The field is changing and focusing more on newer methods and molecular technologies,” Dr. Bertholf says. “Laboratory medicine will remain an essential and growing part of medical practice for the foreseeable future, and ASCP and this journal stand to become even more influential in this sphere.”