A contribution about training in family medicine training was published in a journal. Subsequently, a letter from the chairman of the department of family medicine at the university with which the author claimed to have been affiliated, said that the author did not work there. The author was asked for an explanation. He replied that he had done it involuntarily and that he would be happy for an erratum to be published in the journal, making this clear. Is the author guilty of misconduct or something else?
_ The editor needs to find out if the author had worked in the department before or whether he had never worked there. _ Had the author used the university’s headed notepaper when making his submission? _ The current employer, or appropriate regulatory body if there is no employer, should be asked to investigate the use of another affiliation. _ Passing off papers under false credentials is potentially serious and could call into question the author’s ability to write the paper. _ But this would only be the case if there were a deliberate intention to deceive. _ The editor needs to investigate why this happened more thoroughly and find out what the author meant by “involuntary mistake. ” _ Publish an erratum clearly stating the affiliation is wrong.