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A. Journal Name
B. Frequency of Publication
C. Submission, Processing and Publication Charges
D. Guidelines for submission of article
E. Peer Review Policy
            1. Screening
            2. Peer Review
            3. Appeal on Rejected Articles
F. Manuscript Processing
G. Conflict of Interest and Author Undertaking Form
H. Authorship Criteria
I. Acknowledgment Criteria
J. Privacy Policy
            1. Introduction
            2. Personal Information Collection
            3. Using Personal Information
            4. Securing your data
            5. Cross- border data transfer
            6. Updating this statement
            7. Other websites
K. Research and Publication Ethics Policy
L. Plagiarism Policy
M. Publication Misconduct and Retraction of Article
N. Data Sharing Policy
O. Complaint Process
P. Withdrawal Policy
Q. Open Access Policy
R. Copyright Policy

A. Journal Name:

MedERA – Journal of CMH Lahore Medical College and Institute of Dentistry (MedERA – JCMHLMC and IOD)

The acronym MedERA stands for Medical and Experimental Research Articles.

The acronym CMH stands for Combined Military Hospital.

The Journal might be referred to as:

(1) MedERA

(2) MedERA – JCMHLMC

(3) MedERA – JCMHLMC & IOD

(4) MedERA – Journal of CMH LMC and IOD

B. Frequency of Publication:

MedERA- JCMHLMC is published biannually.

- 1^st Issue in July.

- 2^nd Issue in December.

C. Submission, Processing and Publication Charges:

There are No Charges for article submission, processing or publication.

D. Guidelines for Submission of Article:

MedERA uses Open Journal System (OJS version 3.3.0.3). Procedure for the submission of article through OJS is given in the flow chart below. Detailed guidelines are also available here.

E. Peer-Review Policy:

(1) Screening

All manuscripts submitted to MedERA will initially undergo internal screening for their suitability according to journal guidelines, originality, and similarity index. Similarity index is assessed using Turnitin. A manuscript not found suitable for publication as regards the topic or poor writing will be rejected on the internal peer review.

(2) Peer- Review

After in-house screening, the manuscript will be sent for external peer reviews. Original articles authored by the editorial board will also externally peer-reviewed. Editorials and obituaries authored by the editor-in-chief will not be subjected to an external peer review. This will be a double-blind process. Research articles (a blinded documented containing the original manuscript along with a Peer-review proforma) are to be reviewed by two peer reviewers.

A reviewer will be given 3 weeks to review an article. A reminder will be sent if the reviewer doesn’t submit the review in 3 weeks. If the reviewer doesn’t respond within one week after the reminder, then the manuscript will be sent to a 3rd reviewer. Each reviewer will be asked to evaluate not more than two manuscripts for each issue. The reviewer may give his suggestions as comments in the blinded manuscript document. A reviewer must fill a pre-set Reviewer’s proforma (Reviewer's Proforma can be downloaded from here.) which summarizes the reviewer’s opinion on each part of the article and a final opinion on the acceptance, rejection, or acceptance after minor or major correction of the article.

The reviewer:

(1) will give general comments on importance of the subject, write up style, spelling and grammar etc.

(2) will ensure that the abstract is structured as per guidelines, has up to 250 words with 3-5 key words mentioned.

(3) will comment on the ‘Introduction’ if it is well- introduced, highlights the importance of topic, provides a brief reference to the previous literature, clearly mentions the rationale of the study, and the objectives are stated clearly.

(4) will check if the study design, duration & place where the study was conducted, inclusion & exclusion criteria design and methodology are described well, and statistical tests are incorporated.

(5) will comment on the ‘Results’ if the data is presented in clear sentences supported by tables and graphs with statistical analysis. The reviewer also comments if the results relevant and coherent with aims and objectives of the study.

(6) will comment on the ‘Discussion’ if the key findings are discussed and compared with already reported literature.

(7) will check if the conclusion, Strengths, limitations of the study and future recommendations are mentioned.

(8) will check if the source of funding is declared.

(9) will check if the Acknowledgements are mentioned, if any.

(10) will check if the references are in Vancouver style, 15 -25 in number and are 5-10 years old at max.

