Policy
Editorial Policies and Publication Ethics
Chief Responsibilities of Editors
Final Decisions: The Chief Editors and/or Editors are responsible for making final decisions on all manuscripts submitted to the journal. These decisions are based on the research's validity, originality, novelty, and relevance to the journal’s scope. Editors must ensure that all published materials are appropriately archived, with digital support from the publisher when required.
Impartial Evaluation: Editors must assess manuscripts impartially, prioritizing intellectual merit and confidentiality during the review process. They are responsible for selecting articles for publication and determining the timing of their publication.
Editors with the Publisher
Collaboration for Journal Improvement: Editors collaborate closely with the Publisher to continually improve the journal, update policies as necessary, and ensure the quality of published content. Editors make independent decisions regarding the acceptance or rejection of manuscripts based on their quality and relevance to the journal’s scope.
Dispute Resolution and Misconduct Investigation: The Chief Editors, Editors, and editorial board members are responsible for resolving disagreements among stakeholders. They assist the Publisher in investigating suspected misconduct related to published and unpublished papers, ensuring an impartial investigation by considering the perspectives of all involved parties. They also work with the Publisher to address issues related to intellectual property violations and legal concerns.
Editors with Authors
Engagement and Feedback: Editors should engage with authors to address their needs and incorporate their feedback to enhance the journal’s processes and management.
Detection of Misconduct: Editors must vigilantly check for instances of research or publication misconduct by authors. They ensure that all submitted and accepted manuscripts undergo plagiarism checks using plagiarism-detection software to identify fabricated or plagiarized content.
Ethical Compliance: Editors ensure that authors properly acknowledge research funding, grants, written informed consent for publication involving human data, and obtain all necessary permissions (such as animal ethics or research permits) in their submitted articles.
Publishing Guidelines: Editors ensure that publishing guidelines and author instructions are readily accessible to authors. They provide authors with complete peer reviewer reports, unless reports contain offensive or inappropriate content, and allow authors to respond to reviewers’ comments.
Editors with Reviewers
Qualified Reviewers: Editors are responsible for ensuring that all published articles are reviewed quickly by qualified and impartial reviewers with relevant expertise and no conflicts of interest. They maintain a list of suitable reviewers and exclude those who consistently submit low-quality reports.
Guidance and Confidentiality: Editors provide guidance to reviewers in preparing their reports. Reviewers must treat the manuscript as confidential, avoid sharing it with others, and disclose any potential conflicts of interest. Editors ensure that reviewers are able to freely express their views, particularly regarding publication ethics, manuscript validity, and originality.
Review Process Integrity: Reviewers must disclose conflicts of interest before agreeing to review a manuscript and may choose not to review a submission if they have a conflict of interest or lack the necessary expertise.
Timely and Professional Reviews: Reviewers should evaluate submissions fairly, objectively, and professionally. They must report any ethical issues to the Chief Editor and remain vigilant for plagiarism or redundant publication.
Confidentiality and Adherence to Timeline: Reviewers must maintain confidentiality about the manuscript's content and adhere to the review timeline. If necessary, they can request an extension, subject to approval by the Chief Editor or Editors.
Editors with Editorial Board Members
Board Member Selection and Guidelines: Chief Editors are responsible for selecting qualified editorial board members who can actively contribute to the journal’s operations and management. They should provide clear guidelines on the roles and responsibilities of board members and consult them on enhancing the journal’s direction and addressing challenges.
Training and Support: Chief Editors ensure that editorial board members receive appropriate training and the necessary technological tools to perform their editorial duties effectively.
Active Role in Journal Development: Editorial board members should actively contribute to the journal’s development, support its growth, and promote the journal’s work. They are expected to participate in reviewing tasks and serve as ambassadors for the journal.
Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest
Chief Editors and Editors must maintain confidentiality regarding any manuscript under review and refrain from using its data for personal gain. They must also avoid any personal or financial interests that could influence their professional judgment in evaluating a manuscript. If a conflict of interest arises, they must disclose it and recuse themselves from making editorial decisions related to that manuscript. While editors may submit manuscripts to the journal, they must clearly declare this in the submission and refrain from participating in the review process or making editorial decisions regarding their own work.
Timeliness of the Publication Process
Chief Editors and Editors are responsible for overseeing the entire publication process, ensuring that each stage, from manuscript submission to final publication or rejection, is completed promptly. They must ensure that each issue is published on schedule, monitor the performance of reviewers and editors, address any backlog of accepted manuscripts, and provide swift responses and decisions.
Errata, Retractions, and Clarifications
In line with the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) guidelines, the journal will promptly publish errata, retractions, or clarifications when necessary. A direct link between the original article and any corrections will be provided for all online articles.
Duties and Chief Responsibilities of Authors
Authorship
An author is defined as someone who has made substantial contributions to the design, execution, and interpretation of the research, in addition to writing the manuscript. All individuals who have significantly contributed should be listed as co-authors. Every co-author must agree to the manuscript submission. Requests for adding or removing authors must be approved by the Chief Editors or Editors. The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring all authors have consented to and approved the manuscript.
Author Responsibilities
Authors are expected to present results honestly, ensuring data is not fabricated, falsified, or manipulated. Methods should be described in detail so others can replicate the findings. Authors must submit only original, unpublished work and avoid simultaneous submissions to other journals.
Research Misconduct
Plagiarism, data fabrication, and falsification are considered research misconduct. All articles submitted are screened for plagiarism and AI-generated content using Turnitin. Instances of misconduct will be investigated by the Chief Editors.
Image Manipulation
Manipulating images that alter results or compromise their integrity is prohibited. Enhancements for clarity are allowed but must not distort data. Manipulated images may lead to rejection and further investigation.
Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publications
Authors must not submit previously published figures, data, or copyrighted materials without proper permission and citation. Submitting the same research to multiple journals simultaneously is unethical.
Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest
Authors must disclose any financial or personal interests that could influence their judgment. Failure to disclose conflicts may undermine the journal’s credibility.
Availability of Materials and Data Access
Authors must agree to make materials and data available to the scientific community for non-commercial purposes. Manuscripts should provide sufficient details for replication.
Biosecurity, Animal Use, and Research Permits
Research involving animals or humans must comply with relevant laws and institutional approval, and authors must provide documentation upon request. Informed consent must be obtained for human subjects.
Reporting Guidelines
Authors should follow specific guidelines for various types of studies (e.g., CONSORT for randomized trials, PRISMA for systematic reviews).
Article-Processing Charges (APC)
The Journal doesnt charges any APC for Processing of the manuscripts.
Reviewer Suggestions
Authors can suggest reviewers and request the exclusion of individuals with conflicts of interest. However, final reviewer decisions are made by editors.
Confidential Process
All communication must be treated as confidential, and authors must not share unpublished materials without permission.