Publication Ethics Requirements

Publication Ethics Requirements

All manuscripts submitted to Health Nexus must comply with the following ethical requirements. Submissions that fail to meet these standards may be rejected or withdrawn at any stage of the editorial process.

1. Originality and Exclusive Submission

Authors must confirm that:

• The manuscript is original and has not been published previously
• The manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere
• All sources are properly cited

Plagiarism, including self-plagiarism, is strictly prohibited.

2. Authorship Criteria

All listed authors must meet the following criteria:

• Substantial contributions to the conception, design, data acquisition, or analysis
• Participation in drafting or revising the manuscript
• Approval of the final version
• Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work

Changes to authorship after submission require editorial approval and written consent from all authors.

3. Ethical Approval and Consent

3.1 Human Subjects

• Ethical approval from an appropriate institutional review board (IRB) must be obtained
• Informed consent must be obtained from participants
• Privacy and confidentiality must be protected

3.2 Animal Studies

• Must comply with recognized ethical standards and institutional guidelines

4. Clinical Trial Registration

• Clinical trials must be registered in a publicly accessible registry prior to participant enrollment
• The registration number must be provided in the manuscript

5. Data Integrity and Availability

Authors must ensure that:

• Data are accurate, complete, and not fabricated or falsified
• Methods are described clearly for reproducibility
• A Data Availability Statement is included

The journal may request raw data during review or after publication.

6. Conflict of Interest Disclosure

Authors must disclose any:

• Financial relationships
• Personal or professional affiliations
• Funding sources

All conflicts of interest must be clearly stated in the manuscript.

7. Funding Transparency

• All sources of funding must be disclosed
• The role of the funder (if any) in study design, data collection, or publication must be stated

8. Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

• AI tools may be used only for limited purposes (e.g., language editing)
• AI use must be fully disclosed
• Authors remain fully responsible for all content
• AI tools cannot be listed as authors

9. Image and Data Integrity

• Images must not be manipulated in a misleading way
• Any adjustments must be disclosed
• Fabricated or altered data/images are strictly prohibited

10. Permissions and Copyright

• Authors must obtain permission for any third-party material
• Proper attribution must be provided
• Copyright and licensing policies must be followed

11. Reporting Standards

Authors must adhere to appropriate reporting guidelines:

• CONSORT (clinical trials)
• PRISMA (systematic reviews)
• STROBE (observational studies)
• CARE (case reports)

12. Misconduct and Ethical Violations

13. Author Declaration (Required at Submission)