Reviewers should declare any conflict of interest (if any) to the editor and must complete the review within a specified period (usually four weeks). The reviewer's comments will be communicated to the author upon receipt. The author will be given two weeks to incorporate the reviewers’ comments in the revised manuscript. The revised version of the article will be checked for incorporation of suggested changes. A period of 2-4 months is set to finalize the process, and if approved, a letter of acceptance is issued to the author.

Due to the blind peer review policy, details of the reviewers are not shared publicly. However, the details can be provided to national and international indexing agencies (e.g., HEC Pakistan, PMC, Scopus, DOAJ etc.) on demand.

(3) Appeal on Rejected Articles

Authors whose articles have been rejected have the right to send a letter of appeal giving detailed explanations. This will be reviewed in-house and a decision will be taken accordingly.

F. Manuscript Processing (Fig 1.)

The manuscript will be immediately acknowledged, and initial screening will be done for its suitability according to journal guidelines, originality, and similarity index. If the manuscript is found satisfactory, it will be sent to two or more external reviewers. Three weeks will be given for review. A reminder will be sent if the reviewer doesn’t submit the review in 3 weeks. If the reviewer doesn’t respond within one week after the reminder, then the manuscript will be sent to 3rd reviewer. On receipt of comments, the reviewer's comments will be communicated to the author.

 The author will be given 2 weeks to incorporate the reviewers’ comments in the revised manuscript. The first reminder will be given to the author at three weeks if the author does not comply with the timelines. The second reminder will be given in 4th week. The article will be declined if no response is received (after two reminders) from the corresponding author. If the revised article is received then it is checked for incorporation of suggested changes. A period of 2-4 months is set to finalize the process, and if approved, letter of acceptance is issued to the author.

Fig 1. Manuscript Processing at MedERA – JCMHL

G. Conflict of Interest and Author Undertaking Form

A sample definition by WAME states that conflict of interest "exists when a participant in the publication process (author, peer reviewer, or editor) has a competing interest that could unduly influence (or be reasonably seen to do so) his or her responsibilities in the publication process."

Any conflict of interest should be declared by all authors. This may include grants or honorarium, credits and promotions, memberships or any personal or professional relationships which may appear to influence the manuscript. Such competing interests are not unethical but should be declared.

Authors should state the conflict of interest clearly in the Author Undertaking Form (see below). This statement should also appear at the end of the manuscript before the references. If there are no conflicts of interests, the authors should state, "none to declare."

An author undertaking form (Download our Author's Undertaking form in pdf format here) is sent to the corresponding author whereby names, affiliation, and role of the author in the study is mentioned along with due signatures of all the authors. Any conflict of interest or source of funding must be declared on the form.

H. Authorship Criteria:

MedERA has agreed to receive and publish manuscripts in accordance with the instructions of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Details of ICMJE and COPE are available at www.icmje.org and http://publicationethics.org/.

The ICMJE recommends that authorship should be based on the following four criteria:

- Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; AND

- Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; AND

- Final approval of the version to be published; AND

- Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

All those designated as authors should meet all four criteria for authorship.

I. Acknowledgement Criteria:

Contributors who do not meet all the four criteria for authorship, but helped in the study, may

be listed in the acknowledgement section. Examples include, but are not limited by, the

following:

- Individuals who supervised the research group

- Individuals who provided administrative support

- Colleagues who helped in designing the study

- Individuals who helped in reviewing the manuscript

- Individuals who provided laboratory assistance

J. Privacy Policy:

(1) Introduction

This privacy statement provides information about the personal information that MedERA collects and the ways in which MedERA uses that personal information.

(2) Personal information collection

MedERA may collect and use personal information that is necessary for the processing and publication of manuscripts submitted to us. This information may include names, affiliation and contact details; including postal address, emails, phone numbers and fax numbers.

(3) Using personal information

Any personal information received by MedERA will ONLY be used to:

- administer this website;

- personalize the website

- enable access to and use of the website services

- process the manuscript;

- publish the manuscript;

- communicate about the manuscript

- sending marketing communications.

Where MedERA discloses the personal information to its agents or sub-contractors for these purposes, the agent or sub-contractor in question will be obligated to use that personal information in accordance with the terms of this privacy statement.

