Guidelines for article submission

Please note that we follow Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals International Committee of Medical Journal Editors and COPE guidelines.
https://icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf

Information For Authors

All authors are advised to first read the following policies before submitting article to the journal and agree to it

Copyright and Licensing Policy

Since IJPOT is an Open Access journal, the author(s) retains copyright ownership post publication with IJPOT however they grant Creative Commons license exclusively to the IJPOT, in the event that such work is published in IJPOT. However, the author(s) grant the journal the right to analyze the information obtained from submitted manuscripts as part of editorial research to improve the peer-review process, and for teaching and training activities

The authors warrant that the work is original and it contains no libellous statements, that it contains nothing unlawful, and does not infringe upon any copyright, trademark, patent, statutory right, proprietary right of others, and that I shall indemnify the editors against any costs, expenses and damages arising from any breach of this warranty. We understand that the view and opinions expressed in the article are of the authors and not of the journal.

Articles in Indian Journal of Physiotherapy & Occupational Therapy journal are Open Access articles which permits use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work and source is properly cited.

Submission Guidelines

Authors are kindly urged to adhere to the following submission guidelines:

1. Signed Cover Letter: Please submit a cover letter adhering to the specified format. Your signature is required for validation.Format here- Cover letter
2. Anonymized Manuscript: Ensure your manuscript is anonymized to maintain a double-blind review process. Remove any author-identifying information from the document.
3. Copyright Licensing Form - Format here
4. Authors are encouraged to thoroughly review this document. In case of any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us. Manuscripts lacking either the cover letter or copyright licensing form will not be considered for review.

Definition of authorship as per our journal

We define authorship as per COPE guidelines. The minimum requirements for authorship, common to all definitions, are:

1. Substantial contribution to the work and
2. Accountability for the work that was done and its presentation in a publication.
3. By submitting your manuscript to this journal, you affirm that both you and the other authors linked to the manuscript adhere to the criteria for authorship.

Conflicts of Interest Statement
A conflict of interest arises in a manuscript when the author is associated with activities that might unduly influence their judgment, regardless of whether this influence occurs. Financial connections with industry, such as employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, grants, or expert testimony, either personally or through immediate family, are typically regarded as significant competing interests. Should such conflicts exist, authors are required to disclose them during manuscript submission

Statement on the Incorporation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Scientific Writing
The utilization of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies, specifically Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, is allowed solely for the enhancement of language and not for deriving insights and/or commentary. This usage must be thoroughly documented in the methods section. It is imperative that AI is not credited or listed as an author.

Ethical Clearance

• All studies involving human and animal subjects must address ethical considerations.
• When reporting research on human subjects, authors must specify whether the procedures align with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional or regional) and comply with the Helsinki Declaration of 1964, as revised in 2013.
• Ethical clearance, obtained in writing from a formally constituted Institutional Ethics
• Committee, is mandatory for all research studies.
• The cover letter should explicitly state the name of the ethics committee clearing the study, along with the date and number in the cover letter.
• IJPOT reserves the right to request a copy of the relevant document as needed.
• Even if a study has been approved by a Research Ethics Committee, editors may express concerns about the ethical aspects of the work during the review process.
• When describing animal experiments, authors should specify adherence to institutional and national standards for the ethical care and use of laboratory animals. We endorse the NACLAR guidelines, emphasizing humane and responsible treatment of animals for scientific purposes and offering practical advice. This includes:
• Replacement: If a research question can be addressed without using animals, authors should opt for methodologies like cell studies or computer modeling, thus avoiding animal use. When possible, consider using morally "lower" species in place of "higher" ones.
• Reduction: Employ a smaller number of animals when feasible to answer research questions.
Refinement: Continuously refine research methods, techniques, concepts, and tools to minimize the necessity for animals in research and mitigate potential harms.
• Authors may be asked to provide more detailed information and justify the ethical and moral aspects of the research.
• Editors may request contact details of the research ethics committee for further inquiry.
• IJPOT editors may consult with editorial colleagues, the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE, WAME or ICMJE), or Ethical advisors to assess the ethical aspects of an article and retain the right to reject a manuscript on ethical grounds, irrespective of institutional ethics committee approval.
• In addition to manuscript rejection, the journal reserves the right to communicate ethical concerns to the head of the author's institution or the medical council to prevent unethical practices and safeguard patients.
• Consent of human Research Subjects: In case of identifiable photographs and/or medical data of research subjects particularly minors and deceased, informed consent should be obtained from the subject themselves, legal guardians or next of kin respectively. Please visit journal website for consent form. The identity of the patient in clinical photographs should be masked by suitable methods and any sensitive medical data should be anonymized.Format here

Funding Sources
Authors must disclose all financial and material support received for the research, providing details such as grant number and funding agency.

