Policies and Publication Ethics

The Journal of Innovations in Internal Medicine (JIIM) is dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of integrity and ethics in publishing. We adhere to best practices to ensure that all research is conducted and published in a manner that upholds the trust of authors, readers, reviewers, and the broader academic community. The following policies outline the journal’s commitment to ethical publication.

1. Ethical Standards for Authors

  • Originality and Plagiarism: Authors must ensure that their work is original and free of plagiarism. All submitted manuscripts will be screened for plagiarism, and works found to have significant overlap with previously published content will be rejected.
  • Data Accuracy and Integrity: Authors are responsible for the accuracy of the data presented in their work. Data fabrication, falsification, or inappropriate data manipulation is strictly prohibited.
  • Acknowledgment of Sources: Proper acknowledgment of all sources of data and references is required. Authors must cite publications that have influenced their work.
  • Authorship and Contributorship: Authors must meet the criteria for authorship, which include substantial contributions to the research, drafting, or critical revision of the article, and final approval of the published version. All contributors who do not meet these criteria should be listed in the acknowledgments.
  • Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest: Authors must disclose any financial or personal relationships that could influence their work. This ensures transparency and trust in the research process.

2. Responsibilities of the Editorial Team

  • Editorial Independence: The editorial team operates independently and ensures that decisions are made solely based on the manuscript’s academic merit, without any external influence.
  • Fair and Unbiased Review Process: The editorial team is committed to providing an impartial and transparent review process. All submitted manuscripts undergo a double-blind peer review to maintain objectivity.
  • Confidentiality: Editors must maintain the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts, disclosing information only to relevant parties, such as authors, reviewers, and the publisher.
  • Handling Ethical Concerns: The editorial team will act upon any suspicion or evidence of research or publication misconduct, including plagiarism, duplicate publication, and unethical research practices.

3. Peer Review Process

  • Reviewer Integrity: Reviewers play a vital role in ensuring the quality and integrity of the journal. Reviewers are expected to provide objective, constructive feedback and follow ethical guidelines outlined by COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics).
  • Confidentiality: Reviewers must keep the content of the manuscripts and their reviews confidential and should not use the information for personal gain.
  • Acknowledgment of Potential Conflicts: Reviewers must disclose any conflicts of interest before agreeing to review a manuscript and recuse themselves if necessary.

4. Plagiarism and Misconduct Policy

  • Screening for Plagiarism: JIIM employs plagiarism detection software to identify any instances of plagiarism. Manuscripts found to have significant plagiarism will be rejected, and the authors may be barred from future submissions.
  • Handling Allegations of Misconduct: If allegations of misconduct arise, the editorial team will conduct a thorough investigation following COPE guidelines. If the allegations are confirmed, actions may include manuscript retraction, notification of institutional authorities, or a ban on future submissions from the involved authors.

5. Data Sharing and Reproducibility

  • Data Availability: Authors are encouraged to make the data underlying their research available to other researchers to promote transparency and reproducibility. If data cannot be shared due to privacy or ethical concerns, authors should state this clearly.
  • Research Transparency: Authors should provide clear explanations of their methodology to allow reproducibility of results by other researchers.

6. Conflict of Interest Policy

  • Disclosure Requirement: All authors, reviewers, and editors are required to disclose any financial or non-financial conflicts of interest that could affect the objectivity of the research or review process. This includes employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, or paid expert testimony.

7. Retraction and Correction Policy

  • Retractions: If significant errors or misconduct are discovered in a published article that compromise its findings or integrity, JIIM will issue a retraction. The reasons for the retraction will be clearly stated to inform readers of the decision.
  • Corrections: Minor errors that do not affect the main results or conclusions of the article will be corrected through an erratum or corrigendum published in a subsequent issue.

8. Ethical Compliance for Human and Animal Research

  • Ethics Committee Approval: All research involving human or animal subjects must have prior approval from an appropriate ethics committee. Authors must state this approval and include an ethics committee reference number in their manuscripts.
  • Informed Consent: For studies involving human participants, authors must confirm that informed consent was obtained from all participants, and this should be clearly stated in the manuscript.

9. Open Access and Licensing

  • Open Access Policy: JIIM follows a Gold Open Access model, meaning all articles are freely accessible upon publication. Articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), allowing for free distribution and adaptation with proper attribution.
  • Article Processing Charges (APC): An APC of 135 USD applies to accepted articles to cover publication costs. Waivers may be available for authors from low-income countries based on World Bank classifications.

10. Appeals and Complaints

  • Author Appeals: Authors who wish to appeal editorial decisions must provide a detailed justification for their request. The appeal will be reviewed by an independent editor or the Editor-in-Chief.
  • Complaints: Any complaints about editorial procedures or the publication process can be directed to the Editor-in-Chief for resolution.