As Chair of ASHRM’s Forum Task Force, I invite all ASHRM members to contribute to the Forum. Please feel free to submit ideas to me at heidi.harrison@inova.org. The Task Force considers and reviews new submissions each month and they are posted on this site as they are approved for publication. Here is some background to help you focus on ideas for articles and understand the process.
The purpose of the Forum Newsletter is threefold: one is to generate spotlight information on current topics for ASHRM members; the second is to encourage our members, both those on the Task Force as well as the general membership, to contribute their thoughts and knowledge or recommend tapping into others to contribute information about relevant topics and, lastly, to provide an opportunity for members to develop their own writing skills in a non-threatening environment. Many authors draw on current job projects and events for articles. The Forum encourages submissions of complete articles (600 to 1,500 words in AP style). There are standing sections including: Letter from the Chair, Book Review (non-technical), Member Profile, ASHRM Event Coverage and Calendar of Events. In addition, there are general categories for articles, including but not limited to Patient Safety, Legal, Clinical and Behavioral Health. Sometimes the Task Force picks a theme for an issue.
Here is some information related to the processes involved in preparing articles for publication. Each article/abstract that is submitted is assigned to a Task Force member reviewer. The reviewer is responsible for reading and commenting as necessary related to editing and/or content. If the article needs major changes, the reviewer will contact and coach the writer through a review to make changes and/or discuss with the Task Force Chair.
Also, I invite you to consider volunteering as member of the Task Force member. Duties are:
- Participate in a monthly Telemeeting to update progress on articles and future submissions
- Volunteer to write an article or bring in a subject-matter expert to write for the Forum
- Review articles for general content and suitability for the Forum
