Author Guidelines

Article submission process

Submitting a manuscript to the Faslnamah-i akhlaq-i pizishki is online and log in through the following website: http://journals.sbmu.ac.ir/me    

Author Responsibility

To publish an article in the Faslnamah-i akhlaq-i pizishki, it is mandatory to complete the authorship responsibility form and guarantee that your manuscript is original and has not been published in this format elsewhere, either in print or electronically, in Farsi or other languages. The authorship responsibility form of the Faslnamah-i akhlaq-i pizishki (available in the forms section of the website) must be signed and dated by all authors and submitted with the manuscript.

Publication Fee

Publication in Faslnamah-i akhlaq-i pizishki is free for authors.

Preliminary Evaluation of the Manuscript

All manuscripts submitted to the Faslnamah-i akhlaq-i pizishki are reviewed first by the editor-in-chief and then by at least two members of the editorial board at their discretion. If the manuscript does not meet fundamental standards (e.g., includes scientific or ethical flaws) or is outside the scope of the journal, it will not be accepted. Manuscripts with primary qualifications will be sent to two or more independent reviewers who specialize in the subject matter. If the manuscript includes statistical calculations, it will be sent to a statistics expert. The reviewers evaluate the manuscript in terms of authenticity, validity and importance to assist the editor-in-chief in making the final decision. All manuscripts are considered confidential documents.

Authors whose manuscripts are not accepted at this stage will be notified within two weeks of receiving the manuscript.

 

Selecting Reviewers

The selection of a reviewer is crucial to ensure the scientific quality of published articles and is done according to factors such as expertise in the manuscript subject, reputation, conflict of interest, and previous performance.  The reviewer’s speed, accuracy, and logical reasoning are also crucial. All authors are permitted to introduce two reviewers to the journal secretariat at the time of manuscript submission. If necessary, the journal secretariat chooses suggested reviewers. The suggested reviewers mustn't have conflicts of interest with the authors of the manuscripts. The database of reviewers is constantly updated.

Reviewer Report

Reviewers are asked to evaluate the manuscript in terms of the following criteria:

- Does it have scientific, original and up-to-date approaches?

- Is it appropriate in terms of method?

- Have ethical considerations been adhered to in the research?

- Are the findings acceptable, and have they been presented clearly?

- Is the manuscript discussion appropriate, accurate, and complete?

- Does it have scientific and obvious logic as a whole?

- Is it among the novel and prioritized national and international research?

Duration of review

The time required for the reviewing process depends on the reviewers’ opinions. The usual duration for the first round of reviewing is approximately six weeks, or two months maximum. If the report provided by the reviewers contradict with each other or is delayed for no good reason, the opinions of other reviewers may be sought. Obviously, this duration will become longer. The opinion of the reviewers will be sent to the corresponding author along with the recommendations (if any) by the executive director of the Journal.

The corresponding author is assigned to highlight the corrections made to the manuscript along with other authors within a specified period of time, usually 14 days, and send them along with a separate letter in response to the reviewer’s comments. The revised version will then be sent to one of the reviewers for comparison. If approved, the article will be sent to the Deputy Editor for review of English and Persian abstracts, to the statistical scientific secretary for control of statistical data (if any) and to the scientific secretary for scientific editing control.

Making the final decision regarding the acceptance or rejection of the manuscript is the responsibility of the editor-in-chief and the recommendations of the reviewers may assist the editor-in-chief in this regard. If accepted, the manuscript will be sent for page layout. In order to fix possible problems, a galley proof will be sent to the corresponding author. Defects must be reported to the Journal secretariat within 48 hours.

Any delay in any stage will cause the article to be removed from the reviewing agenda, publishing and indexing. No changes will be made to the article after its publication, and the author(s) are responsible for any mistakes, especially regarding organizational affiliation.

