Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement
International Medical Journal of Health (IMJH)
ISSN: 2395-6291 | COPE Member | WAME Member | ICMJE Recommendations
COPE Member Since 2020
IMJH is a proud member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and adheres to its Core Practices and Guidelines. Our publication ethics policies are regularly reviewed and updated in accordance with COPE recommendations, ICMJE Recommendations, and WAME Professionalism Code of Conduct.
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1 Ethical Framework & Commitments
Core Ethical Principles
IMJH's publication ethics framework is built on five foundational principles derived from COPE Core Practices: integrity, transparency, accountability, fairness, and confidentiality. These principles guide every aspect of our editorial processes.
Organizational Commitments
- COPE Membership: IMJH is a member of COPE and follows its Core Practices and flowcharts
- ICMJE Recommendations: We adhere to the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors recommendations
- WAME Professionalism: We follow the World Association of Medical Editors Code of Conduct
- DORA Signatory: We endorse the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment
- EQUATOR Network: We promote reporting guidelines for health research
Editorial Commitments
- Editorial Independence: Editorial decisions free from commercial or political influence
- Peer Review Integrity: Rigorous, fair, and confidential peer review process
- Timely Decisions: Prompt editorial decisions with clear rationales
- Transparency: Clear policies, processes, and appeals mechanisms
- Continuous Improvement: Regular review and updating of ethical policies
"Publication ethics is not merely a set of rules to follow, but a commitment to the integrity of the scholarly record and the trust of the research community." — IMJH Ethics Committee
2 Editorial Responsibilities
Editorial Duties
- Publication Decisions: Based solely on academic merit, originality, clarity, and relevance to journal scope
- Fair Play: Evaluation based on intellectual content without discrimination by race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy
- Confidentiality: All manuscripts treated as confidential documents; not disclosed to anyone except reviewers and editorial staff
- Disclosure: Editors must not use unpublished information for personal advantage
- Conflict of Interest: Editors recuse themselves from manuscripts with conflicts of interest
Editorial Board Responsibilities
- Strategic Direction: Advise on journal scope, policies, and strategic development
- Peer Review: Serve as reviewers and assist in reviewer recruitment
- Ethical Oversight: Participate in investigation of ethical complaints
- Journal Advocacy: Promote the journal within their institutions and networks
- Policy Review: Regular review and feedback on journal policies
Editorial Independence
IMJH guarantees editorial independence. The Editor-in-Chief has full authority over the editorial content of the journal and the timing of publication of that content. Decisions to edit or publish manuscripts are not determined by the policies of governments or any other agency outside of the journal. Editorial decisions are based on valid, publicly described criteria and are free from commercial, political, or other undue influence.
3 Reviewer Ethical Responsibilities
Reviewer Obligations
- Confidentiality: Treat manuscripts as confidential; not share or discuss with unauthorized individuals
- Timeliness: Accept or decline invitations promptly; submit reviews by deadline
- Objectivity: Provide constructive, unbiased feedback supported by clear reasoning
- Expertise: Only accept manuscripts within area of expertise
- Conflict Disclosure: Decline review if conflicts of interest exist
- Citation Verification: Identify relevant uncited work
Prohibited Reviewer Practices
- No Ghost Reviewing: Do not delegate review without editor permission
- No Author Contact: Do not contact authors directly
- No Coercive Citation: Do not request citations to inflate personal metrics
- No Data Misuse: Do not use unpublished information for personal advantage
- No Delaying Tactics: Do not delay review to disadvantage competitors
- No Personal Attacks: Critique the work, not the authors
COPE Position on Reviewer Misconduct:
Reviewer misconduct, including appropriation of authors' ideas, coercive citation, and breach of confidentiality, is considered a serious ethical violation and may result in removal from the reviewer database and notification to the reviewer's institution.
6 Conflicts of Interest
Transparency is Essential
A conflict of interest exists when there is a divergence between an individual's private interests and their professional obligations to the journal, such that an independent observer might reasonably question whether the individual's professional actions or decisions are influenced by their own interests.
Financial Conflicts
- Employment: Current or recent employment by organization with interest
- Research Funding: Grants, contracts, or sponsored research agreements
- Consulting Fees: Paid consulting relationships
- Stock/Equity: Ownership interests in relevant companies
- Patents: Intellectual property rights related to the work
- Honoraria: Speaking fees, expert testimony payments
Non-Financial Conflicts
- Personal Relationships: Family members, close friends, romantic partners
- Academic Competition: Direct competitors in same research area
- Collaboration: Current or recent research collaborators
- Mentorship: Current or recent mentor-trainee relationships
- Institutional: Same department or division
- Political/Religious: Strongly held beliefs that may affect objectivity
Disclosure Requirements
Disclose at submission
Disclose or decline
Recuse and delegate
All disclosed conflicts are published with the article. Failure to disclose relevant conflicts may result in retraction and institutional notification.
7 Research Misconduct: Definitions
Fabrication
Making up data or results and recording or reporting them.
Falsification
Manipulating research materials, equipment, processes, or changing/omitting data such that research is not accurately represented.
Plagiarism
Appropriation of another person's ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit.
Other Forms of Misconduct
- Duplicate Publication: Publishing the same research in multiple journals
- Redundant Publication: Splitting research into least publishable units
- Undisclosed Conflicts: Failing to declare competing interests
- Peer Review Manipulation: Attempting to influence reviewer selection
- Citation Manipulation: Excessive self-citation or citation cartels
- Image Manipulation: Inappropriate alteration of scientific images
8 Plagiarism & Text Recycling Policy
Plagiarism Screening
All manuscripts submitted to IMJH are screened for plagiarism using iThenticate/Turnitin software. Any manuscript with a similarity score exceeding 20% (or 5% from a single source) is subject to immediate rejection or investigation.
