Education for Health (EfH) is the journal of Network: Towards Unity for Health (TUFH). First published in 1988 and originally titled The Annals of Community-Oriented Education, the journal has served as a main source of discussion and dissemination of research and scholarly work related to Network: TUFH mission and objectives. Starting in 2006, with volume 19:1 of EfH, the journal has encouraged submission of manuscripts in five major topic areas:
- describe innovative models for the community-based education of health professionals, and research into the effectiveness of these models;
- describe models of community-based health care delivery and demonstrate the impact and effectiveness of these models;
- describe programs and research on collaborations between academia and health services, with the objective of community health improvement;
- describe and demonstrate multi- and interdisciplinary approaches to health professions education and service delivery;
- describe models and systems of education, research, and service delivery that link, and have implications for, both developing and developed countries.
The journal specifically encourages papers on community-based health education and research about and from developing countries.
In 2004, EfH obtained status as a Medline journal. This has contributed to an increased number of manuscript submissions over the past two years. This growth and the continued attention to serving the international community related to research and educational evaluation studies has resulted in transitioning to an on-line journal. The new publishing format will allow for open access for all readers, on-line submission, much wider and more rapid dissemination of information, and opportunities for news and article alerts to engage and inform readers.
The future of EfH is based in collaboration to increase the breadth and quality of the journal and to appeal to a larger audience of health service providers, public health practitioners, policy makers, and researchers. Currently the journal is informed and supported by: Network: TUFH; the Department of Medical Education, Maastricht University, The Netherlands; FAIMER; Global Health through Education, Training and Service (GHETS); Pan American Health Association/WHO; Department of Family Medicine, University of New Mexico; and the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford. Additionally, special theme issues are being developed, such as “Integration of Medicine and Public Health in Practice through a Unity of Purpose and Action” (to be published in 2007).
For more information on the journal, its content, and instructions for manuscript submission, please visit “Education for Health” at: www.the-networktufh.org/home/index.asp.
