Task force of the EFMI journals: background, rationale and purpose.

The paper presents an analysis of how EFMI disseminates new knowledge and the active medical informatics journals in EFMI member countries was carried out as an outcome of the EFMI Council meeting in London in 2008. The analysis identifies eight active major informatics journals and a several other publications. Most are subscription-based and are published at least quarterly. There is a possibility for the editors to meet regularly and form a community of practice with the aim of further improving their effectiveness in disseminating new knowledge and best practice in medical informatics. It is feasible to share expertise and it may be possible to harmonise several aspects of preparation and submission of manuscripts so that some identified barriers in publishing are reduced.