The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) is a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Medical Association. The journal publishes original research, reviews, editorials, and commentaries on all aspects of medicine. Topics include but are not limited to: clinical practice, education, health care policy, law and ethics. JAMA also features continuing medical education articles.
JAMA was founded in 1883 by seven physicians including Nathan Smith Davis Jr., MD (1817-1904), AMA’s first president. The first issue was published on July 1st of that year with an editorial entitled “Our Aims”. In it, the editors stated:
“It is our purpose to place before the profession a Journal which will give reliable reports of progress in all departments of medical science; which will be free from partiality or undue influence of any clique or sect; which will be independent in thought and action; which shall never swerve from the path marked out by its founders–the advancement of scientific medicine and the elevation of the standard of professional education and practice.”
Today, JAMA is one of the most widely circulated medical journals in the world with a readership that includes physicians, other health care professionals, scientists, policy makers, and journalists. The journal is available online and in print form. JAMA publishes 12 issues per year (one per month) plus two special issues: a “Research Highlights” issue in January featuring selected papers from across all sections of JAMA; and a “Medical News & Perspectives” issue in July devoted to news stories about advances in medicine and health care policy developments.