1. Purpose and Scope of this Policy
This Editorial Policy governs the submission, peer review, editing, publication, and post-publication handling of all manuscripts submitted to the International Journal of Medical and All Body Health Research (IJMABHR). It applies to all authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial staff associated with the journal and is intended to ensure integrity, transparency, and consistency across the editorial process.
2. Aims and Scope
International Journal of Medical and All Body Health Research publishes original research, review articles, case studies, short communications, and editorials covering all branches of medical science and human body/health research, including but not limited to:
• Clinical medicine, surgery, and diagnostics
• Public health, epidemiology, and preventive medicine
• Physiology, anatomy, and human biology
• Nutrition, fitness, and holistic/body health research
• Pharmacology and therapeutic research
• Nursing, allied health, and rehabilitation sciences
• Mental health and psychological well-being research
Submissions falling outside this scope may be desk-rejected without external review.
3. Editorial Governance
3.1 Editorial Board
The journal is governed by an Editorial Board comprising a Editor-in-Chief, Associate Editors, and Section/Subject Editors, each selected on the basis of subject-matter expertise, academic qualifications, and publication record. The Editor-in-Chief holds final responsibility for all editorial decisions.
3.2 Editorial Independence
Editorial decisions are based solely on the scientific and academic merit of a manuscript. They are made independently of commercial considerations, advertising relationships, sponsorships, or the personal, political, or institutional affiliations of the authors.
3.3 Conflict of Interest (Editors and Reviewers)
Editors and reviewers must declare any financial, institutional, or personal conflict of interest with a submitted manuscript and recuse themselves from handling it where such a conflict exists.
4. Authorship and Contributorship
• Authorship must be limited to individuals who made a substantial contribution to the conception, design, data analysis, or drafting of the work.
• All listed authors must approve the final manuscript and take public responsibility for its content.
• Any change in authorship (addition, removal, or reordering) after submission requires written consent from all authors and editorial approval.
• Non-author contributors should be acknowledged separately (e.g., funding bodies, technical assistance).
• Ghost authorship and guest/gift authorship are strictly prohibited.
5. Peer Review Process
5.1 Review Model
International Journal of Medical and All Body Health Research follows a double-blind peer review process, wherein the identities of authors and reviewers remain confidential to each other throughout the review.
5.2 Review Workflow
1. Initial editorial screening for scope, formatting, and plagiarism check.
2. Assignment to a minimum of two independent subject-matter reviewers.
3. Reviewer evaluation on originality, methodology, validity of results, and ethical compliance.
4. Editorial decision: Accept / Minor Revision / Major Revision / Reject.
5. Revised manuscript re-review (if applicable) before final acceptance.
5.3 Reviewer Conduct
Reviewers are expected to provide objective, constructive, and timely feedback, maintain confidentiality of the manuscript under review, and disclose any conflict of interest.
6. Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement
International Journal of Medical and All Body Health Research adheres to internationally recognized publication ethics standards (in line with COPE — Committee on Publication Ethics guidelines) and takes the following seriously:
• Plagiarism: All submissions are screened through similarity-detection software; a similarity threshold will be defined and enforced.
• Data fabrication or falsification: Any manipulation of research data will result in immediate rejection and, if discovered post-publication, retraction.
• Duplicate/redundant submission: Manuscripts under review or already published elsewhere will not be considered.
• Research/patient ethics: Studies involving human subjects must include a statement of Institutional Ethics Committee/IRB approval and informed consent.
• Image manipulation: Figures and clinical images must not be altered beyond standard adjustments (brightness/contrast applied uniformly).
7. Conflict of Interest Disclosure (Authors)
Authors must disclose all financial and non-financial relationships (funding sources, employment, consultancy, patents, honoraria) that could be perceived to influence the reported research. A standard disclosure statement must accompany every submission.
8. Human and Animal Research Compliance
• Studies involving human participants must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki and must be approved by an appropriate Institutional Ethics Committee/IRB.
• Studies involving animals must comply with relevant institutional and national guidelines for the care and use of laboratory animals.
• Clinical trials must be registered with a recognized clinical trial registry prior to enrolment, and the registration number must be cited.
9. Manuscript Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern
• Corrigendum: Issued for minor errors that do not affect the overall conclusions of the article.
• Erratum: Issued for editorial/publisher-side errors.
• Retraction: Issued for serious ethical violations, data fabrication, plagiarism, or unreliable findings, following COPE retraction guidelines.
• Expression of Concern: Issued when an investigation into a published article is ongoing and unresolved.
All correction notices are linked bidirectionally with the original article and clearly labelled.
10. Open Access and Licensing
International Journal of Medical and All Body Health Research is a fully open-access journal. Published articles are freely available online immediately upon publication under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) license, permitting reuse with proper attribution in accordance with the license terms.
11. Copyright Policy
Authors retain copyright of their work while granting the journal a non-exclusive right to publish, distribute, and archive the article. Any third-party copyrighted material (images, tables, data) used within a manuscript must have documented permission from the original rights holder.
12. Advertising and Sponsorship Policy
Advertising and sponsorship, where accepted, are kept strictly separate from editorial content and decisions. Advertisements are clearly labelled as such and must not resemble editorial or research content. Sponsors have no influence over peer review outcomes or editorial judgment.
13. Article Processing Charges (APC) Disclosure
Any applicable Article Processing Charges are disclosed transparently on the journal's website prior to submission and do not influence editorial decisions, which are made independently of an author's ability to pay.
14. Complaints and Appeals
Authors may appeal an editorial decision in writing to the Editor-in-Chief, stating the grounds for appeal. Complaints regarding editorial or reviewer conduct may be sent to [email protected] and will be acknowledged. Unresolved matters may be referred to COPE for guidance.
15. Confidentiality
All manuscripts and associated correspondence are treated as confidential documents by editors, reviewers, and editorial staff until formal publication.
16. Policy Review
This Editorial Policy will be reviewed periodically by the Editorial Board of International Journal of Medical and All Body Health Research to ensure continued alignment with international publishing ethics standards and best practices. Any revisions will be dated and made publicly available on the journal's website.
