Research and Publication Ethics Policy

Annals of Allied Health Sciences objective is to contribute to the spread of scientific medical knowledge worldwide by supporting authors in the publication of their research, and to protect intellectual property and copyright. To this end Annals of Allied Health Sciences' position is impartial and neutral without discrimination (whether religious, political, gender-based, sexually-oriented, ethnic or geographical) but at the same time objective and rigorous.

The peer-review process is fully documented and recorded at every stage and guarantees the accuracy and truthfulness of the scientific information published. The publisher guarantees ethical and quality standards will be complied with by the various actors involved in this process (authors, reviewers, editors, societies).Annals of Allied Health Sciences complies rigorously with the rules of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICJME) and of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Our main expectations from all the subjects involved in the editorial process are summarised below.

General duties and responsibilities of Editors

• Act in a neutral and objective way without discrimination (whether religious, political, gender-based, sexually-oriented, ethnic or geographical).
• Strive to meet the needs of readers and authors.
• Guarantee the quality of the material published and constantly improve the journal.
• Editors have responsibility to reject/accept an article and should have no conflict of interest with respect to articles they reject/accept.
• Foster freedom of expression.
• Maintain the integrity of the academic record.
• Monitor submitted material to identify plagiarism, fraudulent data and overlapping content.
• Prevent business needs compromising intellectual standards.
• Always be willing to publish corrections, clarifications, retractions and apologies when needed.

General duties and responsibilities of Reviewers

• Contribute to the decision-making process, and assist in improving the quality of the published papers by reviewing the manuscript objectively and accurately, in a timely manner.
• Not allow their reviews to be influenced by the origins of a manuscript, by the nationality, religious or political beliefs, gender or other characteristics of the authors, or by commercial considerations.
• Only agree to review manuscripts on subjects for which they have the expertise required to carry out a proper assessment.
• Maintain the confidentiality of any information supplied by the editor or author. Not retain or copy the manuscript. Not reveal any details of a manuscript or its review, during or after the peer-review process, beyond those that are released by the journal. Not use information obtained during the peer-review process for their own or any other person’s or organisation’s advantage, or to disadvantage or discredit others.
• Reviewers should have no conflict of interest with respect to the research, the authors and/or the research funders.
• Alert the editor to any published or submitted content that is substantially similar to that under review.
• Be objective and constructive in their reviews, refraining from being hostile or inflammatory and from making libellous or derogatory personal comments.
• Acknowledge that peer review is largely a mutual effort and undertake to carry out their fair share of reviewing when required.
• Recognise that impersonation of another individual during the review process is considered serious misconduct.

General duties and responsibilities of Authors

• Authors implicitly agree to their papers being peer-reviewed.
• Confirm that the paper submitted is original. No plagiarism is allowed, no fraudulent data should be published. Acknowledge and cite content reproduced from other sources. Obtain permission to reproduce any content from other sources.
• Assert that the paper has not yet been totally or partially published, is not currently under evaluation elsewhere for simultaneous consideration, and, if accepted, will not be published elsewhere either wholly or in part (except in case of specific agreements). Splitting the data concerning one study in more than one publication may be acceptable if authors justify their choice with good reasons both in the cover letter and in the manuscript. Authors should state what new scientific contribution is contained in their manuscript compared to any previously published article derived from the same study. Relevant previously published articles should be included in the cover letter of the submitted article.
• Maintain accurate records of data associated with their submitted manuscript. If necessary the publisher may request a copy of such material.
• Disclose possible conflicts of interest including financial agreements or consultant relationships with organisations involved in the research.
• All authors included in the authors’ byline should have contributed significantly to the research. To this end authors are requested to specify their contribution.
• Authors should ensure that all articles reporting studies that involve human subjects conform to the WMA Helsinki Declaration and that patients have given their informed consent for participation in the research study. Authors should take every precaution to protect the privacy of patients and obtain permission from the patients for the publication of photographs or other material that might identify them. If necessary the publisher may request a copy of such material.
• Authors should ensure that in any studies involving animal subjects they specify the guidelines for care of animals that have been followed.
• Notify the journal editor or publisher promptly if a significant error in their publication is identified. Cooperate with the editor and publisher to publish an erratum, addendum, corrigendum notice, or to retract the paper, where this is deemed necessary.

General duties and responsibilities of the Publisher

• Supervise the peer-review process.
• Protect intellectual property and copyright.
• Respect privacy on research participants, authors, reviewers.
• Monitor submitted material to identify plagiarism, fraudulent data and overlapping content.
• Guarantee respect for the special requirements for human and animal research.
• Monitor transparency and integrity (e.g., conflicts of interest, research funding, authorship/contributorship)
• Publish corrections, clarifications, retractions and apologies when needed.
• Prevent business needs compromising intellectual and ethical standards.
• Prosecute any form of misconduct in accordance with international guidelines (flowcharts of the COPE’s code of conduct).
• Make sure that all actors in the process work effectively towards the achievement of timely publication.