INFUSION is mailed to about 12,000 readers every 2 months. Infusion Journal, a peer-reviewed research publication, mails with INFUSION 3X a year. That publication has different author guidelines.
Anyone who works at a NHIA member company—provider and supplier—is eligible to receive INFUSION. Our content needs to speak to pharmacists, nurses, operations people, managers, revenue cycle professionals, sales forces, and anyone else supporting the industry.
Each issue has an editorial theme, or focus, such as Sterile Compounding. Not every article in an issue needs to relate to the theme, but it’s a useful guide. See our current editorial calendar.
Who can write?
Most INFUSION articles are written by professionals in the field sharing their expertise. You don’t need to have a lot of experience writing—our staff is here to help. Who can write?
Content Guidelines
Is there content that’s not appropriate?
Articles & Columns
Continuing education articles are longer, more in-depth, and usually clinically focused. They almost always relate to the issue focus and anchor the content. They are produced on a longer time frame because they require subject matter expert (SME) review and CE approval.
Additional Information
Do NOT use the footnotes function in Word or a citation program, such as Endnotes. Text files are converted into graphic files for publication and that extra formatting can be troublesome.
Do keep the reference with the text to which it refers. That way, if we add, delete, or move text around, the citations don’t get confused.
Place a hyperlink, description, author/title, or full reference at the end of the sentence and highlight it. Example: “In addition to promising expanded benefits, MA plans will stress low to no premiums, yet the coverage promised can be limited. Additionally, reverting benefits back to traditional Medicare can be difficult if not impossible.” (NPR article Medicare Advantage plans are popular, but some seniors feel trapped when ill : Shots - Health News : NPR)
Once all the text is final and approved, we can insert the numbered footnotes and create the reference list. We can help build the full reference list here, so don’t worry too much about it.
Basic reference style: Author Last Name First Initial. Article Title. Journal Name. Year;Volume(Issue):Page Numbers. Available at: Link/DOI (if applicable). The article referenced in the example above would look like this: Tribble SJ. Older Americans say they feel trapped in Medicare advantage plans. Shots Health News/NPR+KFF. January 2, 2024. Available at: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2024/01/03/1222561870/older-americans-say-they-feel-trapped-in-medicare-advantage-plans
Continuing education articles are longer, more in-depth, and usually clinically focused. They almost always relate to the issue focus and anchor the content. They are produced on a longer time frame because they require subject matter expert (SME) review and CE approval.
• Less dense than a CE article, covering a range of topics—clinical, business, leadership, etc. What you would expect from a regular magazine article, a conversational tone.
• 2,000-2,500 words
• Content doesn’t always necessitate references, but please provide them for things like statistics, published guidelines, study findings, and the like. (see References)
• Author bio - where you work, your role, and contact information so interested readers can get in touch.
• Highly specialized material exploring technical issues in the 3 professional areas they represent.
• Peer-to-peer communication covering narrow topics, such as nurse liability, viable sampling in the clean room, and managing denied claims.
• 1,600-2000 words
• Content doesn’t always necessitate references, but please provide them for things like statistics, published guidelines, study findings, and the like. (see References)
• Author bio - where you work, your role, and contact information so interested readers can get in touch.
• Do NOT use the footnotes function in Word or a citation program, such as Endnotes. Text files are converted into graphic files for publication and that extra formatting can be troublesome.
• Do keep the reference with the text to which it refers. That way, if we add, delete, or move text around, the citations don’t get confused.
• Place a hyperlink, description, author/title, or full reference at the end of the sentence and highlight it. Example: “In addition to promising expanded benefits, MA plans will stress low to no premiums, yet the coverage promised can be limited. Additionally, reverting benefits back to traditional Medicare can be difficult if not impossible.” (NPR article Medicare Advantage plans are popular, but some seniors feel trapped when ill : Shots - Health News : NPR)
• Once all the text is final and approved, we can insert the numbered footnotes and create the reference list. We can help build the full reference list here, so don’t worry too much about it.