Type of article and manuscript format

Submitted manuscript can be original research, case reports or review articles.For guidelines on the type of articles please see- Document

Recommeded format for manuscript can be accessed here- Format

Publication process and criteria for acceptance

We are dedicated to upholding elevated editorial standards and maintaining the integrity of our journal. Our commitment to quality is reflected in our rigorous peer review process, which typically takes 4-5 weeks. Here is an overview of the evaluation process your manuscript will undergo post-submission:

• Submitting the manuscript: We encourage you to submit the manuscript through the OJS platform as it maintains transparency and visibility of the publication process. You can submit here- https://medicopublication.com/index.php/ijpot. In case you are unable to submit on OJS, you can email us your manuscripts at editor@ijpot.com
• Relevance to the Aim and Scope: If your article aligns with the journal's scope, it will proceed; otherwise, the editor may suggest incorporating a relevant lens or may reject your article.
• Rejection Reasons:
  1. Out-of-scope submissions
  2. Lack of novelty in research subject
  3. Insufficient inclusion of necessary elements, such as research methods
  4. Evidence of research misconduct
  5. >10% Plagiarism (we use paid Similarity Check/iThenticate services and will check each manuscript )
  6. Inability to provide necessary ethical clearances and consent from research subjects.
• Peer Review Process: Upon the editor's approval, a double-blind peer review will be initiated, involving subject matter experts. Following the review, your manuscript will be returned with comments.
• Author Addresses Comments: Implement necessary revisions based on peer review comments and resubmit the revised manuscript to the editor.
• Intimation of Acceptance: If the editor is satisfied, you will be informed of your manuscripts acceptance, along with details about the publication timeline. Manuscript handling charges will be required, and an acceptance letter will be issued.
• Pre-Release: Before publication, you will receive a pre-release version of your article. Please review it thoroughly and communicate any essential changes to us.

Double Blind Peer Review Guidelines

We require an anonymized manuscript for our double-blind peer review process, meaning that author information will be concealed from peer reviewers. When submitting your manuscript, please eliminate any identifying details, such as authors names or affiliations. Additionally, ensure that the manuscript is appropriately prepared for double-blind review by following these guidelines:

• Utilize the third person to reference previously published work by the authors, for instance,write 'Sharma and Iyer (2015) have demonstrated' rather than 'we/the authors have previously demonstrated (Sharma and Iyer, 2015)'.
• Ensure figures and tables do not include any references to author affiliations.
• Omit acknowledgments and any mentions of funding sources.
• Provide these details, including declarations of potential conflicts of interest, on the title page, which is not shared with reviewers. The format for the same is available on the journal website.
• Exercise caution in choosing file names, and anonymize the file Properties. If using Office 2007 or later, consider employing the Document Inspector Tool before submission.
• Be vigilant to avoid inadvertently including identifying information within the manuscript as it will be shared with the reviewers.

Change in authorship or contributorship

Once an article has been submitted into our system and the review process is underway,modifications to authorship cannot be accommodated. However, if there arises a necessity to alter authors or adjust the order of contributorship pre-publication, we require explicit consent from all the authors. This consent should be provided either through official email addresses or by submitting a no-objection certificate on their institution's letterhead.

If there is a change in authorship or contributorship post-publication, we will follow the same process of needing explicit consent from all authors. We can make the authorship and contributorship changes on platforms controlled by us primarily journal website and OJS but cannot guarantee that the changes will be reflected in third party platforms and databases that index the journal.

Article withdrawal process

You can withdraw your article at any time pre-publication. However, we may not be able to issue you a full refund especially if your article has been through the review process since we have invested resources in the review process. We will evaluate refunds on a case-by-case basis and may issue refunds to authors under financial duress. We recommend you inform us about your intention to withdraw as soon as possible.

Publication Charges Policy

We operate Open Access publications, implying that we do not charge for online subscriptions to our journal. Our primary goal is to establish high-quality multidisciplinary research platforms. The deliberate choice of adopting an open-access model is driven by the intention to eliminate cost barriers for researchers, especially those based in developing countries, enabling unrestricted access to top-tier research.

To sustain the quality of our journal, nominal publication fees are charged to authors. These fees contribute to covering essential costs associated with maintaining a high-standard publication. Key expense areas include:

1. Host and server maintenance for our online platforms, such as OJS.
2. Crossref fees for generating Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs).
3. Paid plagiarism checks through Similarity Check/iThenticate.
4. Editorial office and staff.

While we typically do not offer fee waivers or discounts due to these operational costs, we recognize that researchers, particularly in developing countries, may face financial constraints. In light of this, we are open to considering waivers and discounts on a case-by-case basis.

If you are in a situation where financial considerations may pose challenges, we encourage you to reach out to us, explaining your circumstances. We have previously granted fee waivers to researchers facing conditions such as:

• Being based in countries experiencing war and/or economic crises.
• Conducting exceptional research recognized with multiple awards.
• Facing exceptional financial strain, particularly those from families classified under the Below Poverty Line (BPL) category.