Complying with the NIH Public Access Policy: PMCID Timesavers for EndNote and RefWorks

NIH
Do you use EndNote or RefWorks? If so, take advantage of new tools to get PubMed Central identification numbers (PMCIDs) into citations you plan to use in upcoming grant-related documents.

The new NIH Public Access policy requires that as of May 25, 2008, PMCIDs be listed at the end of the full journal citation in grant applications, proposals, and progress reports. Examples:

Cerrato, A., et al., Genetic interactions between Drosophila melanogaster menin and Jun/Fos. Dev Biol. 2006 Oct 1; 298(1): 59-70. PMCID: PMC2291284

Sala-Torra, O., et al., Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) expression and outcome in adult patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Blood. 2007 April 1; 109(7): 3080–3083. PMCID: PMC1852221

Don’t worry about retrospective enhancement of your old EndNote libraries and RefWorks folders, though. The NIH Public Access Policy applies only to peer-reviewed manuscripts that were accepted for journal publication on or after April 7, 2008 and that arose from the researcher’s NIH funds, whether or not he or she is listed as an author.

By modifying your EndNote or RefWorks capabilities now, you can automatically capture PMCIDs from now on and make them part of your journal citations when needed.

For details, see “How do I add PubMed PMCIDs to citations and documents using EndNote or RefWorks?

Other resources:

• HSLS NIH Public Access Policy page
Public Access Frequently Asked Questions

~ Patricia Weiss

Posted in the 2008 Issue