Copyright and the AORN Journal

AORN Journal,  August, 2004  by Nancy J. Girard

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This month I am writing again on the topic I introduced last month--writing concerns. Last month's "Editorial was on plagiarism, and I want to expand into copyright this month. In its simplest form, copyright means giving credit where credit is due. If someone has developed something, he or she should be recognized for that work.

Original ideas, concepts, or artwork are called intellectual property. Intellectual property typically is something someone has carefully thought about and developed, and it can be officially or unofficially copyrighted. Copyright protects the author of the intellectual property against someone else using his or her ideas and work and claiming it as his or her own. Copyright begins as soon as something is created and is fixed in some format. (1) For example, AORN, Inc, holds the copyright on the tables, pictures, illustrations, figures, and articles produced in the AORN Journal.

FAIR USE

The term fair use usually is used in education, but it applies to other areas as well. In academia, four factors are considered when determining fair use.

* Teachers can make one copy of an article for themselves.

* On a one-time basis, educators can make multiple copies of an article for classroom use; however, it still is a good idea to ask for permission to use the article. Educators also cannot charge students for the article beyond the actual cost of the photocopying.

* Educators cannot use more than one article from the same author. For example, an educator cannot copy several chapters in a textbook written by one author, and articles cannot be used to create or replace anthologies, compilations, or collective works.

* Educators also cannot copy items more than nine times for one course. This is a grey area and the one that is least understood. (2)

INCORRECT IDEAS ABOUT COPYRIGHT

There are many misconceptions about copyright. The following are 10 familiar misconceptions and explanations about why these statements are incorrect. (3)

Myth #1--If there is no copyright mark and the word "copyright" is not on it, it is free to use. If an item is published or presented, it is copyrighted. Copyright can be secured on books, pamphlets, periodicals, newspapers, addresses, lectures, sermons, dramatic or musical compositions, charts, maps, engravings, prints, photographs, paintings, and drawings. Reprinting, copying, translating, adapting, or abridging these works is prohibited in the absence of specific permission from the copyright holder.

The AORN Journal includes a statement in each issue that says, "Reproduction by any means of the whole or part of the AORN Journal contents without written permission is prohibited." (4) Although specific articles do not have individual copyright remarks or a [c] symbol, they are copyrighted by the AORN Journal. In addition, all issues of the Journal are formally registered with the US Library of Congress.

Myth #2--If there is no charge associated with the use of the material, it is okay to use it. Many publications will grant permission to use a portion of a publication for free. The material, however, still is copyrighted by the publisher.

Myth #3--If it is on the Internet, it is in the public domain and can be used. Almost everything available on the Internet is copyrighted, and if used, it must be referenced or permission must be obtained. For example, the AORN Journal occasionally gets manuscripts about national criteria for practice or accreditation. Some of these manuscripts contain large blocks of information copied from an agency's web site. If the agency is a government agency, it may be permissible to use the information, although it still must be referenced. If the agency is private, such as the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, however, the material probably is copyrighted, and the author must obtain permission to use it. The question of whether to reference large blocks of information or obtain permission from the copyright holder to reproduce that information is a gray area. The federal government has not set guidelines on how much use constitutes infringing upon copyright. At the AORN Journal, however, editorial staff members have determined that quoting more than 75 words from a copyrighted source without receiving permission to reprint the information constitutes infringement, and the author is informed that the manuscript must be revised to conform to copyright laws.

Myth #4--I am putting this on the web as fair use so anyone can use it. Members have posted some original poems and literary works on AORN MemberTalk. Although they are not designated outright as copyrighted, these works, which now have been published in a tangible format, must be referenced, and credit must be given. The author of the work cannot designate that others can use it under the tenets of fair use, because this does not fit within the categories of fair use as they exist today. Of course, if someone sends the author an e-mail and asks to use the material, the author can give it away freely, but he or she still should receive credit for the work.