Policies

  1. Home
  2. Policies

1. Editorial Independence and Governance

Editorial decisions are made by the Editor-in-Chief and the editorial team based on scholarly merit, relevance to the journal’s scope, and adherence to ethical standards. The publisher does not influence editorial decisions regarding acceptance or rejection.

2. Peer Review Policy

  • Model: Double-blind peer review for most article types (identities of authors and reviewers are concealed).
  • Minimum reviewers: Typically at least two independent reviewers for research and review articles.
  • Decision process: Editors consider reviewer reports, manuscript quality, and integrity checks.
  • Timelines: The journal aims to provide timely decisions; timelines may vary based on reviewer availability.
  • Reviewer confidentiality: Reviewer identities and reports are confidential unless an open-review model is explicitly stated.

Editors may desk-reject manuscripts that are out of scope, methodologically weak, incomplete, or fail integrity checks.

3. Authorship and Contributorship

  • Authorship must reflect substantial contributions and accountability for the work.
  • All authors must approve the final version and agree to submission.
  • Changes to authorship after submission require written approval from all authors and editorial approval.
  • Contributor roles (e.g., CRediT) are encouraged for transparency.

4. Conflicts of Interest (COI)

  • Authors must disclose all financial and non-financial conflicts of interest.
  • Editors and reviewers must disclose any potential conflicts and recuse themselves where appropriate.
  • Funding sources and the role of funders must be described transparently.

5. Human and Animal Research Ethics

  • Human studies must report IRB/ethics approval and informed consent where applicable.
  • Clinical trials should be prospectively registered, and registration details must be provided.
  • Animal studies must report ethics approval and compliance with relevant guidelines; ARRIVE reporting is encouraged.
  • Identifiable participant information/images require explicit written consent and must be stated in the manuscript.

6. Data Availability, Materials, and Reproducibility

A Data Availability Statement is required for all articles. Authors should share data, materials, and code where possible or explain justified restrictions (e.g., privacy, legal, or proprietary limitations).

7. Plagiarism Screening and Originality

  • The journal screens submissions for plagiarism and redundant publication.
  • Submitted work must be original and not under consideration elsewhere.
  • Any overlap with previously published work (including preprints, theses, or conference papers) must be disclosed.

8. Preprints Policy

The journal permits submission of manuscripts previously posted on reputable preprint servers. Authors must disclose preprint DOI/URL at submission. If accepted, authors should update the preprint record to link to the final published article.

9. AI-Assisted Writing and Generative AI Policy

Authors may use language and editing tools to improve readability; however, authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of the work. Generative AI tools must not be listed as authors. Any material assistance from AI tools that could affect transparency (e.g., drafting, figure generation, data analysis code) should be disclosed in the manuscript (e.g., in Acknowledgements or Methods).

10. Copyright, Licensing, and Permissions

Authors retain copyright of their published work. By submitting and publishing in QES MedPharm Journal, authors grant the journal a non-exclusive license to publish the article and to identify itself as the original publisher.

All articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). This license permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format, including for commercial purposes, provided that: (i) appropriate credit is given to the original author(s) and the source, (ii) a link to the license is provided, and (iii) any changes made are indicated.

License link: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Permissions for third-party material: If a manuscript includes material (e.g., figures, tables, images) that is not owned by the authors and is not covered by an open license, authors must obtain written permission from the copyright holder prior to publication and provide appropriate attribution in the manuscript. Authors are responsible for ensuring that reused content complies with the terms of the original copyright/license.

The applicable copyright and license statement will be displayed on each published article (HTML and PDF).

11. Digital Preservation and Archiving

The journal maintains an archive of all published content on its servers with routine backups. As the journal grows, it will work toward participation in recognized digital preservation services (e.g., LOCKSS/CLOCKSS/Portico) or equivalent solutions.

12. Corrections, Expressions of Concern, and Retractions

The journal will issue corrections (errata/corrigenda), expressions of concern, or retractions when necessary to maintain the integrity of the scholarly record. Actions are guided by the nature of the issue (honest error vs. misconduct) and the strength of the evidence.

13. Appeals and Complaints

  • Authors may appeal editorial decisions by providing a clear, evidence-based rationale.
  • Complaints regarding editorial conduct, peer review, or publication ethics can be submitted to the Editorial Office.
  • The journal will investigate complaints fairly and confidentially and may consult independent experts when needed.

14. Confidentiality and Privacy

  • Manuscripts are treated as confidential documents during review.
  • Personal data are used only for editorial and publishing operations, consistent with applicable privacy principles.

15. Advertising and Sponsorship

Any advertising or sponsorship, if introduced, will be clearly separated from editorial content. Advertising does not influence editorial decisions.

16. Fees and Waivers

APC: No APC will be charged for manuscripts published in 2026 and 2027. APCs may be introduced in the future after the journal is indexed in major bibliographic databases (e.g., PubMed/PMC and/or Scopus). Any future APC policy (including waivers/discounts) will be announced transparently on the journal website prior to implementation and will not apply retroactively to manuscripts already submitted.

16.1 Contributor Recognition Program (Points/Credits) (optional)

The journal may implement a Contributor Recognition Program to acknowledge verified contributions (e.g., peer review, editorial service, and open science practices). Participation is voluntary and is designed for recognition and community engagement.

Separation from editorial decisions: Points/credits are administered independently from editorial decision-making. Points/credits do not influence peer review, editorial handling, reviewer selection, or acceptance/rejection decisions.

If APCs are introduced in the future, any eligible fee discounts/waivers connected to the program will be processed by the publisher/administrative office only and applied after an editorial decision has been made. Program rules, verification steps, and any redemption limits will be publicly posted on the journal website.

Contact

Website: https://qesmedpharm.com/

Email: editorial.office@qesmedpharm.com

Address: Quest College of Health Sciences, VIP Plaza, near Grid Station, Yaseen Chowk, Jaranwala Road, Faisalabad, Pakistan

Phone: +92-41-2422541 | Cell: +92-3327600425