In addition to the disclosures reasonably necessary for the purposes identified elsewhere above, MedERA may disclose the personal information to the extent that it is required to do so by law, in connection with any legal proceedings or prospective legal proceedings, and in order to establish, exercise or defend its legal rights.

(4) Securing your data

MedERA will take reasonable technical and organizational precautions to prevent the loss, misuse or alteration of your personal information.

(5) Cross-border data transfers

Information that MedERA collects may be stored and processed in and transferred between any of the countries in which MedERA operates to enable the use of the information in accordance with this privacy policy.

In addition, personal information submitted for publication on the website will be published on the internet and may be available around the world.

(6) Updating this statement

MedERA may update this privacy policy by posting a new version on this website. 

(7) Other websites

This website contains links to other websites.  MedERA is not responsible for the privacy policies or practices of any third party.

K. Research and Publication Ethics Policy:

MedERA follows the guidelines provided by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the Higher Education Commission, Pakistan (HEC) for dealing with scientific misconduct.

The following examples and forms of misconduct have been taken from WAME, originally with minor modification from the ORI publication Analysis of Institutional Policies for Responding to Allegations of Scientific Misconduct:

Falsification of data: ranges from fabrication to deceptive selective reporting of findings and omission of conflicting data, or willful suppression and/or distortion of data.

Plagiarism: The appropriation of the language, ideas, or thoughts of another without crediting their true source, and representation of them as one's own original work.

Improprieties of authorship: Improper assignment of credit, such as excluding others, misrepresentation of the same material as original in more than one publication, inclusion of individuals as authors who have not made a definite contribution to the work published; or submission of multi-authored publications without the concurrence of all authors.

Misappropriation of the ideas of others: an important aspect of scholarly activity is the exchange of ideas among colleagues. Scholars can acquire novel ideas from others during the process of reviewing grant applications and manuscripts. However, improper use of such information can constitute fraud. Wholesale appropriation of such material constitutes misconduct.

Violation of generally accepted research practices: Serious deviation from accepted practices in proposing or carrying out research, improper manipulation of experiments to obtain biased results, deceptive statistical or analytical manipulations, or improper reporting of results.

Material failure to comply with legislative and regulatory requirements affecting research: Including but not limited to serious or substantial, repeated, willful violations of applicable local regulations and law involving the use of funds, care of animals, human subjects, investigational drugs, recombinant products, new devices, or radioactive, biologic, or chemical materials.

Inappropriate behavior in relation to misconduct: this includes unfounded or knowingly false accusations of misconduct, failure to report known or suspected misconduct, withholding or destruction of information relevant to a claim of misconduct and retaliation against persons involved in the allegation or investigation.

MedERA also includes redundant publication and duplicate publication, lack of declaration of competing interests and of funding/sponsorship, and other failures of transparency to be forms of misconduct.

As a summary following Research and Publication Ethics must be followed by all the published articles (Further details can be accessed at COPE, WAME, ICMJE, and HEC websites):

(1) All research work involving human subjects, human material, human data, or experimental animals submitted for publication must be approved by an appropriate Institutional Review Board (IRB).

(2) All articles are required to have IRB letter in accordance with ethical standards.

(3) All research involving human subjects, human material or human data must be in accordance with Declaration of Helsinki, and Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS) guidelines (https://cioms.ch/). A statement detailing the name of the IRB and the reference number where appropriate, must appear in all manuscripts reporting such research.

(4) All experimental and interventional studies must be accompanied by approval letter from IRB.

(5) All RCTs must be in accordance with CONSORT guidelines.

(6) All clinical trials must be registered at clincaltrials.gov

(7) If a study has been granted exemption from ethics review, this should also be detailed in the manuscript and exemption letter signed by IRB Chair must be submitted with the manuscript. The Editor may contact the IRB for further information on special cases.

(8) The Editor reserves the right to reject a manuscript if the editor considers that the research has not been carried out within an appropriate ethical framework.

(9) Retrospective ethics approval from IRB, in cases when a study has not been granted IRB approval prior to commencing, is usually not obtainable and it may not be possible to consider the manuscript for peer review. The decision on whether to proceed to peer review in such cases is at the Editor's discretion.

