An article published this week in Accountability in Research aims to dispel a number of myths in relation to professional medical writing support:

• Myth 1: Medical writers are ghostwriters
• Myth 2: Ghostwriting is common
• Myth 3: Researchers should not need writing support

The article is behind a paywall. However, the PubMed abstract can be accessed here. The abstract concludes: “Authors with sufficient time, writing expertise, and reporting guideline knowledge may meet their obligations without writing assistance. Unfortunately, not all authors are in this position. Decisions about writing support should be based on evidence, not myths.”.

The article was authored by members of the Global Alliance of Publication Professionals (GAPP), who can be contacted by email for any further information regarding the paper: contact@gappteam.org. One of the authors (Adam Jacobs) has also written a blog on the article, which contains further information about the paper – including a link to a preprint of the article.

The aims of GAPP are to:

• Provide a timely and credible response to influential stories about medical publication professionals (eg, professional medical writers, publication planners)
• Be a “go to” group for those needing timely input from international leaders of medical publication professionals.