Eastern Ukrainian Medical Journal (EUMJ) publishes peer-reviewed, original, and topical articles in the fields of medicine and biomedicine.
The journal’s publication ethics policy is aimed at ensuring high standards of academic integrity, transparency of editorial processes, and responsible dissemination of scientific knowledge in accordance with internationally recognized principles of scholarly publishing and open access policy.

 

KEY PROVISIONS ON PUBLICATION ETHICS

The Editorial Office is responsible for organizing the editorial and publishing process and for ensuring compliance with publication ethics standards during the consideration, peer review, and publication of materials.

All submitted scholarly materials undergo screening for indications of academic plagiarism, editorial assessment, and double-blind independent expert peer review in order to determine their scientific validity, ethical appropriateness, and compliance with the journal’s scope, as well as adherence to the principles of academic integrity and publication ethics.

Members of the Editorial Board and invited experts are selected based on professional competence, scientific experience, and adherence to the principles of academic integrity.

The Editorial Office encourages the submission of original, methodologically sound, and ethically justified research and reviews that have scientific and practical value for the medical community.

Authors are provided with editorial recommendations and reviewers’ comments aimed at improving the quality of submitted manuscripts.

 

INTERNATIONAL ETHICAL STANDARDS AND EDITORIAL RECOMMENDATIONS

The journal’s editorial policy is based on the recommendations and principles of leading international organizations in scholarly publishing.

1. Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)

The journal follows the COPE Core Practices:

These principles provide for:

• transparency of submission, peer review, and publication processes;
• impartiality and independence of editors and reviewers;
• adherence to academic integrity, including prevention of plagiarism, falsification, and duplicate publication;
• appropriate definition of authorship and the contribution of each author;
• procedures for handling complaints and appeals;
• application of recommendations on retraction and correction of publications.

2. International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)
The journal follows the ICMJE Recommendations, in particular regarding:

• authorship criteria and authors’ responsibilities;
• disclosure of conflicts of interest;
• ethics of research involving humans and animals;
• compliance with copyright and appropriate handling of clinical research results.

3. World Association of Medical Editors (WAME)

The Editorial Office follows WAME recommendations regarding:

• editorial independence;
• transparency of research funding;
• mandatory disclosure of conflicts of interest;
• objective and timely peer review.

4. San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA)

The Editorial Office supports the principles of DORA, including:

• assessment of research outputs based on quality and scientific contribution;
• avoidance of using bibliometric indicators as the sole basis for assessment;
• support for interdisciplinary research;
• promotion of open science principles.

 

RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The Editor-in-Chief:

• develops the journal’s development strategy and tactics;
• establishes and updates the Editorial Board and the editorial office;
• develops, together with the Editorial Board, the principles of editorial policy and guidelines for authors, editors, and reviewers;
• organizes the editorial and publishing process;
• ensures compliance with publication ethics and academic integrity principles;
• makes final decisions on manuscripts (in the absence of a conflict of interest);
• makes final decisions on any disputed issues, complaints, and appeals.

If the Editor-in-Chief submits their own materials to the journal, they are handled by other members of the Editorial Office in the absence of a conflict of interest. In the case of positive reviews and recommendations from at least two independent anonymous reviewers, the final publication decision is made by the Deputy Editor-in-Chief or their designated representative.

 

RESPONSIBILITIES OF EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS

Editorial Board members:

• contribute to the development of the journal and the attraction of high-quality scholarly materials;
• adhere to COPE, ICMJE, and WAME principles;
• develop the principles of editorial policy and guidelines for authors, editors, and reviewers;
• make a substantial contribution to the selection and publication of manuscripts submitted for consideration;
• ensure impartiality, fairness, and confidentiality within editorial processes;
• ethically promote the journal’s published content.

Individuals wishing to join the Editorial Board may initiate the process by emailing their CV to the Editor-in-Chief. The CV should include information on education, affiliation, research interests, professional and public activities, a list of publications, a list of journals where they serve as an editor or reviewer, and a link to their university profile page (if available). The Editorial Board carefully evaluates each application and informs the applicant of the outcome by email. Selection criteria include scientific activity in areas relevant to the journal’s scope, motivation, and capacity to engage in publication activities.

 

RESPONSIBILITIES OF REVIEWERS

Reviewers perform a professional, independent, objective, and confidential assessment of manuscripts and:

• declare potential conflicts of interest;
• inform the Editorial Office of suspected plagiarism or duplicate publication;
• provide constructive recommendations to authors;
• make recommendations regarding publication.

The use of EQUATOR Network guidelines is recommended to improve the quality of research reporting:

 

RESPONSIBILITIES OF AUTHORS

Submission of a manuscript to the journal implies that the authors:

• submit an original, reliable, balanced, and well-reasoned scholarly work prepared in accordance with the journal’s requirements;
• comply with standards for ethical conduct and reporting of research;
• disclose funding information and conflicts of interest;
• guarantee the absence of parallel submission to other journals;
• ensure that ethical approval is obtained where applicable, as well as informed consent from participants.