| Iqra University

1. Frequency of Publication
Iqra Journal of Health Sciences (IJHS) is a bi-annual research journal.

2. Guidelines for Submission of Research Articles

Submissions to the journal are exclusively accepted through our online submission system, Manuscript Editorial:(https://manuscripteditorial.com/jrp/login-new.php).
We do not entertain submissions via email or hard copies by post or hand delivery.
To assist authors in the submission process, we have provided comprehensive author guidelines available at all times through this link: http://jrp.iurc.edu.pk/guidelines.php and this link https://manuscripteditorial.com/jrp/user-guide.pdf.
Please be aware that authors are required to adhere to ethical research practices, submit without a cover letter, and ensure completion of the submission form.
Upon initial submission, our team verifies the presence and completeness of all necessary documents.
Incomplete submissions are returned to authors for completion, with a two-week window provided for this purpose.
Failure to complete the submission within this timeframe will result in automatic deletion from the system without prior notice.
We therefore urge authors to meticulously fill out all required information in the online submission form.

3. Authorship of the Paper

Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study.
All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors.
In case besides the listed authors, other individuals have participated in certain substantive aspects of the research project, they should be acknowledged or listed as contributors.
The corresponding author should ensure that all appropriate co-authors and no inappropriate co-authors are included on the paper, and that all co-authors have seen and approved the final version of the paper and have agreed to its submission for publication.

4. Author Agreement Form

Submission of work implies that the submitted piece has not been previously published. Upon acceptance, the Author grants the journal the right to publish and distribute the manuscript, either partially or entirely.

The Author's name will always accompany the publication of the manuscript.
The Author retains the following nonexclusive rights:
To utilize the manuscript in their teaching activities;
To include the manuscript in the Author's personal or departmental (but not institutional) database or online platform; and
To license reprints of the manuscript to third parties for educational photocopying.
The Author also agrees to appropriately acknowledge the journal as the original place of publication.
The corresponding author will be required to fill and sign the Author Agreement Form which will be shared along with the proof-reading document

5. Timeline of Publication

Submission and initial review (within 01 week): Submitted articles are evaluated to ensure they fall within the journal's scope.
First review (within 02 weeks): Submitted articles are sent for review.
Article revision by the author(s) (within 02 weeks): Authors re-vise articles.
Second review (within 02 weeks): Articles are sent for 2nd reviews.
Final revision (within 01 week): Authors make final revisions.
Acceptance and publication (within 01 week): Articles accepted for publication and issue published online.
Additional revisions: If needed, authors given 02 weeks for each round.

6. Originality and Plagiarism Policy

JRP uses Turnitin software to check the similarity of every manuscript. The authors should ensure that they have written entirely original works, and they have appropriately cited or quoted whenever they have used the works and/or words of others. The acceptable range of the similarity index at JRP is less than 18%.

7. Peer Review Policy

The peer review at JRP aims to facilitate a fair hearing for a manuscript among members of the scientific community. We believe that manuscripts submitted to our journal are privileged communications that are authors' private, confidential property, and authors may be harmed by premature disclosure of any or all of a manuscript(TM)s details.

Reviewers therefore are asked to keep manuscripts and the information they contain strictly confidential.
Reviewers must not publicly discuss authors' work and must not appropriate authors' ideas before the manuscript is published.
Reviewers must not retain the manuscript for their personal use and must destroy copies of manuscripts after submitting their reviews to the editor.
Reviewers are expected to respond to requests to review and to submit reviews within the agreed time frame. Reviewers(TM) comments are required to be constructive, honest, and polite.

(Note: The review process takes around 06 to 08 weeks depending upon the reviewers' response.)

8. Article processing/publication fee

All articles published in JRP are open access and freely available online, immediately upon publication. JRP does not have article processing and submission fee (APCs).

9. Ethical Guidelines

Authors of original research should present an accurate account of the work performed as well as an objective discussion of its significance.

Underlying data should be represented accurately in the paper.
A paper should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to replicate the work.
Fraudulent or intentionally inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable.
The IRB/ERB report shall be essential (if applicable) with the articles.

10. Data Access and Retention

Authors are asked to provide the raw data in connection with a paper for editorial review, if applicable. They should be prepared to retain such data for a reasonable time after publication.

11. Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest

All authors should disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflict of interest that might be construed to influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of financial support for the project should be disclosed.

12. Corrections and Retractions of Research Articles

After a paper is published, we generally do not allow making any changes to the paper. However, the editorial board may allow corrections in the published paper in exceptional cases.

The corrections may be allowed to rectify unintentional miscalculations, human lapses or technical errors in the published paper.
The published papers may be retracted if clear evidence of fraudulent data, plagiarism or unethical publication practices is found.
The copyright infringement or non-disclosure of conflict of interest may also result in retraction of the published papers.
The decision of the editorial board with regards to correction or retraction will be final and cannot be challenged.

13. Acknowledgement of Sources

Proper acknowledgement of the work of others must always be made. Authors should cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported work.