• Basic reference style: Author Last Name First Initial. Article Title. Journal Name. Year;Volume(Issue):Page Numbers. Available at: Link/DOI (if applicable). The article referenced in the example above would look like this: Tribble SJ. Older Americans say they feel trapped in Medicare advantage plans. Shots Health News/NPR+KFF. January 2, 2024. Available at: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2024/01/03/1222561870/older-americans-say-they-feel-trapped-in-medicare-advantage-plans
• Get in touch with us from the beginning. The process goes more smoothly when we can consider how your article fits into our coverage and flesh-out ideas together. Typically, we’ll have a brief meeting after which you will have a clear plan, timeframe, specs, and other details that will prove useful in your writing journey.
• Stay in touch. Please stay in touch as the process moves along. Plans change, things come up, and delays happen. We can adjust when we know what we’re dealing with.
• Do a quick review before you submit. Bounce it off a trusted colleague to get outside your own head. An objective reader can often offer valuable perspectives, notice issues or details you didn’t think of, or even suggest additional sources of information, etc.
• Check on internal policies. If your organization requires internal legal or marketing review, be sure to allow time for that. It’s likely that we will make edits, so you might want to wait to have them review the final version. But PLEASE determine your organization’s process and timelines early on and coordinate with those involved as you move along.
• Word docs. Please work in Microsoft Word so we have a working document and can track changes and comments. Don’t save your document in a PDF or a layout program. Our text files are moved into a design platform, so the less formatting, the better.
• Copyright ownership. By submitting a manuscript to INFUSION, you are assigning NHIA rights, title, and interest in and to the manuscript, including but not limited to all copyright rights throughout the world, for all terms of protection.
• Visuals. Readers appreciate visuals and resources. They also help break up the text and guide the reader through the material. We welcome charts, diagrams, graphs, tables, or even bulleted lists. You don’t need to create these—we have a fabulous graphic designer—but keep this in mind and provide some source materials if you can.
• Using copyrighted material. If you want to use a table, figure, decision tree, or some other resource that was published by someone else, we will need to obtain copyright permission. We can take care of that, just let us know so we have the time to make the proper requests.
• Get to the point. Avoid being overly wordy or building super complex sentences. Typically, a well-constructed sentence requires fewer words, so think word economy.
• Stay active. Avoid passive verbs, which can make a sentence less succinct. Consider: ”It was determined that the classification of the documents should be by letter of the alphabet” versus “We decided to arrange the documents in alphabetical order.” Passive verbs also blunt the action and obscure the subject of the sentence. If you’ve ever received the lame apology “Mistakes were made” instead of “I made a mistake” you understand.
• Avoid jargon. It’s impossible in health care to eliminate it completely, so explain those words as you introduce them and spell out common acronyms, like CMS or AWP, on first usage.
• Break up long passages. Don’t be afraid to break a long paragraph in two. We often use subheads throughout an article to present smaller, more digestible portions.
• Connect thoughts. Use transitions to connect thoughts. Words and phrases like “Furthermore, Conversely, Likewise, However, and Additionally” provide cues to the reader.
• Once your manuscript is submitted, NHIA will review. We use an informal peer review-type process among our staff experts from the field.
• Our editorial team will also edit the article for style, formatting, grammar, and so on.
• Then, we will send the document back to you. You can review the changes and respond to comments and questions if there are any.
• Once we ensure that all the comments are resolved, the clean document goes into a page layout.
• A week or 2 later, you’ll receive a PDF of the article to review. This is a great way to see the big picture of how the article will appear. Usually, seeing it with fresh eyes makes it easier to catch typos or goofy things that happened with layout.
• Once everyone is in agreement, we’re off to the printer!
• When the issue is published, NHIA will supply you with a PDF of the final version and a link to the article on our digital edition. You are welcome to use these however you see fit to “spread the word.” Post on LinkedIn, to your organization’s reference library, etc.