Hamilton AI, Grainger DA, & Miller CH (1976) A New Journal. Operative Dentistry, 1(1), 1-2
A New Journal
Operative Dentistry is a new journal whose purpose is to advance the practice of operative dentistry-its art, its science, and its craft. It is a journal designed to be of direct and immediate appeal to the busy dentist, the recent dental graduate, and the dental educator. Its scope is the traditional domain of operative dentistry, including the scientific foundations of the discipline, dental education, and the social, political, and economic aspects of dental practice.
Operative Dentistry, though a new journal, does not add to the number of existing journals. It succeeds the Journal of the American Academy of Gold Foil Operators, a publication which has flourished for the past eighteen years under the able editorial direction of Jose
E. Medina and Robert B. Wolcott.
Operative Dentistry has been created by the combined efforts of the American Academy of Gold Foil Operators and the Academy of Operative Dentistry, the latter formed recently to establish a broader base for the affairs and activities of operative dentistry throughout the world. The creation of this additional body representing operative dentistry has provided the impetus to publish a new journal with a wider outlook.
It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that operative dentistry constitutes a high proportion of the daily activity of general dentists as well as of dental students. Practicing dentists and teachers in operative dentistry have long attempted to cope with the difficulty of readily finding pertinent articles that give credibility to new restorative materials and techniques; articles that can be counted on to present facts, rather than fictions clothed in well-meant enthusiasm; articles that are brief, to the point, and scientifically sound; articles with current information that is useful to the reader who wants to know now the value of a particular material or technique and how to use it. Those who are diligent and have the opportunity and the time to search a variety of scientific journals can undoubtedly find information that is both pertinent and useful. Too often, though, the search is not rewarding, especially if viewed in the light of time expended, and leads to the realization that scientific articles on operative dentistry are scattered far afield and that, sadly, too many are neither scientific nor valuable. A deep-seated frustration arises from this situation. The dentist, interested in staying abreast of the important information on operative dentistry, is faced each month with the formidable task of scanning a multitude of journals, to say nothing of the need to sift the good from the bad, the practical from the impractical. A sense of satisfaction and relief comes from knowing that the regular reading of just one journal would not only save time but would also provide the most current information on operative dentistry. To these ends Operative Dentistry is committed.
Future articles will not only present the scientific basis for our techniques of cavity preparation and tooth restoration but also will explore the interrelationships of operative dentistry and other specialties and will give the reader information on the social, political, and economic problems of practicing dentistry today when faced with PSRO’s, HMO’s and other O’s that so readily affect the system of providing dental care. A major aim of the editors is to publish concise review articles that synthesize the many discrete items of research data into an articulated body of knowledge readily comprehensible to the general practitioner. Balance in each issue is the goal.
Publishing today is expensive and new journals face the immediate burden of securing an adequate circulation. A journal needs not only authors and editors but also subscribers and readers-readers with an interest in the success of the journal. If there is a need for Operative Dentistry it shall flourish, but success will depend ultimately on the profession identifying itself with the journal’s purpose. The academies and the editorial staff are convinced that operative dentistry is the very root of the existence of the profession. Operative Dentistry is the tangible evidence of that belief. It is up to the reader to hold us to our objectives.
Editor
A. Ian Hamilton, M.A., Ph.D., D.D.S., professor of restorative dentistry, University of Washington School of Dentistry, and lecturer in biological structure, School of Medicine; past president of the American Academy of Gold Foil Operators; member of the George Ellsperman Gold Foil Seminar.
Associate Editors
David A. Grainger, B.D.S., D.D.S., professor and chairman, Department of Operative Dentistry, University of Florida College of Dentistry; past president of the Central Florida Gold Foil Study Group; and consultant to the National Board of Dental Examiners.
Clifford H. Miller, D.D.S., professor of operative dentistry, associate dean, clinical coordinator, and formerly chairman of the Department of Operative Dentistry, Northwestern University Dental School; immediate past president of the American Academy of Gold Foil Operators.