Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40425471›Full record

ArticleAnnals of family medicine2025

Authorship Inequity in Global Health Research Conducted in Low- and Middle-Income Countries and Published in High-Income Country Family Medicine Journals.

Alyssa Vecchio, Bridget Nandawula, Kelsey Sawyer, James Akiruga Amisi, Daria Szkwarko, Kathy Z Chang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Annals of family medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Authorship and citation inequities in high-impact emergency medicine journals: a bibliometric analysis.African journal of emergency medicine : Revue africaine de la medecine d'urgence · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Alyssa VecchioUniversity of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico alyssa_vecchio@brown.edu.
Bridget NandawulaEngeye, Inc, Albany, New York.
Kelsey SawyerThe Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
James Akiruga AmisiMoi University School of Medicine, Eldoret, Kenya.
Daria SzkwarkoThe Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
Kathy Z ChangUniversity of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThe current structures of global health research and academic authorship have resulted in underrepresentation of authors from low- and middle-income countries. Although authorship inequity has been shown in other specialties, the current status of authorship in family medicine has not been examined.

methodsWe conducted a bibliometric analysis of World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) journals based in high-income countries for articles describing research conducted in low-income countries, lower-middle-income countries, and upper-middle-income countries from 2018 to 2023. Descriptive statistics were computed to summarize the proportion of first and senior authors by the articles' study location and publication characteristics.

resultsWe retrieved 1,030 articles through our comprehensive search. A total of 431 articles from 16 family medicine journals remained after abstract and full-text review. Over time, there was an increase in publication of research articles from low- and middle-income countries in the family medicine journals, with the majority of the studies conducted in upper-middle-income countries (55.9%). The proportion of senior authors from high-income countries was highest in articles with research conducted in low-income countries (50%) compared with those reporting research done in lower-middle-income countries (37%) and upper-middle-income countries (21%).

conclusionsAbout one-quarter of articles with research conducted in low- and middle-income countries and published in family medicine journals have first and/or senior authors from high-income countries; this representation is even higher when analysis is restricted to research done in low-income countries. To support authorship equity, family medicine researchers should reconsider the definition of authorship criteria, promote culturally humble mentorship, and encourage institutions to adapt promotion criteria to empower equitable global health partnerships.

Indexed as

AuthorshipBiomedical ResearchDeveloping CountriesFamily PracticeGlobal HealthPeriodicals as TopicPublishingBibliometricsDeveloped CountriesHumansauthorship equitydeveloped countrydeveloping countryfamily practiceglobal healthglobal health researchinternational cooperationlow-middle-income countriesmedical journalsprimary carepublications

Identifiers

PMID40425471
PMCPMC12120164

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.