(10) If tables, illustrations, or photographs, which have already been published, are included, a letter of permission for re-publication should be obtained from author(s) of that research article as well as the editor of the journal where it was previously published.

(11) Written consent to reproduce photographs, investigation reports (images of reports or other radiological images like X Ray, MRI scans etc.) of patients, should be sent with the manuscript.

(12) Authors must declare time and place of the study.

(13) COPE guidelines are followed by MedERA - JCMHLMC. Any scientific misconduct will be dealt with as per COPE guidelines. Publication misconduct is dealt by asking the corresponding author an explanation. If there is no/unsatisfactory response, the manuscript is rejected from publication and retracted if already published. Retraction notice will be in print and on the journal’s website as well. The authors will be blacklisted. The institutional head, HEC, PMC, and other editorial associations may also be informed of this misconduct.

(14) As the journal reserves the copyrights of the submitted articles, it is highly unethical to submit the same manuscript to multiple journals at the same time. If the author wishes to withdraw the manuscript during its processing, an official email needs to be sent to the editor for withdrawal. No manuscript is considered “withdrawn” without official email sent to the editor. A manuscript cannot be withdrawn after its acceptance by the journal.

(15) A declaration of conflict of interest must be signed by authors before publication.

L. Plagiarism Policy:

MedERA-JCMHLMC has a zero-tolerance plagiarism policy. We observe/follow the ICMJE, PMC and HEC guidelines/criteria for all types of plagiarism. They can be accessed at www.icmje.org, www.pmc.gov.pk and www.hec.gov.pk. The authors are responsible to apprise themselves of plagiarism in any form including paraphrasing and self-plagiarism. All manuscripts are checked for plagiarism by Turnitin Software. If the similarity index exceeds the acceptable limit of 19%, it is sent back to the author for rectification. It is processed further only after it is rectified.

M. Publication Misconduct and Retraction of Article:

All allegations of scientific misconduct are taken very seriously at MedERA. We follow the guidelines prescribed by the previously mentioned organizations. The manuscript processing will be halted while the fact-finding investigation is being carried out. Any scientific misconduct will be dealt with as per Journal’s policy. Publication misconduct is dealt by asking the corresponding author an explanation. If there is no/unsatisfactory response, the manuscript is rejected from publication and retracted if already published. Retraction notice will be in print and on the journal’s website. The authors will be blacklisted. The institutional head, HEC, PMC, and other editorial associations may also be informed of this misconduct.

N. Data Sharing Policy:

Authors may be requested to deposit their SPSS/EXCEL data sheets if required.

O. Complaint Process:

The authors, reviewers, or any other person may submit a formal complaint through the journal's official email (editorinchief@jcmhlmc.com) regarding any publication misconduct on the part of the author, reviewer or Editor to the Chief Editor. The case will be referred for investigation to the Editorial Board of the journal to give recommendations to the Chief Editor for decision in the light of Journal’s policy.

P. Withdrawal Policy:

If the authors want to withdraw the manuscript during its processing, an email has to be sent notifying as of their intention, to the effect that the manuscript withdrawal form will be emailed for the signatures of all the authors. This needs to be completed, scanned and sent back. A final letter from the editorial office for withdrawal of the manuscript will then be dispatched. Electronic signatures will not be accepted. No manuscript is considered “withdrawn” without an official email sent to the editor. A manuscript cannot be withdrawn after its acceptance by the journal.

Q. Open Access Policy:

All the articles published by this journal are made freely and permanently accessible online immediately upon publication, without subscription charges or registration barriers. The authors of articles published with MedERA retain the copyrights of their submitted manuscripts for all purposes and have granted to any third party the right to use, reproduce or disseminate their articles.

R. Copyright Policy:

The work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non- Commercial 4.0 International License (CC-by-4.0). The authors will retain the copyrights of their submitted manuscripts for all purposes. The readers may “Share-copy and reorganize the material in any medium or format” and “transform and build upon the material”. The readers must give appropriate credit to the source of the material and indicate if changes were made to the material. Readers may not use the material for commercial purpose. The readers may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.