Thematic diversity in CSP

Marilia Sá Carvalho Luciana Dias de Lima Luciana Correia Alves About the authors

The end of a year is always a time to evaluate, think, and rethink. Public Health is, par excellence, a multidisciplinary field. Several disciplines from different areas of knowledge contribute to the studies in the field: from the Applied Human and Social Sciences to the Earth and Exact Sciences; from the Biological Sciences to Engineering.

In this editorial we explore the themes published in CSP by analyzing words that outstand in the titles of articles published in the sections of empirical studies, essays, and methodological issues, from January 2018 to September 2022. Thus, we use the wordcloud: an important data visualization tool that allows people to quickly familiarize with the content of the texts and identify their main subjects 11. Kalmukov Y. Using word clouds for fast identification of papers’ subject domain and reviewers’ competences. arXiv 2021; 26 dez. https://arxiv.org/abs/2112.14861.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2112.14861...
. For this first exploration, we made some methodological choices, such as removing words that would scarcely help to understand the profile of the papers (e.g., place of study).

The most relevant and frequent words are displayed in larger font sizes and different colors. The term COVID stands out in Figure 1, although the analysis did not include the texts of the Thematic Section in which most of the accepted articles were published during the fast-track period, in 2020. Then, almost with the same frequency, the word healthcare can be observed, in which assistance and attention were also included. In the many articles in which the word adolescents appears in the title, the themes vary: bullying, sexual behavior, pregnancy, food, studies in schools, and others. Words related to health events - cancer, obesity, birth, deaths, violence, childbirth, Zika, HIV, and mental - are also highlighted. Some terms characterize an epidemiological approach, such as cohort, risk, prevalence, and exposure. ELSA-Brazil is a significant word, which is a specific multicenter epidemiological study. Food is another highlight, a theme that has in fact been occupying a large space in Public Health.

Figure 1
Word cloud generated by the titles of 873 articles published in CSP between 2018 and 2022.

Taken together, in addition to the word healthcare, the following words referring to the area of policy, planning and management stand out: evaluation, primary care, system, access, program, services, and implementation. If COVID alone represents 6% of the total words included in this analysis, this set, added together, accounts for 14.1%.

But CSP also has an inductive action. The articles of the sections Perspectives, Debate and, even more, the Thematic Section have this purpose. Since 2018, we published in these sections several subjects: refugee population, breast cancer, primary care (two sections with this theme), mental health, public health emergencies, environmental disasters, transgender rights, health assessment, economy, palliative care, and some methodological texts. We organized a great debate about the 30 years of the Brazilian Unified National Health System (SUS) and another conceptual debate on social determination.

In these five years analyzed, CSP presented itself as an important vehicle for disseminating the outcomes of investigations on topics such as schoolteachers’ health, COVID-19, aging, and comprehensive studies such as the Brazilian National Health Survey. Some Supplements were milestones of major issues in the field: immunization, abortion, and indigenous children’s and adolescents’ health in Latin America. We also highlight those Supplements focused on health policy issues, updating the debate on regionalization, and the 20 years of the Brazilian National Food and Nutrition Policy.

In this brief analysis we systematized what is produced in the field and is published in CSP. Regardless of the method or approach, whether quantitative or qualitative nature, the published articles represent the various themes of research conducted in the many institutions and universities that collaborate with the journal. We have never prioritized only the bibliometric indicators 22. Nassi-Calò L. Estudo aponta que artigos publicados em inglês atraem mais citações. SciELO em Perspectiva 2016; 4 nov. https://blog.scielo.org/blog/2016/11/04/estudo-aponta-que-artigos-publicados-em-ingles-atraem-mais-citacoes/.
https://blog.scielo.org/blog/2016/11/04/...
. We maintain and value the publication of articles in Portuguese and Spanish to encourage all professionals to read articles of their interest, and not only researchers. Nevertheless, in 2022 we reached 3,371 in the impact factor of the Journal Citation Reports and the 2nd place in the Top 100 of the most read Portuguese language scientific journals of Google Scholar. This reflects the importance of CSP in the dissemination of research results, in several locations and multiple contexts.

At this moment in which we reaffirm the importance of Democracy 33. Lima LD, Travassos C, Coeli CM, Carvalho MS. Democracia e Saúde Coletiva. Cad Saúde Pública 2016; 32:eED020416., CSP stands out as a space for academic dialogue and dissemination of knowledge in the most varied fields. Health and Democracy are inseparable 44. Lima NT, Franco Netto G. “Democracia é saúde”: direitos, compromissos e atualização do projeto da saúde coletiva. Cad Saúde Pública 2018; 34:e00122818..

To all, our thanks. To the authors, who believe in the multiplicity and interdisciplinarity of the field of public health choose CSP to publish what they produce of most relevant for science and health. To the referees and associate editors, who guarantee - in an impartial way - the quality of what is published. To the CSP technical team, without whom there would be no journal. And finally, to our readers, for whom, at the end of the day, we work so hard.

With hope and joy, we wish you a happy 2023.

References

  • 1
    Kalmukov Y. Using word clouds for fast identification of papers’ subject domain and reviewers’ competences. arXiv 2021; 26 dez. https://arxiv.org/abs/2112.14861
    » https://arxiv.org/abs/2112.14861
  • 2
    Nassi-Calò L. Estudo aponta que artigos publicados em inglês atraem mais citações. SciELO em Perspectiva 2016; 4 nov. https://blog.scielo.org/blog/2016/11/04/estudo-aponta-que-artigos-publicados-em-ingles-atraem-mais-citacoes/
    » https://blog.scielo.org/blog/2016/11/04/estudo-aponta-que-artigos-publicados-em-ingles-atraem-mais-citacoes/
  • 3
    Lima LD, Travassos C, Coeli CM, Carvalho MS. Democracia e Saúde Coletiva. Cad Saúde Pública 2016; 32:eED020416.
  • 4
    Lima NT, Franco Netto G. “Democracia é saúde”: direitos, compromissos e atualização do projeto da saúde coletiva. Cad Saúde Pública 2018; 34:e00122818.

Publication Dates

  • Publication in this collection
    16 Dec 2022
  • Date of issue
    2022

History

  • Received
    03 Nov 2022
  • Accepted
    03 Nov 2022
Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública Sergio Arouca, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Rio de Janeiro - RJ - Brazil
E-mail: cadernos@ensp.fiocruz.br