The GPP4 Steering Committee (SC) and ISMPP are excited to announce the publication of the updated Good Publication Practice guidelines (GPP 2022) for company-sponsored research in Annals of Internal Medicine. Access GPP 2022 in the August 30, 2022 issue of Annals.1
A feature of best practices in publications since 2003, GPP has been periodically updated to reflect the ever-expanding and evolving role of the medical publication professional, as well as the nature of biomedical publishing. This GPP update reverts to the original terminology without a version number – to align with similar guidance, such as Good Clinical Practice – and instead reflects the year of the update.
“We are pleased to deliver the updated GPP 2022 guidance to the medical publications and communications community, and we encourage all in the profession – individuals and organizations – to adopt these contemporary best practices,” said Dan Bridges, Chair of the ISMPP Board of Trustees and co-author of GPP 2022.
“We are pleased to deliver the updated GPP 2022 guidance to the medical publications and communications community, and we encourage all in the profession – individuals and organizations – to adopt these contemporary best practices.”
Dan Bridges, Chair of the ISMPP Board of Trustees and co-author of GPP 2022
Member Feedback was Critical
One important feature of the 2022 update to GPP was the support of ISMPP’s membership in a two-tiered process: an invited expert review and an open volunteer review. Invited experts either provided direct feedback on a GPP draft or solicited advice within their organizations and provided consolidated comments. Volunteer reviewers were asked to solicit feedback within their organizations and provide consolidated sets of comments.
“The involvement of ISMPP members was strongly encouraged. We estimate that more than 500 people provided comments on various drafts. The outpouring of support and advice in authoring the updated GPP guideline was truly inspiring,” highlighted Lisa DeTora, lead author of GPP 2022 and Associate Professor at Hofstra University.
“The involvement of ISMPP members was strongly encouraged. We estimate that more than 500 people provided comments on various drafts. The outpouring of support and advice in authoring the updated GPP guideline was truly inspiring.”
Lisa DeTora, lead author of GPP 2022 and Associate Professor at Hofstra University
The level of ISMPP member participation was unprecedented in the history of GPP and reflects the increasing professionalization of the field. SC members were also able to discuss the review process and interact with members at roundtables and a workshop held at ISMPP’s 18th Annual Meeting in May 2022. These interactions helped the authors clarify and consolidate review comments from Annals.
Key Updates Cover New Areas and Ready-to-Go Advice
As noted in SC presentations at ISMPP’s European Meeting and Annual Meeting in 2022, several new areas received attention in the 2022 GPP update. These areas include alliances, the role of patients in publications, and policies and procedures. Advice is also provided on the use of social media, documentation, and enhanced content, including plain language summaries.
GPP was significantly reorganized to offer guidance and process steps for:
- Steering Committees
- Publication Plans
- Publication Working Groups
- Authorship and Contributorship Determination
- Publication Process
Reorganization was intended to provide ready-to-go advice for teams and to give an overview of the basic best practices for planning and developing biomedical publications. A table mapping GPP3 contents to the new GPP update is also included.
Another important feature of the 2022 GPP update is inclusivity. The published text considers inclusivity in terms of demographic characteristics and geography, as well as job roles. Notably, enhanced attention to inclusivity among publication steering committees and working groups is one means of simplifying authorship discussions, especially in the context of encore presentations at regional conferences.
Next Steps and Upcoming Presentations
“GPP has become the foundational guidance to provide best practices across our profession. ISMPP remains committed to GPP and to facilitating ongoing education for awareness, adoption, and implementation,” said Robert Matheis, President & CEO, ISMPP.
“GPP has become the foundational guidance to provide best practices across our profession. ISMPP remains committed to GPP and to facilitating ongoing education for awareness, adoption, and implementation.”
Robert Matheis, President & CEO, ISMPP
ISMPP is proud to host the SC in its first presentation of GPP 2022 at a Special ISMPP U webinar:
This ISMPP U is available to ISMPP Members & Non-Members. FREE for ALL to ATTEND!
REGISTER NOW!
A recording will be available for public access after the webinar on ISMPP’s Virtual Academy.
The SC members will also be presenting the updated GPP guidelines at these upcoming ISMPP meetings:
ISMPP West 2022, September 26-27, in Irvine, California
(Registration is open for 2 more weeks, until September 15!)
2023 European Meeting of ISMPP, January 24-25, in London, UK
(Registration opens in October.)
Questions about GPP 2022 for the SC or ISMPP can be directed to: gpp2022@ismpp.org
Information about GPP 2022 is also posted on the ISMPP website.
1 DeTora LM, Toroser D, Sykes A, et al. Good Publication Practice (GPP) guidelines for company-sponsored biomedical research: 2022 update. Ann Intern Med. 30 August 2022. [Epub ahead of print]. doi:10.7326/M22-1460