The journal publishes editorials, original research, guideline summaries, narrative reviews, perspectives, medical education, reflections, and letters.

[2] The journal was established in 1856, when communication between Australian states and other English-speaking nations entailed long delays.

In 2015, then editor-in-chief Stephen Leeder was suddenly removed after criticising the decision to outsource production of the journal to the global publishing giant Elsevier.

[11][12] Nicholas Talley succeeded Stephen Leeder as editor-in-chief in September 2015[13] and the editorial advisory group was subsequently reconstituted.

[15] Having previously published under a subscription model, the journal changed in January 2012 to make all of its research articles free to read online.