Kamran Abbasi has been appointed as the new Editor-in-Chief of The BMJ, one of the world’s most influential medical journals.

Effective from 1 January 2022, he succeeds Fiona Godlee, who will step down at the end of this year, after more than 16 years in the role.

The BMJ is a powerful force for change working to improve the quality of healthcare research, policy and practice. It has campaigned in areas such as research fraud and misconduct, the harmful impact of competing interests on patient outcomes, action on climate change, and patient and public involvement in research and healthcare. It is unique in combining high quality medical science with world class journalism and investigations.

Kamran Abbasi, has been Executive Editor of The BMJ since 2016, leading the journal’s content team and international growth strategy. He qualified in medicine from Leeds University, and joined The BMJ after postgraduate training in general medicine. Over a 25 year career in medical editing and publishing, he has developed wide digital, international, senior management, and Board level experience. Kamran is also a visiting professor in the department of primary care and public health at Imperial College, London, and a patron of the South Asian Health Foundation. 

Welcoming the appointment, BMJ’s CEO Chris Jones said: “Kamran’s editorial experience, clear sense of purpose and strong commitment to The BMJ’s values of credibility and integrity, are what distinguished his candidacy.” 

“As BMJ heads into a new and exciting phase of investment and growth, I look forward to working with Kamran to build on this success and continue to develop the journal and the wider business for a digital future. BMJ is committed to diversity and inclusion, and we are proud to appoint a British Asian to this important role. This is a first in our history, but Kamran is also the first person of Asian origin to be editor in chief of any of the top four international medical journals.” 

Kamran Abbasi commented: “I’m honoured to be appointed Editor-in-Chief of The BMJ, and grateful to BMJ and the BMA for putting their faith in me. We are at an exciting moment in the history of The BMJ with opportunities for digital and international growth. Yet the world is in crisis, and it is our role to ensure that outcomes related to health and wellbeing are central to how we create a better future. There has never been a more important time to be evidence based, patient centred, open and transparent, and courageous. These are the values of The BMJ, and we will live by them as a journal to join our readers and authors in influencing health policy, clinical practice, and medical science to improve the health and wellbeing of people and the planet. 

“As I take up my new role, I want to thank Fiona, the first woman to be Editor-in-Chief of The BMJ, for her remarkable stewardship of the journal over the last 16 years. She leaves the journal even stronger than she found it, particularly through its campaigning journalism – and that is all any editor can hope to achieve.”      

ENDS

For further information, please contact:
mediarelations@bmj.com / + 44 (0)7825 118 107

About BMJ
BMJ is a global healthcare knowledge provider that publishes over 65 specialty journals and one of the world’s most cited general medical journals, The BMJ. The journal’s impact factor (an official measure of the importance or rank of a journal) has risen from 7 in 2005 to 39.8 today and in the past five years, worldwide usage on bmj.com has grown from around 1m unique users per month to nearly 6m per month. 

The company also offers digital professional development courses and clinical decision support tools to help health professionals improve healthcare outcomes. BMJ is wholly owned by the British Medical Association (BMA), the professional association and trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. Explore our products and resources at bmj.com/company