From an Interview with Dr. Zerhouni about Open Access, Productivity,& Accounting of Research Results

[Ann Okerson <ann.okerson@yale.edu>]

Of possible interest, this is an extract from Washington Fax, a
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Our correspondent adds this note:  'In the interview Zerhouni confirms
reports that NIH is already working on a plan for putting all papers
derived from NIH-funded research into the public domain.  However, it is
unclear whether Dr.  Zerhouni favors the House language or has in mind
some softer approach -- say putting "NIH-funded" articles into the public
domain six months or one year after publication, instead of immediately?'

'Dr. Zerhouni's appears to have multiple goals, including being able to
show results from NIH-funded research.  This may be driven by the
Administration's government-wide review of agencies' productivity (which
influences budget decisions) as well as the controversy over sex-related
research.'

***************

WASHINGTON FAX
August 6, 2004

Policy in Perspective

National Institutes of Health open access policy planning predates House 
directive

A draft policy on open access publishing of scientific papers is nearing
completion by the National Institutes of Health. The draft will take into
consideration the needs of the scientific community, the taxpaying public
and NIH's needs for coordinated access to research results. Once finished,
the draft policy will be open for public comment.

The draft policy will be "creative yet incremental -- not a revolutionary
proposal," NIH Director Elias Zerhouni told Washington Fax in a July 29
interview. Zerhouni said NIH already was working on a policy when the
directive to formulate one appeared in House Appropriations Committee
report language. (see Washington Fax 7/20/04)

[SNIP]

Explaining NIH's need for coordinated open access Zerhouni used as an
example the CRISP (Computer Retrieval of Information on Scientific
Projects) database, which records research projects funded by Department
of Health and Human Services agencies. "You can't link up a grant to
whatever was published," he said, adding there should be a way of linking
the public's investment with the outcome of the research.

The ClinicalTrials.gov database has the same shortcoming, he said. "You
can't link up the results of a clinical trial with the published paper."

NIH needs a portfolio analysis capability component, Zerhouni said. Right
now, "I can't figure out what grants produced what [results]. A scientific
paper is credited many times over, but I can't figure out what the
productivity is because I don't have an archive of what the agency does.
You just can't make the links.  You can't do it," he said.

[SNIP]

"One thing I say that is different than you will hear in the [Public
Library of Science] movement is I see value in all the models. I don't
want to interfere with the business models,"  Zerhouni stressed.

PLoS is a non-profit organization of scientists and physicians committed
to making the world's scientific and medical literature a freely available
public resource.

But, "access is not the only value provided" by publishing.  "Access is
only one value provided" by publishing, Zerhouni elaborated. "Peer review
is a very important value, and I don't want to lose that," he said.

Publishing also serves several needs related to information transfer,
Zerhouni said. "Interpretation of scientific data is a very important
value, which is different from the raw data we have," he said.

Another value of publishing is "information transfer that accentuates ease
of informing communities of research through associations, societies, or
just for-profits, for the links between industry and science that are
supported by these models,"  he said.

"These are all values that are way beyond access. And I don't want to lose
any of them," he stressed.

[SNIP]

-- Bradie Metheny

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