Ethical considerations

This journal strives to become a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). COPE charts and guidelines are reviewed in the face of any ethical behavior. The journal also follows the mentioned guidelines in the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) recommendations for conducting, reporting, editing, and publishing scientific results. For more information, authors should refer to the principles of publication ethics.

 

Declaration of Human and Animal Rights

Research that includes human samples or data must adhere to the ethical principles, the set of national codes of ethics in biomedical research, and the declaration of Helsinki Ethical Principles and be approved by the ethics committee in biomedical research of the relevant organization. If requested by the editor-in-chief, the mentioned documents should be provided. Institutions and universities that do not have permission to issue approval of ethics codes in research are required to provide a certificate from the same university or institution. Articles derived from experimental research on animals should follow institutional, national, or international guidelines. Furthermore, in animal experimentation, the researcher must take workshops on working with animals, and if requested by the editor-in-chief, a certificate must be provided.

Types of submitted articles:

• Original Article: A report of the research results conducted to answer a research question or test a hypothesis. (Up to 4000 words, without abstracts, tables, and resources)


• Review Article: Presenting the latest findings on the review of previously published studies on a particular topic that can be presented in the form of systematic review and meta-analysis articles and narrative review articles. (Up to 6000 words, without abstracts, tables, and resources)


• Case Report: Provides the results of a detailed study of a particular subject, such as a person, group, place, event, organization, or phenomenon, to describe, compare, evaluate, and understand various aspects of things that are rarely seen. (Up to 2500 words, without abstracts, tables, and resources)


• Brief Report: A brief report of small and often pilot studies, describing unexpected observations that can be described in a short report with several images. (Up to 1500 words without abstract, tables, and resources) The minimum number of references should be used.


• Letter to the Editor: Includes topics such as reviews of articles published in the journal, elaboration of an idea, or clarification of the aspects of a complex topic.


• It is important to mention that original articles are of a higher priority for the editorial board.

 

Writing guide

• Persian writing etiquette should be observed and the use of foreign words should be avoided as much as possible.


• Use B Nazanin 12 font for typing Persian letters, B Nazanin 13 font for Persian abstract, and Times New Roman 11 font for English abstract.


• English scientific words and terms that are abbreviated in the text for the first time should be cited in full and their abbreviations should be given in parentheses.


• Use standard abbreviations and avoid using them in the title and abstract.


• The insertion of a dot, colon, comma, and semicolon is immediately after the word. After them, put a space and write the next word.


• A space is required between parentheses and the word before and after, but no space is required inside the parentheses.


• To write the range of two numbers, it is not necessary to put a space like 1-5;


• It is better not to start the sentence with a number. If necessary, the number can be written in letters, like fifty-four patients participated in the study.


• The names of English people and methods cannot be written in Persian font. If there is no accepted Persian equivalent, it should be written in English in the text.


• Avoid writing subtitles/footnotes.


• Avoid sending tables and graphs as photos (JPG).


• If a photo, graph, or table is re-used from other published sources, it is mandatory to cite the source.


• Avoid writing abbreviations in the table. If used, the full name of the word/words should be written underneath a table using the * sign.


• Write the numbers in the table in Persian.

Article arrangement

 

First page (Title)

• The title of the article should be concise and comprehensive. (As much as possible it should not be more than 15 words and avoid using acronyms in the title)


• The title should be written completely in both Persian and English.


• Enter the name and surname of the authors, academic rank, and exact address of all authors (respectively: name of the department, school/research center, university, city, country in Persian, and e-mail in English).


• Mentioning the ORCID code is mandatory for the first and corresponding author.


• It is necessary to enter the affiliation of the corresponding author by mentioning the ORCID code, contact number, postal code, preferably the place of service in Persian and e-mail address in English (below the English abstract).


• The corresponding author of the article should be identified by inserting the phrase "corresponding author" in parentheses.


• The e-mail address of the corresponding author should be mentioned, preferably the EDU e-mail address.


• Including the IRCT (Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials) code for clinical trial articles is mandatory.

