If you’ve been a Doctors of BC member for a while, chances are the BCMJ has been quietly showing up in your mailbox for years—ten times annually, like clockwork. Some of you read it cover to cover. Others flip through it between patients or leave it on the lunchroom table where it might spark conversation. For many of us, it’s more than a journal—it’s a reflection of who we are as a profession, and where we’re going.
Right now, we’re asking readers—asking you—to weigh in on the future of the BCMJ, and I’m hoping you’ll do me a small favor: fill out our reader survey before it closes on June 23. It takes just a few minutes, but it’s hugely important. One of the big questions we’re asking is whether print still matters to you. Because some are wondering whether it’s time to let it go.
Let me be honest: I don’t think we should make that decision lightly. Cutting print might sound like a modern, cost-saving move. But when you really dig in, it’s not that simple.
For starters, our last two surveys (in 2016 and 2022) showed strong support for print. In 2022, 82% of respondents said they preferred the print version—and that number held steady even when we looked at different age groups. In fact, support for print has barely wavered in the past decade.
There are practical reasons too. Print gives the BCMJ physical presence and visibility. It lands in your hands—not buried in your inbox or forgotten online. It invites you to flip through, to stumble across something unexpected—a colleague’s research, a letter, a commentary, a classified ad you didn’t know you needed. It’s serendipitous in a way that makes the broad range of articles in the BCMJ appealing to so many physicians in BC.
And frankly, it’s not that expensive. In 2024, the journal’s total cost to the association was about $3.40 per issue per member. We already offer an easy opt-out to stop print, but for those who still find value in it, why not preserve the choice?
Beyond print, I want to share something close to my heart: for the past 2 years, our editorial team has been working quietly but steadily toward getting the BCMJ indexed. It’s not glamorous work, but it’s essential. Being indexed means wider visibility, stronger credibility, and a more robust academic future for the journal. It would help us attract higher-quality submissions, better serve you, our reader, and keep up with national and international standards. If indexing matters to you, if you want to see the BCMJ evolve and improve, we need your voice now more than ever.
The BCMJ has been a tangible member benefit since 1959. It’s a small but visible reminder that Doctors of BC is investing in the sharing of knowledge, the fostering of community, and the telling of BC doctors’ stories. The BCMJ has been a constant presence for BC doctors for over 60 years.
So I’m asking—not as a journal editor, not on behalf of a committee, but as a fellow physician who cares deeply about the future of our publication—please complete the reader survey. Let us know what you value. Let us know if you support print. And if you believe the BCMJ should be indexed, say that too.
The future of this journal should be shaped by those who read it.
—Caitlin Dunne, MD, FRCSC
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