Publication Ethics

1. Commitment to Ethical Publishing

BM-Publisher upholds the highest standards of publication ethics and integrity. Our policies follow internationally recognized guidance, including the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME).

Editors, authors, and reviewers share responsibility for maintaining these standards from submission through post-publication.

2. Responsibilities of Editors

• Make publication decisions based on scholarly merit, originality, relevance, and clarity—without discrimination.
• Ensure a fair, timely, and confidential peer-review process (double-blind unless a journal specifies otherwise).
• Protect confidentiality of submissions and reviewer identities.
• Declare and manage conflicts of interest; recuse when appropriate.
• Address ethical concerns (e.g., plagiarism, data fabrication, image manipulation, duplicate submission) using COPE flowcharts.
• Issue corrections, expressions of concern, or retractions as necessary to maintain the scholarly record.

3. Responsibilities of Authors

• Submit original work; properly cite and obtain permissions for reused material.
• List as authors only those who made substantial contributions; acknowledge others appropriately.
• Avoid multiple, redundant, or concurrent submission of the same manuscript to more than one journal.
• Disclose all funding sources and potential conflicts of interest.
• Provide accurate, reproducible data and methods; be prepared to share data upon reasonable request.
• For studies involving humans or animals, include IRB/ethics approval info and adherence to relevant guidelines.
• Cooperate with editorial investigations; promptly correct significant errors discovered after publication.

4. Responsibilities of Reviewers

• Provide objective, constructive, and timely reviews within their area of expertise.
• Maintain confidentiality; do not use or share manuscript content for personal advantage.
• Declare conflicts of interest or inability to review and return the invitation promptly.
• Alert editors to suspected ethical issues (e.g., plagiarism, undeclared conflicts, data/image concerns).

5. Research Ethics

• Human research: Conform to the Declaration of Helsinki; include informed consent and ethics approval (IRB/EC name, approval number/date).
• Clinical trials: Register in a public registry (e.g., ClinicalTrials.gov or WHO ICTRP) and follow CONSORT when applicable.
• Animal research: Follow institutional/national regulations and ARRIVE guidelines, minimizing harm and using humane endpoints.
• Data/AI/Images: Report image adjustments and AI-assisted tools transparently; do not use AI tools as listed authors.

6. Handling Misconduct

Allegations of fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, unethical authorship, or undisclosed conflicts trigger a documented process guided by COPE best practices. Outcomes may include:

• Requests for clarification, data, or institutional oversight.
• Publication of a correction, note, or expression of concern.
• Retraction when integrity is compromised; notification of institutions or funders when necessary.

7. Data Availability & Transparency

• Authors should deposit data, code, and materials in trusted repositories where feasible and provide persistent links (e.g., DOIs).
• Methods should be sufficiently detailed to permit replication.
• Where data cannot be shared (e.g., privacy, legal), authors must explain the restrictions.

8. Conflict of Interest & Funding Disclosure

• All authors, editors, and reviewers must declare financial and non-financial interests that could influence their judgments.
• Manuscripts must include funding statements and the role of the funder (if any) in study design, analysis, and publication decisions.

9. Copyright & Licensing

BM-Publisher supports open access under Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0). Authors retain copyright and grant BM-Publisher the right of first publication. Reuse is permitted with appropriate credit to the original authors and source.

CC BY 4.0

10. Retractions & Corrections

• Correction: For significant but honest errors that do not invalidate the findings.
• Expression of Concern: When an investigation is ongoing and reliability is in question.
• Retraction: For confirmed misconduct or pervasive errors that invalidate findings.

Notices are linked to the original article and remain freely accessible.

11. Archiving & Preservation

Digital preservation is ensured through reputable archiving services (e.g., LOCKSS/CLOCKSS/Portico) so that content remains accessible in the long term.

12. Ethical Oversight

An internal BM-Publisher Ethics Committee oversees compliance, updates policies in line with evolving international best practice, and adjudicates complex cases in consultation with COPE resources.

13. Contact

Note: BM-Publisher follows COPE, ICMJE, and WAME guidance. Statements of membership (if applicable) are listed on each journal’s “About” page.