Publication Ethics

Our Ethical Framework

The Practical Medicine is committed to the highest standards of publication ethics. Our policies are grounded in the principles and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME). We are working toward formal membership of COPE and will update this page when that milestone is reached.

All parties involved in the publication process — authors, reviewers, and editors — are expected to adhere to these standards.

Author Responsibilities

Originality & Plagiarism

Submitted manuscripts must represent the authors' own original work. Plagiarism in any form — including self-plagiarism, duplicate submission, or the uncredited use of others' ideas, data, or language — is a serious ethical violation and grounds for immediate rejection. Authors are responsible for ensuring the originality of their submission prior to submission.

Authorship

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made a substantial contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study, as defined by the ICMJE authorship criteria. All authors must:

• Have made a genuine intellectual contribution to the work
• Approved the final version of the manuscript
• Agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors meet these criteria and that no individuals who qualify for authorship have been omitted. Guest authorship and ghost authorship are not permitted.

Ethical Approval & Informed Consent

Research involving human participants must have been approved by a duly constituted institutional review board (IRB) or ethics committee. The manuscript must state the name of the approving body and the approval reference number. Authors must confirm that informed consent was obtained from all participants, or provide justification for any waiver of consent. Research involving animals must comply with applicable national and institutional guidelines and must report ARRIVE 2.0 compliance where relevant.

Clinical Trial Registration

All clinical trials must be registered in a publicly accessible registry (such as ClinicalTrials.gov, ISRCTN, or WHO ICTRP) prior to enrolment of the first participant. The trial registration number must be included in the manuscript abstract. Retrospective registration is not accepted.

Data Integrity

Authors must not fabricate, falsify, or selectively report data. Raw data underlying the findings should be retained and made available upon reasonable request. Where data sharing is required by a funder or applicable policy, authors should deposit data in an appropriate repository and provide an access statement in the manuscript.

Conflicts of Interest

All authors must disclose any financial or non-financial interests that could reasonably be perceived to influence the reported findings or their interpretation. This includes employment, consultancy, equity interests, honoraria, grants, and personal relationships. Disclosures are published alongside the article.

Reviewer Responsibilities

Reviewers must maintain strict confidentiality regarding manuscripts under review. They must declare any conflicts of interest before accepting a review invitation, provide objective and evidence-based assessments, and refrain from using unpublished information for their own advantage. Reviewers are expected to conduct their reviews in accordance with COPE's ethical guidelines for peer reviewers.

Editorial Responsibilities

Editors make decisions based solely on the scientific merit and ethical integrity of submitted work, free from commercial, political, or personal influence. The editorial team is obligated to maintain confidentiality of all manuscripts and correspondence and to investigate all allegations of misconduct thoroughly and impartially.

Misconduct & Corrections

Allegations of research or publication misconduct are taken seriously and investigated in accordance with COPE guidelines. Where misconduct is confirmed, the journal will take appropriate action, which may include rejection of the manuscript, retraction of a published article, or notification of the authors' institutions.

Published articles requiring correction are addressed through one of the following mechanisms:

Appeals & Complaints

Authors who believe an editorial decision was made in error, or who wish to raise a concern about the editorial process, may submit a formal written complaint to the editorial office at weopenaccess@gmail.com. All complaints are reviewed carefully and responded to by email. If a matter cannot be resolved internally, authors may seek independent guidance from COPE.