Prohibited Practices
- Direct Plagiarism: Copying text verbatim without quotation marks and citation
- Mosaic Plagiarism: Pasting phrases from multiple sources without attribution
- Idea Plagiarism: Presenting others' ideas as original
- Self-Plagiarism: Reusing substantial portions of own published work without citation
- Translation Plagiarism: Translating others' work without attribution
Acceptable Practices
- Proper Quotation: Using quotation marks and citing the source
- Paraphrasing: Restating ideas in own words with proper citation
- Methods Sections: Limited reuse of standard methodological descriptions
- Preprint Sharing: Posting on preprint servers prior to submission
- Conference Presentations: Presenting work at conferences
Similarity Score Guidelines
*Single source similarity must not exceed 5%
9 Duplicate & Redundant Publication
Duplicate Publication
Duplicate publication occurs when an author publishes a manuscript that substantially overlaps with one already published elsewhere.
- Same data, findings, or conclusions
- No cross-reference to previous publication
- No disclosure to editor
- May violate copyright
Consequence: Rejection or retraction, institutional notification
Redundant Publication
Redundant publication (or 'salami slicing') involves dividing a single study into multiple smaller publications.
- Same population, same dataset
- Adding small subsets or extended follow-up
- No cross-reference to related publications
- Inflates publication count artificially
Consequence: Rejection, editorial warning, submission restrictions
Acceptable Secondary Publication
Secondary publication may be acceptable under the following ICMJE conditions:
- Authors have received approval from editors of both journals
- The secondary version is intended for a different audience
- The secondary version is an abbreviated summary
- The primary version is cited and noted as the authoritative version
10 Data Fabrication & Falsification
Zero Tolerance Policy
IMJH has zero tolerance for data fabrication and falsification. Any confirmed case will result in immediate retraction, institutional notification, and prohibition from future submissions.
Data Fabrication
Examples include:
- Creating non-existent participant data
- Inventing experimental results
- Generating fake images or Western blots
- Reporting non-performed experiments
Data Falsification
Examples include:
- Removing outliers without justification
- Manipulating images (splicing, cloning, erasing)
- Selective reporting of favorable results
- Inappropriate statistical manipulation
Detection Methods:
IMJH employs image integrity screening, statistical review, and post-publication peer review to detect potential data fabrication and falsification. We encourage readers and institutions to report any concerns.
11 Ethical Oversight & Investigation Procedures
Investigation Process
Receipt of Allegation
Any individual may report suspected ethical misconduct. Confidentiality maintained.
Initial Assessment
Editor-in-Chief and Ethics Committee assess validity and severity (within 7 days).
Formal Investigation
Gather evidence, interview parties, consult experts, follow COPE flowcharts.
Decision & Action
Written decision with rationale; sanctions applied if misconduct confirmed.
Notification & Appeal
Parties notified; right to appeal within 30 days.
Possible Sanctions
Warning letter, educational resources, required ethics training
Rejection/retraction, submission ban (1-5 years), institutional notification
Permanent submission ban, public retraction notice, reporting to funding agencies, legal action
COPE Flowcharts:
All investigations follow COPE flowcharts for plagiarism, duplicate submission, authorship disputes, falsification, and reviewer misconduct.
12 Reporting Ethical Concerns
Confidential Reporting
IMJH encourages the reporting of any suspected ethical misconduct. All reports are treated confidentially, and whistleblowers are protected from retaliation.
How to Report
Primary Contact:
Secondary Contact:
Subject Line Format:
"ETHICS CONCERN: [Manuscript ID/DOI]"
What to Include:
- Specific description of concern
- Article citation or manuscript ID
- Supporting evidence/documents
- Your contact information (optional)
Whistleblower Protection
IMJH provides the following protections:
- Confidentiality: Reporter identity protected to the fullest extent possible
- No Retaliation: Protection against any adverse actions for good faith reporting
- Anonymous Options: Anonymous reporting available via online form
- Independent Investigation: Impartial assessment without conflict of interest
Response Commitment:
Acknowledgment: Within 48 hours
Initial assessment: Within 7 days
Investigation timeline: 15-45 business days
COPE Resources
IMJH follows COPE's Core Practices, Guidelines, and Flowcharts for all ethical matters. These resources are freely available to the scholarly community.
COPE Member
Since 2020
IMJH Ethics Pledge
"IMJH is committed to the highest standards of publication ethics. We pledge to:
- Treat all authors, reviewers, and readers with fairness and respect
- Maintain editorial independence free from commercial influence
- Protect the confidentiality of manuscripts and reviewer identities
- Investigate all ethical concerns promptly and thoroughly
- Follow COPE guidelines in all ethical matters
- Promote transparency in authorship and contributions
- Correct the scholarly record when errors are identified
- Continuously improve our ethical policies and practices
— IMJH Editorial Board & Ethics Committee"
Report Ethical Concern
Confidential reporting of suspected research misconduct, plagiarism, or ethical violations.
info@imjhealth.org info.imjh@gmail.comConfidential | 48h acknowledgment
COPE Member Since 2020
Ethics at a Glance
ICMJE Authorship Criteria
All four criteria must be met:
- Substantial contributions
- Drafting or revising
- Final approval
- Accountability
Key Ethics Resources
Ethics Committee
For questions about publication ethics, COPE guidelines, or ethical dilemmas:
Email:
Subject: "Ethics Inquiry"