The American Nurses Association announced its purchase of The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing from Kent State’s College of Nursing, according to a press release.

“The American Nurses Association recognizes the superb quality of OJIN and is committed to maintaining that same level of excellence,” the association’s president Rebecca M. Patton said in the release. The journal is exclusively posted on the association’s Web site at www.nursingworld.org/ojin.

OJIN is a free peer-reviewed online journal that is published three times a year and is available to nurses around the world. It presents timely information required by nurses and other health care professionals to provide current and informed patient care, to be socially responsive health care professionals and to meet professional development needs.

The idea for an online nursing journal came about 10 years ago during a faculty meeting discussing the rising cost of journals, said Editor-in-chief Harriet Coeling.

Each article featured in the journal must undergo a blind peer-review by two to three of the 68 national and international review board members who recommend acceptance, resubmission or rejection of the manuscript, according to its Web site. The journal also contains three columns written by its editorial staff, which address ethical implications of OJIN’s topics, legislative and health policy issues or electronic information resources and information management skills.

The electronic journal includes links within the articles to Web references, allowing the reader to find more in-depth knowledge. Continuing education offerings for selected articles, links to relevant Web resources and notable keynote addresses are additional features of the journal.

The journal’s international readership includes nurses employed by thousands of health care organizations throughout the world, as well as researchers, educators and students in a variety of educational programs. According to the OJIN Web site, the journal has an average of 85,000 readers per month.

“We love doing (the journal), and we believe in it,” Coeling said.

Linda Stierle, chief executive officer of the association, intends to establish a scholarship from the funds used to purchase OJIN from Kent State. Coeling plans to make one or two scholarships available to both undergraduate and graduate students every year.

Contact student health reporter Meghan Williams at [email protected].