 

Second and third page (summary and keywords in Persian and English)

• The abstract should be written​​ separately in both Persian and English.


• The structured Persian abstract of up to 300 words should include background and aim, methods, ethical considerations, findings, conclusion, and keywords.


• Abstracts of letter-to-the-editor articles can be unstructured.


• Ethical considerations should be briefly explained.


• Keywords should include a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 words. For articles in the field of medical sciences, keywords should be selected using Medical Subject Headings abbreviated for MeSH Term.

The English abstract of up to 300 words should be adjusted by the Persian abstract.

• The English abstract should be structured and include the following sections:


• Background and Aim


• Materials and Methods


• Ethical Considerations


• Findings


• Conclusion


• Keywords

Introduction

Consider the notation of the following:

• Provide basic and background information on the subject


• Express the importance of the subject of the study


• Definition of specialized terms or scientific abbreviations


• Mention the studies conducted in the field to explain the existing knowledge gap in the field


• Cite the source for the above-mentioned items.


• The necessity of conducting research


• Express the purpose of the research clearly

 

Materials and Methods

It should be written in such a way that any reader can repeat the experience of the author of the article. This section includes an explanation of the following:

• The type of research and the reason for choosing it


• Time (month and year) and place of research and follow-up period


• Research population


• Research sample


• Inclusion and exclusion criteria of sampling


• Sample size logic


• Sampling method/s


• Data collection tool/s


• The method of determining the validity and reliability of the tool/s


• Details of how you performed interventions, duration of implementation, and follow-up


• Data collection method/s


• Data analyzation method/s


• Statistical tests


• Statistical software (mentioning the version used).

Ethical considerations

• According to the requirement of journals to mention the specific code of the ethics committee, all research articles must have the code of the ethics committee.


• It is necessary to mention the code of the ethics committee in all articles; unless provided by the Ethics Secretariat of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education. (Such as systematic review articles, narrative review articles, letter to editor, short articles)


• From 2018 onwards, all dissertations and research articles must have the code of the ethics committee. These codes are available in the National Ethics System for Biomedical Research. The code of ethics must be inserted correctly in the article.


• If you have a human subject, ethical considerations should be observed based on the general guideline of ethics in biomedical research with a human subject in the Islamic Republic of Iran.


• All articles should have an ethical considerations section. Institutions and universities that do not have permission to issue ethics codes in research are required to provide a certificate from the same university or institution.

Results

In writing this section, pay attention to the following points:

• Present the main, important findings related to the goals and questions of the research.


• The results section should include only the findings of your study and should not mention the findings of others.


• Findings should be presented without the author/authors' bias.


• Refrain from interpreting and analyzing the findings in this section.


• Avoid mentioning all the findings.


• Report the findings in the past tense.


• Data can be presented in the form of tables, graphs, and figures.


• Use tables, graphs, and figures with the least possible number.


• The title of the table should be above it and in the chart and figure below it (mentioning the number).


• Do not send tables, figures, and charts as photos.


• Avoid repeating the contents of the text in the tables and vice versa.


• Avoid repeating the contents in tables, diagrams, figures, etc. at the same time.


• The numbers used in the tables and graphs should be Persian.


• Photos, diagrams, and tables and their descriptions should be provided separately and in the sequel to the main text of the article.


• The quality of the submitted images should be high and should be loaded in the relevant section with a volume of 300 dpi.


• Photos must be in "jpeg"


• Use a hyphen to indicate a decimal point: Example 90/45

 

Discussion

The following should be considered in this section:

• The first paragraph should start with answering the main research question and express the most important findings of the study.


• The main findings of the study should be compared, discussed, and interpreted with the results of other national and foreign researches and studies.

• Use the studies of others to support the analysis and claims made.


• Comment on the expected and unexpected results and try to do a deeper analysis of the unexpected results.


• Analyze any unusual or unforeseen trends in the results.


• Avoid repetition and exaggeration.


