1-Minute Consult
Purpose: 1-Minute Consult articles provide general internists, hospitalists, and cardiologists with a brief, evidence-based update on important, timely, or difficult clinical questions.
Style: Articles should be written in plain language, with a minimum of technical jargon, and should discuss issues relevant to the everyday practice of general internal medicine and hospital medicine.
Format: A 1-Minute Consult article consists of a single, focused clinical question, followed by a 1-page answer. Do not try to answer a broad clinical question in this type of article. Articles should be no more than 1,200 words long with 10 references. No abstract is required.
Content: The brief answer to the specific title question should appear in the first paragraph of the article. Although unfamiliar terms should be explained, some basic familiarity with an issue on the part of the reader can be assumed. Answers should be evidence-based, with a few key references and suggested reading. When discussing results of clinical studies, the absolute risk value and number needed to treat should be included whenever possible, rather than the relative risk and hazard ratio.
Authorship: Every person listed as an author must have contributed substantially to the paper according to the authorship criteria of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. The criteria are as follows:
- Each author listed must have contributed to the conception or design of the paper, or to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data.
- Each author listed must have participated in drafting the paper or revising it critically for important intellectual content.
- Each author listed must have given final approval of the version to be published.
- Each author listed must have agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the paper, ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Example of a 1-Minute Consult article.