O časopisu

PUBLICATION ETHICS AND MALPRACTICE STATEMENT
Publication Ethics and Integrity

World of Health Journal, a biannual publication utilizing a double-blind peer review process, upholds the highest standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. The Journal follows ethical guidelines that emphasize fairness, transparency, and accountability across all aspects of publication. These principles, including ensuring research integrity, fairness in peer review, and ethical issue resolution, are essential in maintaining the trust of readers and contributors while enhancing the journal’s overall quality.
Manuscripts involving experiments on human subjects must explicitly state that all procedures adhered to the ethical standards of the relevant institutional or regional ethics committee. Additionally, they must comply with the Helsinki Declaration and the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts submitted to Biomedical Journals. This information should be clearly presented at an appropriate section of the article.
All parties involved in the publication process, including authors, reviewers, editors, and the publisher, share responsibility for upholding these ethical standards, which support the advancement of healthcare knowledge. The World of Health Journal adheres to the Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals (2016) by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, as well as the general ethical guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), ensuring that editorial processes and decisions align with the highest international standards.
Editorial Policy
Each submission to the World of Health Journal undergoes a rigorous assessment for scientific merit, originality, and relevance to healthcare. Authors are required to adhere to the journal’s guidelines and maintain ethical standards, particularly when conducting research involving human or animal subjects.
The editor is committed to continuously improving the journal, actively seeking feedback from the community and promoting educational initiatives on publication ethics to minimize academic misconduct.
Editorial decisions are guided by the quality and significance of each article, with input from reviewers and advisory boards ensuring a well-rounded evaluation. The journal also thoroughly addresses ethical concerns related to submissions or published works, engaging relevant parties and implementing necessary corrections, retractions, or clarifications when needed.
The editorial board plays a key role in journal management, engaging in pre-reviewing submissions and contributing to policy and direction through regular discussions.
Authors must present their research accurately and objectively, ensuring data integrity, originality, proper citation, and acknowledgment of sources while avoiding plagiarism.
If authors discover significant errors in their published work, they must notify the editor or publisher immediately. The journal is committed to correcting such issues to maintain the accuracy and integrity of its published content.
Peer Review Process
The World of Health Journal’s peer review process, designed to uphold quality and integrity, begins with an initial evaluation by the Editor-in-Chief, followed by a detailed review conducted by at least two independent experts in the field. This double-blind review guarantees an impartial assessment, focusing solely on the manuscript’s intellectual content without regard to the authors’ identities.
Aligned with COPE’s Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors, the journal maintains the highest ethical standards throughout the review process. Fairness and impartiality are paramount, ensuring that the editor and reviewers avoid conflicts of interest and assess submissions based purely on academic merit.
The review process also emphasizes timeliness and accountability. Reviewers are expected to inform the editor if they cannot complete a review within the required timeframe and must handle all manuscripts as confidential documents.
At the World of Health Journal, the peer review process is a fundamental component of the journal’s commitment to academic excellence, combining rigorous evaluation, adherence to ethical standards, and strict confidentiality to ensure the publication of high-quality healthcare research.
Confidentiality
Confidentiality is a fundamental principle in academic publishing and is strictly observed in The World of Health Journal, in line with various guidelines. The editorial team, including the Editor-in-Chief, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, and editorial secretary, upholds the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts. Information about these manuscripts is shared only with relevant parties such as corresponding authors, reviewers, and the publisher.
Manuscripts under review are treated as confidential, with their details not disclosed except by the Editor-in-Chief or Deputy Editor-in-Chief, safeguarding the integrity of the review process and authors’ intellectual property. The journal follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines in cases of suspected misconduct to ensure a fair and confidential investigation.
Reviewers, who play a crucial role in manuscript evaluation, must keep the information confidential and not share it without authorization. They should follow the Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors and Publishers, and confidentially report any suspected misconduct to the editor.
Correction and Retraction Policy
Authors bear responsibility for the accuracy of their published work. Before final publication, the corresponding author receives a page proof and must review and correct it carefully and promptly. Any necessary corrections to published papers should be addressed without delay. If significant mistakes or errors are identified post-publication, an erratum will be issued in the earliest available edition and published online.
In cases of substantial errors, unintentional mistakes, or ethical concerns, papers may be retracted. Authors who identify major flaws in their work can request retraction, and the online version will be labelled as “retracted by authors” with a retraction notice added to the Cross Ref database. If editors, reviewers, or readers detect issues such as duplicate publication, falsified data, plagiarism, or unethical research, the journal will conduct an internal review before retracting the paper. Such retractions will be marked as “retracted by editor” and recorded in the Cross Ref database.
Ethical Considerations
Authors must disclose any conflicts of interest that could impact the interpretation, analysis, or publication of their work. This includes financial or other substantial conflicts, such as employment, consulting roles, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications, grants, or other funding sources. Any potential conflict of interest should be stated in both the cover letter and the manuscript and later included in the Conflict-of-Interest statement. Reviewers are also required to inform editors of any conflicts that would hinder their ability to review a paper objectively.
Research involving human or animal subjects must comply with ethical guidelines. Authors should adhere to the standards set by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Informed consent is mandatory for all human subjects, and for individuals under 18, consent must be obtained from a parent or guardian. If a participant is deceased, consent for publication should be secured from their next of kin. Authors must provide a statement within the manuscript confirming adherence to relevant guidelines and the acquisition of necessary approvals or permissions.
Publication Misconduct
World of Health Journal is dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics. Any form of unethical conduct, including plagiarism, data falsification, duplicate publication, self-plagiarism and inappropriate text recycling are prohibited. Limited reuse of standard text in the Methods section is allowed, with appropriate citation where applicable. If misconduct is detected, the journal follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines to address the issue.
Authors must ensure their work is entirely original, properly cite or quote all sources, and avoid submitting the same research to multiple journals. Manuscripts undergo plagiarism screening software to verify originality. A strict content overlap limit of 20% is enforced. Any violation of these standards results in manuscript rejection and notification of all relevant parties in accordance with COPE guidelines.
Reviewers also play a crucial role in identifying plagiarism or academic misconduct. If they notice substantial similarity or overlap with existing publications, they must report it to the editor. The journal employs routine and targeted plagiarism detection measures. Additionally, authors must submit a signed cover letter confirming compliance with institutional regulations and affirming that the manuscript has not been submitted elsewhere.
Copyright and Licensing
The journal maintains a transparent copyright policy. Authors retain full copyright ownership of their work while granting the journal the right to publish and distribute it. Upon publication, the content is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0)
For any inquiries regarding the editorial process, including the status of a manuscript under review, please contact the editorial office at worldofhealth@worldofhealth.hr