• Avoid using unscientific terms.


• Follow a logical flow in writing the discussion.


• Practical cases and the generalizability of the results should be explained.


• Mention the strengths and limitations of the research.


• Suggest to remove the limitations in future research.


• In general, what has been added to science as a result of this research should be briefly described.


• Explain the hypothesis or possible outcome of the results that may be proven or disproved in future research.

Conclusion

• With proper writing of the conclusion, the authors have the opportunity to show the reader their general understanding of the research topic.


• Wrap up the article by saying one final word about the issues raised.


• Just as the introduction gives the reader a first impression, the conclusion provides an opportunity for lasting impact. For example, this is done by highlighting key points in the analysis of findings.


• Summarize the ideas and thoughts raised.


• Express the importance of the author's ideas. Conclusions provide an opportunity for authors to explain the importance of their findings.


• The application of the study findings should be mentioned.


• The conclusion should be expressed in simple and clear literature.


• Do not repeat the results or discussion of the study in the conclusion section.


• Summarize the details in the study in a general way.

Conflict of interest

• Any personal or financial relationships that the author/authors, institute, judges, or editor may have that may affect the results of the study should be mentioned in this section.


• To avoid conflicts of interest in studies supported by private companies, mention the items of the agreement paper.


• A conflict of interest report does not disprove the article, but we would like to be aware of it.

Acknowledgment

• In this section, the authors can thank and appreciate the sponsors and providers of research facilities or other people who have helped or participated in the research.


• In case of financial support for the research, it is necessary to mention the name of the institution or supporting organization and the number of the project/dissertation at the end of the text. It is not necessary to include detailed descriptions on the program or type of grants and awards.


• If the article is the result of a student dissertation, the details and number of the dissertation should be mentioned.

Contribution of authors

The contribution of each author to the execution of the research and writing of the article is based on authorship criteria according to ICMJE, including all of the following:

• Significant contribution to the design; data collection, analysis, or interpretation of the study data;


• Writing the initial draft of the article or a significantly and scientifically revised form of it;


• Final approval of the article version for publication;


• An agreement in which any questions regarding the integrity and accuracy of the project have been previously reviewed and resolved, and each author acknowledges the role of others in this project.

Correspondence with the journal office is the responsibility of the corresponding author and the accuracy of the article content is the responsibility of all authors. Currently, the Journal of Medical Ethics accepts one corresponding author.

Ethical guidelines and author responsibilities regarding the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the article

Given the importance and use of artificial intelligence-based technologies in research and scientific production, authors should consider the following regarding the disclosure and ethical use of artificial intelligence in their work:

Regulations based on the use of artificial intelligence in the Medical Ethics journal

• Artificial intelligence and technologies based on it should not be mentioned as the main author or collaborating authors in any article.


• Authors are required to clearly indicate their use of artificial intelligence in their work and explain its role in the research and article preparation process. For example, suppose artificial intelligence has been used to assist in writing the article, it should be mentioned in the "Acknowledgments" section, or if it has been used for tasks such as data collection, analysis, or charting, it should be discussed in the "Methods" section.


• Authors are required to carefully review and edit the output produced by artificial intelligence. Despite its capabilities, artificial intelligence may produce content that is incorrect or incomplete. Therefore, authors are ultimately responsible for correcting and completing the content before submission.


• The use of artificial intelligence should be mentioned in both the Cover letter and the submitted manuscript.

Resource management style
Mentioning sources in the text should be through the Vancouver style.

• The number of sources should be entered in the order of entry in the text and starting from the number one and added in order.


• In the resource list, all resources must be written in English.


• To translate manuscripts into English, you must act based on the English abstract of the published article.

Try your best to use new sources related to the last 5 years.

• Resources should be written using resource management software such as Mendely, EndNote, etc.


• In medical sciences journals, the journal name should be mentioned in the Abbreviation form. For access to journal abbreviations, use the PubMed Journals Database. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?db=journals)