Editorial Policy

1. Contents.

The JPAFP (Journal of Pakistan academy of family physicians) will accept the following contributions for the journal: articles based on original research, reviews, special reports, opinion and analysis and brief communications. A brief description of the specific features for each type of contribution is outlined below, and formatting specifications for each type of manuscript are outlined.

 In general, the following contributions will not be accepted for publication: clinical case reports, anecdotal accounts of specific interventions, reports on individual studies intended for publication as a series, noncritical and descriptive literature reviews, manuscripts with substantial overlap or with only minor differences from previous research results, and reprints or translations of articles already published—whether in print or electronically. Exceptions to this general rule will be judged and a determination made on a case-by-case basis.

• Original Research Articles. Original research reports focus on substantive studies conducted on public health topics of interest. Experimental or observational research must follow the IMRAD format (Introduction, Materials and methods, Results, and Discussion).
• Reviews. Systematic reviews of relevant public health priorities and interventions will also be considered.
• Special Reports. These are reports on research, studies, or projects relevant to the Medical/allied sciences.
• Opinion and Analyses. Authoritative opinion papers, reflections, and analyses may be submitted on topics of interest to the medical/allied health field.
• Brief Communications. Brief communications describe innovative—or promising—techniques or methodologies, or detail preliminary research results on topics of special interest to the Medical/allied sciences

2. Language

Manuscripts are accepted in English language. Authors are strongly urged to write in English language. An inadequate command of a second language can obscure the meaning of the text and is frequently at odds with the scientific precision that high-quality research articles require. Formal names of institutions, either in texts or in the author affiliation data, should not be translated unless an officially accepted translation exists. Also, titles in references should be left in their original language.

3. Guidelines and Research Protocols

The JPAFP follows the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Medical and Allied Journals, which was developed and is maintained by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and it is listed among the journals that follow these requirements. These guidelines include ethical considerations, authorship and contributorship, peer review, conflicts of interest, privacy and confidentiality, protection of human subjects and animals, as well as editorial and publishing issues such as advertising, overlapping publications, references, and registering clinical trials.

4. Ethics

The JPAFP is committed to the highest ethical standards for the conduct of research, as stipulated by the Declaration of International Ethical Guidelines for Health-related Research Involving Humans. Manuscripts reporting research involving humans must include the information about the ethics review committee(s) that approved the study prior to its initiation. Studies should obtain ethics approval in the country where they were conducted. If a study was deemed exempt from ethics review, authors must provide the documentation for such exemption.

5. Conflict of Interests

Authors must fully disclose information about any grant or subsidy to cover research costs received from a commercial or private entity, national or international organization, or research support agency. These disclosures help the reader to better understand the relationship between the authors and various commercial entities that may have an interest in the information reported in the published article.

The JPAFP adheres to the ICMJE recommendations for disclosure of competing interests. The ICMJE asks authors to disclose four types of information:

1. Associations with commercial entities that provided support for the work reported in the submitted manuscript.

2. Associations with commercial entities that could have an interest in the submitted manuscript.

3. Financial associations involving family.

4. Any other relevant non financial associations. Authors hold sole responsibility for the views expressed in their texts, which may not necessarily reflect the opinion or policy of the JPAFP. Generic names for drugs or products should be used whenever possible

6. Copyright

As a condition for publication, the JPAFP requires authors to provide information indicating that the text, or a similar one, has not been previously published in print or electronic format and that the manuscript will not be submitted to any other journal until the JPAFP reaches a decision regarding its publication. Any instance of possible prior publication in any form must be disclosed at the time the manuscript is submitted and a copy or link to the publication must be provided. Authors are solely responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce any copyrighted material contained in the manuscript as submitted.

The manuscript must be accompanied by an original letter explicitly granting such permission in each case. The letter(s) should specify the exact table(s), figure(s), or text being cited and how it/they is/are being used, together with a complete bibliographic reference to the original source. In the case of papers containing translations of quoted material, a link or copy of that text in the original language must be clearly identified and included as part of the manuscript’s submission.

7. Peer Review Process

Manuscripts undergo selection through a formal peer review process. Initially, a manuscript that meets the general requirements for submission and complies with the subject scope of the JPAFP will be reviewed by the journal’s Associate Editors to determine if it has scientific merit and relevance for the journal’s readership. If so, it will be sent for double blind peer review to at least three different reviewers. Upon receipt of all requested reviews, the Associate Editors will prepare a recommendation to the Editor-in-Chief to: (a) reject the manuscript; (b) conditionally accept the manuscript (with either minor or major revisions); or (c) accept the manuscript.

8. Dissemination

The JPAFP is published in electronic format at the journal website. The JPAFP also deposits a complete version of the accepted manuscript in electronic format in Google Scholar, PubMed and other major scientific databases.