Editorial Policy

The Pakistan Journal of Advances in Medicine and Medical Research (PJAMMR) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of scientific integrity, transparency, and ethical publishing in accordance with international guidelines including the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

1. Peer Review Process

All manuscripts undergo a double-blind peer review process.

  • Initial editorial screening for scope, formatting, and plagiarism
  • Review by at least two independent experts
  • Final decision by the Editor-in-Chief

Decision outcomes:

  • Accept
  • Minor revision
  • Major revision
  • Reject

Timeline:

  • Initial screening: 1–2 weeks
  • Peer review: 4–6 weeks

2. Ethical Standards

All research must comply with ethical guidelines:

  • Approval from Institutional Review Board (IRB/ERC)
  • Informed consent for human studies
  • Compliance with animal research ethics
  • Adherence to the Declaration of Helsinki (2013)

3. Plagiarism Policy

All submissions are screened using Turnitin/iThenticate.

  • Acceptable similarity index: ≤19%
  • Single source should not exceed 5%

Manuscripts exceeding limits may be rejected or returned for revision.

4. Authorship Criteria

Authorship must follow ICMJE guidelines:

  • Significant contribution to study design or data
  • Drafting or revising the manuscript
  • Final approval of the manuscript
  • Accountability for all aspects of the work

5. Conflict of Interest

Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any financial or non-financial conflicts of interest.

6. Data Transparency

Authors are encouraged to:

  • Provide data upon request
  • Ensure reproducibility of results
  • Follow FAIR data principles where applicable

7. Editorial Independence

Editorial decisions are made independently based on scientific merit, without influence from sponsors or institutions.

8. Corrections and Retractions

The journal follows COPE guidelines for:

  • Corrections (minor errors)
  • Retractions (ethical violations or unreliable data)
  • Expressions of concern (under investigation cases)

9. AI and Publication Integrity

Authors must disclose the use of AI tools in manuscript preparation.

  • AI tools cannot be listed as authors
  • Authors are responsible for accuracy and originality

10. Open Access and Copyright

PJAMMR is an open access journal.

  • Articles are published under CC BY-NC 4.0 license
  • Authors retain copyright
  • Articles are freely accessible without subscription

11. Article Processing Charges (APC)

PJAMMR does not charge any submission or publication fees.

12. Privacy and Confidentiality

The journal maintains confidentiality of:

  • Authors
  • Reviewers
  • Submitted manuscripts

Personal data is used only for editorial purposes and is not shared with third parties.

Final Statement

PJAMMR is committed to ethical publishing, scientific rigor, and transparency. All submissions are evaluated solely on academic merit and relevance to the journal’s scope.