ETHICAL GUIDELINES FOR EDITORS

The Editor of the Al-Najam Journal of Medical and Life Sciences (ANJMLS) plays a central role in maintaining high standards of scientific integrity, clinical relevance, academic quality, and publication ethics. The publication of research in ANJMLS is expected to reflect rigorous scientific methodology, responsible conduct of research, and respect for patients, research participants, authors, reviewers, and the wider medical and life sciences community. The Editor is responsible for maintaining the integrity of the journal throughout all stages of the publication process, from manuscript submission and peer review to final publication, correction, and post-publication oversight. Accordingly, the Editor and Editorial Board shall adhere to the following ethical and editorial principles.

1. Editor’s Responsibilities and Good Editorial Practices

The Editor of the Al-Najam Journal of Medical and Life Sciences (ANJMLS) is responsible for maintaining the scientific, clinical, and ethical standards of the journal. Editorial decisions shall be based on scientific quality, originality, methodological rigor, clinical relevance, ethical compliance, and alignment with the journal’s scope. The Editor shall promote responsible scientific communication, protect editorial independence, ensure appropriate handling of ethical concerns, and maintain the integrity of the published literature. Where necessary, ANJMLS may publish corrections, retractions, expressions of concern, clarifications, or editorial notices to preserve the accuracy and reliability of the scientific record.

The Editorial Board shall encourage high-quality research across medical and life sciences, constructive scientific criticism, responsible reporting of clinical and laboratory findings, transparency in methodology, and adherence to recognized standards of research and publication ethics. Editorial policies shall be applied consistently and independently, without inappropriate influence from authors, institutions, commercial organizations, sponsors, or other external parties. Journal policies shall be periodically reviewed and updated in accordance with developments in medical research, life sciences, publishing ethics, and international editorial standards.

2. Formation and Responsibilities of the Editorial Board

The Editorial Board shall consist of qualified, experienced, and academically reputable professionals with expertise relevant to medicine, surgery, pathology, physiology, laboratory sciences, biomedical research, public health, allied health sciences, and related medical and life science disciplines. Board members shall contribute to the academic development of ANJMLS, support rigorous peer review, advise on editorial policies, and promote the journal internationally. Members shall be selected on the basis of academic qualifications, research experience, publication record, professional standing, and willingness to uphold publication ethics. Editorial Board members shall receive appropriate information regarding their responsibilities, conflicts of interest, confidentiality, peer-review standards, and ethical obligations.

3. Fair Play and Impartiality

All manuscripts submitted to ANJMLS shall be evaluated fairly and impartially on the basis of scientific quality, originality, methodological rigor, clinical or scientific significance, ethical standards, and relevance to the journal’s scope. Decisions shall not be influenced by an author’s gender, race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, political views, socioeconomic status, institutional affiliation, academic seniority, or personal characteristics. The same editorial and peer-review standards shall apply to manuscripts submitted by external authors and members of the Editorial Board.

4. Confidentiality

The Editor, Associate Editors, Editorial Board members, reviewers, and editorial staff shall maintain strict confidentiality regarding submitted manuscripts and associated editorial information. Manuscript contents, reviewer identities, editorial correspondence, research data, and unpublished findings shall not be disclosed to unauthorized individuals. Unpublished information obtained through the editorial process shall not be used for personal, academic, commercial, or professional advantage. Particular care shall be taken to protect confidential patient information, clinical records, photographs, radiological images, pathology images, genetic information, and other potentially identifiable research materials.

5. Manuscript Preparation, Editing, and Formatting

ANJMLS shall provide clear and accessible instructions for authors covering manuscript structure, reporting standards, references, figures, tables, supplementary materials, ethical requirements, authorship, conflicts of interest, funding, data availability, and other relevant submission requirements. Authors shall be encouraged to follow appropriate reporting guidelines according to study design, including relevant standards for randomized trials, observational studies, diagnostic studies, systematic evidence synthesis, laboratory research, biomedical studies, case reports, and other forms of medical and life sciences research. The Editor may request clarification, revision, additional documentation, or methodological information when necessary to ensure the scientific quality and transparency of submitted manuscripts.

6. Peer Review Process

ANJMLS follows a rigorous peer-review process designed to ensure scientific quality, methodological integrity, clinical or scientific relevance, and ethical compliance. Manuscripts shall be evaluated by appropriately qualified reviewers with relevant subject expertise. Reviewers shall assess the scientific validity, originality, methodology, statistical analysis, interpretation of findings, ethical conduct, clarity, and significance of the manuscript. Reviewers shall provide objective, constructive, and evidence-based comments and shall maintain confidentiality throughout the review process. Reviewers shall disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest and shall decline assignments where personal, professional, financial, or academic relationships could compromise impartiality.

7. Research Ethics and Protection of Human Participants

Research involving human participants must comply with applicable ethical and regulatory requirements and must receive approval from an appropriate Institutional Review Board, Institutional Ethics Committee, or Research Ethics Committee where required. Authors shall provide appropriate information regarding ethical approval, informed consent, participant confidentiality, and other relevant safeguards. Clinical research involving patients must prioritize patient safety, dignity, privacy, and welfare. Where applicable, clinical trials should be registered in a recognized public clinical trial registry before or in accordance with applicable requirements for participant enrollment and publication.

8. Patient Privacy, Clinical Images, and Identifiable Information

ANJMLS requires strict protection of patient confidentiality. Authors must remove unnecessary identifying information from clinical photographs, radiological images, pathology images, operative photographs, case descriptions, medical records, genetic data, and other materials. Written informed consent for publication shall be obtained where an individual may be identifiable, particularly for case reports, clinical photographs, videos, or unusual clinical presentations. Editors may request documentation of consent where appropriate. Patient identity shall not be revealed unless disclosure is ethically justified, legally permissible, and appropriately consented.

