Students from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) have launched the sixth edition of the RCSI Student Medical Journal (RCSIsmj). RCSIsmj is produced by RCSI students for students and staff. The journal aims to promote student authorship and to foster research, innovation and student participation with healthcare issues.

RCSIsmj is a multidisciplinary publication which includes articles and submissions from medical, physiotherapy, and pharmacy students. The articles range from original research, audits, and special interest pieces to the publication of abstracts, case reports, and elective reviews.

Article topics in this year's edition include the migration of healthcare workers from Ireland, as a future in Ireland for many, is not on the table anymore. The journal will include exciting new research developments in cystic fibrosis (CF) as well as original research on the hormonal factors that influence CF. Much work is done in the field of cystic fibrosis at RCSI and an article will look at the new gene-modulating treatments for the disease (which target the cause of the illness rather than the symptoms), which includes the recent, potentially controversial in the long term, approval of Kalydeco.

Other research articles will explore female genital mutilation, advancements in breast cancer, stem cell therapy for multiple sclerosis (MS) and the Ethics Challenge competition challenges students to think critically about a patient's cognitive faculties and treatment wishes.

Professor Hannah McGee, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, RCSI, complimented the student editorial team on the production of a very high quality product. "The quality of the journal is a testament to the students who have worked very successfully as a team, and to those committed academic staff who support the students in achieving their goals. The importance of research cannot be underestimated in the quest to advance understanding and treatment of disease, which in turn leads to better clinical care and best practice patient care. By providing healthcare students with the opportunity to develop their research skills and interests at an early stage in their career, it gives students a better understanding of how research can be translated from the bench to the patients' bedside."

The RCSIsmj is to provide a forum for RCSI student contributions to the field of medicine, in any discipline. The journal publishes student research ranging from basic laboratory science and clinical work to humanities analyses of medicine in society. The goal of the the RCSIsmj is to encourage student research, writing and submission for publication, whilst reaching a broad international readership through both our print and electronic versions of the journal.

For more information, visit www.rcsismj.com.