Dominique Delbeke, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, has been praised for her contributions leading to the Journal of Nuclear Medicine’s (JNM) highest impact factor to date. The impact factor increased 12 percent, from 6.646 in 2016 to 7.439 in 2017, according to 2017 Journal Citation Reports recently published by Clarivate Analytics.
The impact factor is determined by the average number of citations received per article published in that journal during the previous two years. Delbeke served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging’s JNM in 2015 and 2016. The 2017 impact factors reflect citations from her term. The journal ranked fifth out of 112 imaging journals, just behind Radiology with an impact factor of 7.469.
In SNMMI’s press release, JNM’s current Editor-in-Chief Johannes Czernin said, “As this impact factor is based on 2016 data, all the credit for this increase goes to JNM Immediate Past Editor Dominique Delbeke, MD, Ph.D., at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. We are continuing to build on her success, focusing on providing the highest quality in basic, translational and clinical sciences.”
As Editor-in-Chief, Delbeke oversaw the review process of manuscripts, delegating them to Associate Editors with expertise on the topic of those submitted to the JNM. Acceptance or rejection of the manuscript was based on the reviewer’s comments and scores. Commonly used reviewers with good credibility were appointed to the Editorial Board.
“The Associate Editors and Editorial Board members also deserve credit for the increased impact factor,” said Delbeke. “Czernin, who was one of the Associate Editors during my term, is now Editor-in-Chief. The JNM is in good hands, and I look forward to seeing him succeed.”
Although she completed her five-year term with the JNM on Dec. 31, 2016, Dr. Delbeke continues to be actively involved in the SNMMI. She served as the President from 2010 to 2011, and was inducted into the inaugural SNMMI Fellow class in 2016. In June 2016, she received the SNMMI Presidential Distinguished Educator Award. She was also appointed Chair of the Procedure Standard Committee in June 2017.
