Publication Ethics
The Future of Medical Education Journal (FUTURE MED EDUC J) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and ethical conduct in scholarly publishing. The journal is dedicated to advancing research in medical and health professions education and adheres to internationally recognized principles of publication ethics to ensure the quality, credibility, and reliability of the scientific record.
FUTURE MED EDUC J follows the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing developed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), the Open Access Scholarly Publishing Association (OASPA), and the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME).
The journal expects all authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial board members to comply with these ethical principles throughout the submission, peer-review, publication, and post-publication processes.
Allegations of research misconduct, including plagiarism, duplicate publication, data fabrication, data falsification, inappropriate authorship, citation manipulation, and undisclosed conflicts of interest, will be handled in accordance with COPE guidelines and flowcharts. Where appropriate, the journal reserves the right to contact authors’ institutions or funding organizations to facilitate the investigation of suspected misconduct.
All manuscripts submitted to FUTURE MED EDUC J must represent original scholarly work in medical and health professions education that has not been published previously and is not under consideration elsewhere.
Authors are expected to conduct and report research honestly, accurately, and transparently. Any form of scientific misconduct, including plagiarism, self-plagiarism, duplicate submission, redundant publication, data fabrication, data falsification, image manipulation intended to mislead, inappropriate authorship, and citation manipulation, is considered unacceptable.
The journal is committed to maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record and will take appropriate editorial actions in accordance with COPE guidance whenever ethical concerns arise before or after publication.
Authors submitting manuscripts to FUTURE MED EDUC J are expected to uphold the highest standards of research integrity and publication ethics. By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that:
· The submitted work is original and has not been published previously, in whole or in part, except as a conference abstract or academic thesis, where applicable.
· The manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere.
· All data are accurately, honestly, and transparently reported.
· All sources of funding have been disclosed.
· All conflicts of interest have been declared.
· Appropriate permissions have been obtained for copyrighted materials.
· All authors meet authorship criteria and have approved the final version.
· Ethical approval has been obtained from an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board (IRB), where required, and informed consent has been obtained from research participants.
· Authors agree to cooperate with editorial requests, revisions, and post-publication inquiries.
If significant errors are identified after publication, authors are expected to promptly notify the journal and cooperate in issuing corrections or retractions.
FUTURE MED EDUC J adheres strictly to the authorship criteria defined by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).
Authorship is limited to individuals who meet all of the following criteria:
Individuals who contributed to the research but do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged with permission.
The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring correct authorship attribution and approval by all authors. Any changes in authorship after submission must be justified and approved by all authors.
FUTURE MED EDUC J primarily publishes research in medical and health professions education. Authors are responsible for ensuring compliance with institutional, national, and international ethical standards.
Studies involving human participants must comply with the Declaration of Helsinki and relevant ethical regulations. Ethical approval from an appropriate Institutional Review Board (IRB) or Ethics Committee must be obtained prior to data collection. The name of the committee and approval number should be stated in the manuscript when applicable.
Informed consent must be obtained from all participants. For minors or individuals unable to consent, consent must be obtained from a legal guardian. Written consent is required when identifiable information is included.
Privacy and Confidentiality
Authors must protect the privacy and confidentiality of participants. Identifiable information should not be published unless scientifically necessary and with explicit consent.
The journal encourages authors to register educational intervention studies, including randomized educational trials (such as curriculum interventions, simulation-based education, or training program evaluations), in a publicly accessible registry when applicable prior to participant enrollment. The registration number and registry name should be reported in the manuscript. The journal encourages registration in recognized platforms such as ClinicalTrials.gov, IRCT, or other WHO ICTRP-approved registries.
FUTURE MED EDUC J is committed to ensuring transparency throughout the publication process. All authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial board members must disclose any financial, personal, academic, or professional relationships that could influence their work or editorial decisions.
The journal follows the ICMJE Recommendations regarding the disclosure of conflicts of interest. All disclosed conflicts of interest will be evaluated by the editorial office and, where appropriate, may be published with the article. Editors and reviewers with conflicts of interest must declare them and recuse themselves from the peer-review and editorial decision-making process.
FUTURE MED EDUC J has zero tolerance for plagiarism and all forms of publication misconduct.
All accepted manuscripts are screened using iThenticate prior to publication. Additional screening may be performed during the editorial process when necessary.
The editorial office carefully evaluates similarity reports. Similarity percentages alone are not used to determine misconduct; assessment is based on the nature, context, and source of overlapping text.