9. Authorship, Contributions, Editorial Endogeny, and Self-Publication

Authorship shall be based on substantial intellectual or scientific contribution to the work and shall comply with recognized international authorship principles. Individuals who do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately rather than listed as authors. Honorary, guest, gift, or coercive authorship is prohibited. All authors must approve the final manuscript and accept responsibility for the integrity of the work.

Members of the Editorial Board, including Editors and Associate Editors, may submit manuscripts to ANJMLS; however, such submissions shall receive the same or higher standards of scientific and ethical evaluation as manuscripts submitted by external authors. Editorial personnel shall not participate in editorial decisions concerning manuscripts in which they have an authorship, supervisory, institutional, personal, or financial interest. Such manuscripts shall be assigned to an independent editor and handled through an appropriately blinded or independent peer-review process. Internal authors shall have no access to confidential reviewer identities, editorial decisions, review files, or other restricted information relating to their own submissions.

10. Conflict of Interest

Authors, Editors, reviewers, and Editorial Board members must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that could influence the research, interpretation, review, or editorial decision. Conflicts may include financial relationships, employment, consultancy, institutional relationships, personal relationships, academic competition, intellectual property interests, or other relevant circumstances. Manuscripts involving an Editor or Editorial Board member shall be independently handled by another qualified editor.

11. Research Misconduct and Publication Ethics

ANJMLS maintains a strict policy against plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, inappropriate image manipulation, data manipulation, duplicate publication, redundant publication, unethical research practices, citation manipulation, authorship misconduct, peer-review manipulation, and other forms of academic misconduct. Manuscripts may be screened using appropriate plagiarism-detection and research-integrity tools. Where credible concerns arise, the Editor shall investigate the matter fairly and confidentially and may request supporting documentation from the authors or their institutions. Confirmed misconduct may result in rejection, correction, retraction, expression of concern, removal of content, or other appropriate action.

12. Clinical Trials, Data Integrity, and Statistical Reporting

Clinical, laboratory, biomedical, and experimental studies published by ANJMLS must present data accurately and transparently. Authors are responsible for ensuring that statistical analyses are appropriate for the study design and that results are reported without selective reporting or inappropriate manipulation. Where applicable, authors should provide information regarding trial registration, study protocols, statistical methods, sample-size determination, primary and secondary outcomes, and deviations from the original protocol. Editors and reviewers may request access to additional methodological information, datasets, protocols, or supporting documentation when necessary to assess the validity of the research.

13. Use of Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies

Authors must disclose the use of artificial intelligence, generative AI, machine learning, automated writing systems, image-generation systems, or other computational technologies when such tools materially contribute to manuscript preparation, analysis, interpretation, or generation of research content. Artificial intelligence tools shall not be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility for the accuracy, integrity, originality, or ethical conduct of published research. Authors remain fully responsible for verifying AI-assisted content, references, data interpretation, images, and scientific conclusions. Undisclosed use of AI for fraudulent data generation, fabrication, manipulation, or deceptive scientific communication is prohibited.

14. Publication Decisions

Editorial decisions shall be based on the scientific merit, originality, methodological rigor, clinical or scientific relevance, ethical compliance, and suitability of the manuscript for ANJMLS. Decisions may include acceptance, minor revision, major revision, rejection, or other appropriate editorial outcomes. Rejection may result from methodological limitations, inadequate scientific contribution, ethical concerns, insufficient originality, poor reporting, inappropriate statistical analysis, or mismatch with the journal’s scope. Editorial decisions shall be communicated professionally and within a reasonable timeframe.

15. Appeals and Complaints

ANJMLS provides a transparent mechanism for authors to appeal editorial decisions or submit complaints concerning the publication process. Appeals shall present substantive scientific or procedural grounds and shall be reviewed objectively by an appropriate editor or independent member of the Editorial Board. Complaints concerning ethical misconduct, reviewer conduct, authorship, conflicts of interest, or editorial practices shall be investigated confidentially and fairly. The journal may seek independent expert or institutional advice when required.

16. Corrections, Retractions, and Post-Publication Integrity

ANJMLS is committed to maintaining the integrity of the published scientific record after publication. Errors identified in published articles shall be evaluated promptly. Minor errors that do not affect the scientific conclusions may be corrected through an appropriate correction notice, while major errors, unreliable findings, research misconduct, or ethical violations may require retraction or an expression of concern. Post-publication corrections and retractions shall remain transparently linked to the original publication to preserve the scholarly record.

17. Editorial Independence and Commercial Influence

Editorial decisions at ANJMLS shall remain independent of commercial interests, advertising, sponsorship, institutional pressure, pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, or other external organizations. Financial or commercial relationships must not influence peer review, manuscript selection, editorial decisions, or publication outcomes. Sponsored research shall be clearly identified, and authors must disclose the role of sponsors in study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, and publication decisions.

18. Commitment to Scientific and Clinical Integrity

ANJMLS is committed to advancing reliable, ethical, clinically meaningful, and scientifically rigorous research across medical and life sciences. The journal recognizes that high-quality scholarly publishing requires not only methodological excellence but also protection of patients and research participants, transparency of research practices, responsible authorship, independent peer review, and continuous correction of the scientific record. The Editor and Editorial Board shall therefore work collectively to maintain the credibility, transparency, and academic integrity of ANJMLS and to ensure that published research contributes responsibly to medical knowledge, scientific advancement, and improved healthcare.