The Rita Redberg Era at JAMA Internal Medicine

Abstract

We, the senior editors, write to recognize her achievements over the past 14 years. On behalf of the entire editorial team, we thank Rita for her creative and tireless leadership and valued friendship.When Rita took over as Editor in 2009, this journal was known as the Archives of Internal Medicine and had an impact factor in the single digits. At present, JAMA Internal Medicine is a highly respected general internal medicine journal with an impact factor for 2021 of 44.46, about 13.8 million article views and downloads a year, extensive coverage in the news media, and thousands of social media followers. Beyond these statistics, however, Rita spoke her mind and added a note of robust independence to our pages. She developed a clear identity for JAMA Internal Medicine as a home for high-quality research that can improve clinical care and "right size medicine," balancing the benefits of health care with risks and costs. Her voice traveled internationally because it was so clearly focused on the key issues of individual choices and public health. By publishing articles that are thought provoking and interesting, Rita transformed JAMA Internal Medicine into a "must-read" journal.JAMA Internal Medicine is the home of Less is More, a longrunning series of articles on the harms of overusing medical care, a philosophy that Rita instilled in all of us. 1 The less-ismore approach may help to reduce the bloated cost of medical care, particularly in the US, but more importantly reduce the harms associated with overuse of low-value testing, treatment, and procedures. Advocating for this path forward has not been easy, however. It requires bucking the mainstream view in medicine, where more is always better, new technology is better than old technology (or no technology at all), and doing something is better than doing nothing.