The following practices are considered unacceptable:
If plagiarism or other forms of misconduct are suspected before or after publication, the journal will investigate the case in accordance with COPE guidelines. Depending on the outcome, the journal may reject the manuscript, request corrections, publish a correction, issue an Expression of Concern, retract the article, or notify the authors’ institution or funding body when appropriate.
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The journal recognizes that AI-assisted technologies may be used to support manuscript preparation, particularly for improving language, grammar, readability, and formatting.
Authors remain fully responsible for the originality, accuracy, integrity, and scientific content of their manuscripts. AI-assisted technologies must not be listed as authors or co-authors.
If AI-assisted technologies are used, authors must disclose their use in the Declarations section, specifying the tool used and its purpose.
Authors must carefully verify any AI-generated content to avoid errors, plagiarism, fabricated references, factual inaccuracies, or biased information.
Reviewers must maintain strict confidentiality regarding manuscripts. Submitted manuscripts must be treated as privileged information and must not be shared or discussed with others without authorization from the editor.
Reviewers are expected to provide objective, constructive, and timely evaluations of submitted manuscripts, focusing on scientific quality, originality, clarity, and relevance to the journal’s scope.
Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited and may alert the editorial office to any ethical concerns, including suspected plagiarism or substantial similarity.
Reviewers must disclose any potential conflicts of interest and decline to review manuscripts in which such conflicts exist.
Editors (Editor-in-Chief, Associate Editors, and Assistant Editor) have full responsibility and authority for the editorial content of the journal and for all decisions regarding manuscript acceptance or rejection.
Editorial decisions are based solely on the scientific merit of the manuscript, including originality, clarity, methodological rigor, relevance to the journal’s scope, and importance to the field.
Editors must ensure a fair, unbiased, and confidential peer-review process. Manuscripts must be handled without discrimination based on authors’ nationality, institutional affiliation, gender, or other personal characteristics.
Editors are responsible for selecting qualified reviewers and ensuring that the peer-review process is conducted objectively and in a timely manner.
Editors must ensure that all submitted manuscripts are treated as confidential documents and are not disclosed to anyone other than those involved in the editorial process.
Editors must not use unpublished information from submitted manuscripts for personal research purposes without the explicit written consent of the authors.
Editors are required to disclose and manage any conflicts of interest and must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which such conflicts exist.
Editors should take appropriate action when ethical concerns arise, including suspected plagiarism, data fabrication, or other forms of publication misconduct, in accordance with COPE guidelines.
The journal is committed to maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record. When issues affecting the accuracy or reliability of a published article are identified, appropriate actions will be taken in accordance with COPE guidelines.
Minor errors that do not affect the overall findings or conclusions of a published article will be corrected through the publication of a correction notice (erratum). The original article will remain part of the scientific record, with a clear link to the correction.
Articles may be retracted if there is clear evidence of serious scientific misconduct or fundamental errors that invalidate the findings, including but not limited to plagiarism, data fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, or unethical research practices. Retraction notices will be clearly identified and linked to the original article.
In cases where there is inconclusive evidence of misconduct or where an investigation is ongoing, the journal may issue an Expression of Concern to alert readers while the matter is being resolved.
All corrective actions will be conducted transparently and in accordance with COPE flowcharts and best practices in scholarly publishing.
The journal is committed to handling complaints and appeals in a fair, transparent, and timely manner. Complaints may relate to editorial decisions, peer-review processes, or publication ethics.
All complaints should be directed to the editorial office and will be reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief or an appropriately designated senior editor who was not involved in the original decision.
Appeals against editorial decisions must be supported by a clear rationale and relevant evidence. Appeals will be considered carefully, but submission of an appeal does not guarantee reversal of the original decision.
Where necessary, the journal will follow COPE guidelines in resolving disputes and ethical concerns.
The journal takes all forms of publication misconduct seriously and follows COPE guidelines in handling such cases.
Publication misconduct includes, but is not limited to, plagiarism, duplicate or redundant publication, data fabrication, data falsification, inappropriate authorship, citation manipulation, and failure to disclose conflicts of interest.
Suspected cases of misconduct may be investigated before or after publication. Depending on the outcome of the investigation, appropriate actions may be taken, including rejection of the manuscript, correction, retraction, or notification of relevant institutions or authorities.
The journal is committed to maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record and ensuring ethical publishing practices at all stages of the publication process.
Authors publishing in FUTURE MED EDUC J retain copyright of their work. All articles are published under a Creative Commons license that permits use, distribution, and reproduction in accordance with the license terms.
Appropriate attribution must be given to the original work when it is reused or redistributed.
Authors are responsible for obtaining permission for any copyrighted material included in their manuscript, such as figures, tables, or other third-party content.
The journal’s licensing policy is clearly stated on the journal website and applies to all published content.