Publication Ethics

Medivara Journal of Nursing and Midwifery is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and integrity in scholarly publishing. The journal adheres to the ethical principles and best practices established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and follows internationally recognized guidelines for responsible research and publication.

Medivara Journal of Nursing and Midwifery  upholds a rigorous peer-review process and comprehensive ethical policies to ensure the publication of high-quality scientific work. The journal is dedicated to safeguarding the integrity of the scholarly record and addressing any ethical concerns that may arise during the editorial and publication process.

Duties of the Editors

The Editors are responsible for evaluating submitted manuscripts fairly, objectively, and exclusively on the basis of their academic merit, originality, scientific validity, and relevance to the journal’s scope. Editorial decisions are made without discrimination regarding the authors’ race, gender, institutional affiliation, nationality, religious belief, or political philosophy.

Editors must maintain the confidentiality of all information related to submitted manuscripts and must not disclose any details to unauthorized parties. In cases where an Editor has a conflict of interest regarding a manuscript, the manuscript shall be reassigned to another Editor to ensure an unbiased review process.

The Editor-in-Chief has full authority over the editorial content and publication decisions of the journal. Editorial decisions may also consider the manuscript’s relevance to the journal’s aims, scope, and ethical standards. The Editors reserve the right to reject a manuscript at any stage of the review or publication process if concerns related to research integrity, plagiarism, data manipulation, ethical misconduct, or authorship disputes are identified.

Editors are responsible for ensuring that every manuscript undergoes a rigorous double-blind peer-review process conducted by at least two independent reviewers with relevant expertise. Editors may consult with reviewers and editorial board members in making final publication decisions.

Duties of the Reviewers

Reviewers are expected to conduct reviews objectively, professionally, and constructively. Their evaluations should assist Editors in making editorial decisions and help authors improve the quality of their manuscripts.

Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts and should not use unpublished information obtained during the review process for personal advantage or research purposes. Any manuscript received for review must be treated as a confidential document.

Reviewers should promptly notify the Editor if they are unable to complete the review within the requested timeframe or if they lack sufficient expertise to evaluate the manuscript. Reviewers are also required to disclose any potential conflicts of interest and decline the review when appropriate.

Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors and report any suspicion of plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, or unethical research practices to the Editors.

Duties of the Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to Medivara Journal of Nursing and Midwifery  must ensure that their work is original, scientifically accurate, and has not been published or simultaneously submitted to another journal. Fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, and inappropriate data manipulation constitute unethical publishing behavior and are unacceptable.

Authors are responsible for presenting accurate data and sufficient methodological details to allow replication of the research. Authors may be requested to provide raw data or supporting documentation during the editorial process.

All sources and references that have influenced the research must be appropriately acknowledged. Authors must also disclose any financial support, funding sources, or conflicts of interest that may influence the interpretation of the findings.

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made substantial contributions to the conception, design, execution, analysis, or interpretation of the study. The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all co-authors have reviewed, approved, and agreed to the submission of the final manuscript.

Research Involving Human or Animal Subjects

Manuscripts involving human participants or animal subjects must comply with internationally accepted ethical standards, including the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and relevant institutional or national ethical guidelines.

Authors must clearly state in the manuscript that ethical approval was obtained from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board, including the approval number where applicable. For research involving human participants, informed consent must be obtained and participant confidentiality must be protected.

The Editors reserve the right to reject manuscripts that do not meet ethical research standards or fail to provide sufficient ethical documentation.

Author Contributions

All submitted manuscripts must include a clear author contribution statement describing the specific contributions of each author to the study and manuscript preparation. This policy ensures transparency and accountability in scholarly authorship.

Changes to Authorship

Any request to add, remove, or rearrange authors before or after publication must be approved by all listed authors, including those affected by the change. The journal may request supporting documentation before approving authorship modifications.

Authorship and the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Medivara Journal of Nursing and Midwifery  follows the policies of Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) regarding the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies in scholarly publishing. AI tools, including large language models such as ChatGPT, cannot be listed as authors or co-authors because they cannot assume responsibility for the integrity and accountability of scholarly work.

Use of AI by Authors

Authors may use AI-assisted tools only for limited purposes such as language editing, grammar improvement, or idea organization, provided that human oversight and verification are maintained throughout the writing process.

Authors must not use AI tools to fabricate data, generate false references, manipulate scientific findings, or produce entire sections of a manuscript without substantial human review and revision. Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of all submitted content.

Any use of AI tools in manuscript preparation, data analysis, or figure generation must be transparently disclosed in the manuscript, preferably within the Acknowledgments or Methods section.

Use of AI by Reviewers and Editors

Reviewers and Editors must not upload manuscripts, peer-review reports, or confidential editorial materials into AI systems or third-party platforms that may compromise confidentiality and data security.

Reviewers are expected to prepare review reports independently and must not rely on AI-generated evaluations. Editors remain fully responsible for all editorial decisions and communications throughout the publication process.

Corrections and Retractions Policy

Corrections

If significant errors or inaccuracies are identified in a published article that do not invalidate the findings, the journal will publish a correction notice, corrigendum, or erratum to maintain the accuracy and integrity of the scholarly record.

Retractions

The journal follows the COPE Retraction Guidelines in handling article retractions. Articles may be retracted when clear evidence of plagiarism, data fabrication, unethical research, duplicate publication, or unreliable findings is identified.

Retraction notices will clearly state the reasons for retraction and remain permanently linked to the original article to preserve transparency in the scholarly record.

Fundamental Errors in Published Works

Authors have an obligation to promptly notify the Editors if they discover significant errors or inaccuracies in their published work. Authors must cooperate fully with the journal in issuing corrections, retractions, or clarifications when necessary.

Intellectual Property and Copyright

The journal’s policies regarding intellectual property rights, licensing, and copyright are outlined in the journal’s Copyright Notice.

Peer-Review Policy

Medivara Journal of Nursing and Midwifery  implements a rigorous double-blind peer-review process to ensure the quality, originality, and scientific integrity of all published articles. Detailed information regarding the peer-review process is available in the journal’s Peer Review Policy.