The Power of 2.5 Million Words

Today, I am writing for the first time as the new editor of the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing (CJON). It is my honor to assume this role from my colleague and mentor, Deborah K. Mayer, PhD, RN, AOCN®, FAAN. For eight years, Deb served as the editor of one of the most widely read journals in oncology nursing, CJON.

Because CJON serves the practicing oncology nurse, it provides valuable information to improve practice and, most importantly, the outcomes of oncology care. Oncology nurses are looking for information that improves the lives of people with cancer and the people who care about them. Nurses want to be current in their practice with the latest information about treatments, medications, and supportive care. They want evidence-based guidelines to direct their clinical care, guidelines that are easily accessible and useful. They want to be better oncology nurses—the lives of their patients depend on it!

Oncology nursing and cancer care have changed under Deb’s tireless leadership and extraordinary vision. Although she has always been a prolific writer and advocate for nurses and cancer survivors, Deb’s leadership of CJON resulted in the publication of approximately 2.5 million words about cancer care and oncology nursing in this journal. Although I need another oncology nurse to double-check my math (that is what we do!), it appears that Deb has literally published millions of words (see Figure 1).

In addition to leading the CJON Editorial Board, Deb has been a mentor to numerous new authors and associate editors on the CJON Editorial Board, including myself. I published my first article in CJON 10 years ago—a proud moment in my professional career. Later, I served as an associate editor for the Professional Issues column when Deb was CJON editor and grew as an author, editor, and mentor to other new authors. It was always with great joy that I celebrated with newly published authors and shared their work with colleagues. Through the CJON Writing Mentorship Program (https://cjon.ons.org/content/writing-mentorship-program), I watched with pride as authors wrote and rewrote manuscripts under the guidance of experienced mentors until they were published. Today, CJON is a vehicle to share new treatments, best practices from evidence, and important and diverse viewpoints. It also contributes valuable resources for practicing oncology nurses to increase their clinical expertise.

Although scholarly journals often use metrics, such as impact factors, to measure the number of citations from their publications, I know that nurses in oncology practices read CJON. There is not a day that I do not see a copy of CJON on the counter at the office where I practice as an oncology nurse practitioner.

I know we need to share information in multiple ways, including print journals and online resources. The new CJON website provides easy access to the information you need as an oncology nurse and as an author (cjon.ons.org). On the website, timely articles are published open access ahead of the print journal (advanced print exclusive articles), as are journal club articles (also open access) and columns to address hot topics in our practice and profession, as well as in cancer care (https://cjon.ons.org/content/columns-and-editorial-board). In addition, we are always looking for authors to publish in CJON. If you have an idea to improve clinical practice, check out the CJON Call for Topics (https://cjon.ons.org/content/call-topics-0), or contact me with ideas.

Like most things in life, it takes the support and guidance of many people to bring CJON to life. I look forward to working with the outstanding editorial department at the Oncology Nursing Society. I am eager to work with the associate editors on the Editorial Board as stewards of this valuable publication. As a peer reviewer myself, I want to applaud the work of our CJON peer reviewers, who ensure the quality and standards of our publication. Of course, I extend my hand to you, our readers, to keep us informed about your needs as oncology nurses and what is needed to improve cancer care for your patients and their caregivers.

Finally, I am truly grateful to Deb Mayer for her inspiration in the role of editor. Deb has been an extraordinary coach while I assumed the role; I am appreciative of her training and guidance. I have learned much from Deb, more than I can share in the 750 or so words allowed in an editorial. Thank you, Deb, for 2.5 million words of inspiration to nurses everywhere.

About the Author(s)

Lisa Kennedy Sheldon, PhD, APRN, BC, AOCNP®, is an assistant professor at the University of Massachusetts–Boston and an oncology nurse practitioner in the Cancer Center at St. Joseph Hospital in Nashua, NH. The author takes full responsibility for the content of the article. No financial relationships relevant to the content of this articles have been disclosed by the editorial staff. Kennedy Sheldon can be reached at CJONEditor@ons.org.