Canonical Standards Encoded in Our Journal Web Copy
Publication Ethics and Editorial Office Policy Backbone
This journal operates under a publication-ethics framework aligned with the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)—an international body that issues practical guidance for editors and publishers on preserving integrity in scholarly publishing. Our editorial office applies a consistent policy set across the full manuscript lifecycle, from submission screening to post-publication actions. Our published ethics policies cover: conflicts of interest, ethical oversight (including approval requirements where applicable), complaints and appeals, suspected misconduct (including investigation and corrective actions), funding disclosure, and data transparency. These policies define what contributors must declare, how the journal evaluates ethical risks, and how editorial decisions remain defensible, consistent, and auditable. .
Conflicts of Interest and Disclosure Mechanics
A Conflict of Interest (COI) is any financial or non-financial relationship, activity, or interest that could reasonably be perceived to influence the planning, conduct, interpretation, or publication of scholarly work. COI disclosure is treated as a transparency instrument that protects readers, authors, and editors by making potential influences visible rather than implicit. This journal uses a uniform disclosure approach consistent with the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)—a standards-setting group whose recommendations and disclosure resources are widely adopted in health and biomedical publishing. Disclosures are collected in a structured manner and assessed as part of editorial evaluation, enabling consistent handling across review, editing, and publication decisions.
Data Availability and Data Sharing Expectations
A Data Availability Statement (DAS) is a concise declaration that specifies whether the data supporting an article’s findings are available, where they can be accessed, and under what conditions, access is granted or restricted. The DAS functions as an accountability bridge between reported results and verifiable evidence. Where data sharing applies, the journal requires a clear statement that identifies what will be shared, when it will be available, for how long it will remain accessible, and under what access criteria (for example, open repository access versus controlled access with approvals). This expectation is designed to reduce ambiguity, prevent performative “available on request” claims, and improve reproducibility in practice.
Reporting Guidelines for Study Transparency
Reporting guidelines are structured checklists that standardise what authors must report for a given study design, thereby improving completeness, interpretability, and replicability. This journal routes submissions to the EQUATOR Network—a curated library of reporting guidelines and supporting resources for health research reporting. Examples of guideline routing include: CONSORT (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials) for randomized trials, STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology) for observational studies, and TRIPOD+AI for prediction model studies that use regression or machine learning methods. Authors are expected to submit the applicable checklist alongside the manuscript when required by study type.
Accessibility as a Quality Standard for Web Content
This journal adopts WCAG 2.2 (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.2) as its accessibility baseline—an international W3C Recommendation that defines testable success criteria for making web content more accessible to people with disabilities across devices and contexts. The journal targets Level AA conformance as the practical standard for public-facing scholarly platforms.Accessibility requirements inform the way this website is written and structured: headings are meaningful and hierarchical, link text is descriptive, navigation cues are explicit, and non-text content is supported through appropriate text alternatives. These practices strengthen usability for all readers while meeting a recognised accessibility standard with defined conformance levels (A, AA, AAA).