PUBLICATION ETHICS

Introduction

Mahakarya Journal of Health Sciences (MJHS) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. The journal follows the principles and best practices established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and internationally accepted ethical publishing standards.

All parties involved in the publication process—including authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher—are expected to uphold honesty, transparency, fairness, accountability, and professionalism throughout the editorial and publication process.

Responsibilities of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to MJHS are expected to:

  • Submit original work that has not been published or simultaneously submitted elsewhere.

  • Ensure that all data presented are accurate, reliable, and honestly reported.

  • Properly acknowledge the work of others through appropriate citations and references.

  • Avoid plagiarism, self-plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, data falsification, and image manipulation.

  • Obtain ethical approval from the appropriate ethics committee for studies involving human participants or animals, where applicable.

  • Obtain informed consent from participants when required.

  • Clearly disclose any financial support, funding sources, or potential conflicts of interest.

  • Ensure that all listed authors have made substantial contributions to the research and approve the final manuscript before submission.

  • Cooperate with the editorial office during the review and revision process.

  • Promptly notify the editor if significant errors are discovered after publication.

Responsibilities of Editors

Editors are responsible for:

  • Making publication decisions based solely on scientific merit, originality, relevance, and methodological quality.

  • Treating all manuscripts fairly without discrimination based on race, gender, nationality, religion, institutional affiliation, or political beliefs.

  • Maintaining confidentiality throughout the editorial process.

  • Ensuring that the peer review process is objective, unbiased, and confidential.

  • Avoiding conflicts of interest in editorial decisions.

  • Taking appropriate action in cases involving suspected research misconduct, plagiarism, duplicate publication, or ethical violations.

  • Issuing corrections, retractions, or expressions of concern when necessary.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers are expected to:

  • Conduct reviews objectively, fairly, and professionally.

  • Maintain strict confidentiality regarding manuscript contents.

  • Provide constructive comments that improve manuscript quality.

  • Complete reviews within the agreed timeframe.

  • Inform the editor of any potential conflicts of interest before accepting a review invitation.

  • Report suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, ethical concerns, or scientific misconduct.

  • Refrain from using unpublished information for personal benefit.

Responsibilities of the Publisher

The publisher is committed to:

  • Supporting editorial independence.

  • Safeguarding the integrity of the scholarly record.

  • Ensuring transparency in editorial policies and publication procedures.

  • Providing adequate resources for ethical publishing practices.

  • Preventing commercial interests from influencing editorial decisions.

Research Ethics

Research involving human participants must:

  • Receive approval from an authorized Research Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board (IRB), when applicable.

  • Be conducted in accordance with internationally recognized ethical standards.

  • Include informed consent from participants whenever required.

  • Protect participants' privacy and confidentiality.

Research involving animals must comply with institutional, national, and international ethical standards governing animal welfare.

Authorship

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made substantial contributions to:

  • Conceptualization or study design;

  • Data collection, analysis, or interpretation;

  • Drafting or critically revising the manuscript;

  • Approval of the final version for publication.

Individuals who contributed but do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately.

Conflicts of Interest

All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any financial, professional, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence the objectivity of the publication process.

Any identified conflicts will be evaluated by the Editorial Board to determine appropriate actions.

Plagiarism and Research Misconduct

MJHS has zero tolerance for:

  • Plagiarism

  • Self-plagiarism

  • Duplicate submission

  • Duplicate publication

  • Data fabrication

  • Data falsification

  • Citation manipulation

  • Image manipulation

  • Peer review manipulation

Suspected misconduct will be investigated following COPE guidelines and may result in manuscript rejection, publication correction, retraction, notification to the author's institution, or other appropriate actions.

Confidentiality

Editors and reviewers shall not disclose any information regarding submitted manuscripts except as necessary during the editorial process.

Unpublished materials contained in submitted manuscripts must not be used without the explicit written consent of the authors.

Corrections and Retractions

When significant errors or ethical violations are identified after publication, the journal may publish:

  • Correction (Erratum)

  • Corrigendum

  • Expression of Concern

  • Retraction

The Editorial Board will evaluate each case individually in accordance with COPE recommendations.

Copyright and Licensing

Authors retain copyright of their published work while granting the journal the right to publish the article under the licensing policy adopted by MJHS.

The applicable copyright and licensing terms are explained in the Copyright and License section of the journal website.

Ethical Oversight

The Editorial Board reserves the right to investigate any allegation of unethical publication practices at any stage of the editorial or publication process.

Appropriate actions will be taken based on available evidence and internationally accepted publication ethics guidelines.

Policy Review

This Publication Ethics statement may be updated periodically to reflect changes in international publication standards and best practices. Authors, reviewers, editors, and readers are encouraged to consult the latest version available on the journal website.