Margaret Comerford Freda, EdD, RN, CHES, FAAN
MCN The American Journal of Maternal Child Nursing

Editor, MCN The American Journal of Maternal Child Nursing. Began January 1, 1998

Prior Editor’s Position: Editorial review boards

Years as Editor: Since 1998

Years in INANE: Since 1998

Other Position: Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center, NYC

Accomplishment: Changing MCN to a journal publishing 50% research and 50% practice articles; formerly, 90% were practice. We now have a plethora of scholarly submissions. In addition, since becoming a nursing editor, I'm proud of the work I've done to encourage ISI Thomson Scientific to reconsider the small number of nursing journals they were indexing. This has resulted in a 74% increase in the number of nursing journals they indexed during 2006 alone.

Best: Helping to influence the literature in my specialty and helping young authors learn how to write for publication.

Worst: Always, the time pressure

Amusing: Before I became an editor, I thought the work would be easy. Ah, the naivete of youth.

3 words: Organized, passionate, caring

Strangest request: Asking me to promise, in writing, acceptance of an article based on her famous name, before I saw the manuscript.

If not editor?: My day job—teaching and doing research.

Relax?: Reading—I belong to a book club with 7 women for 27 years; vacationing (beach resort) with my husband of 39 years. Being with 4 grandchildren and 2 daughters. Introducing grandchildren to Broadway and live performances.