Plagiarism Policy

Journal Information

Contents

Plagiarism Policy

Annals of Medical and Health Research is firmly committed to maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity, originality, and ethical conduct in medical and health sciences publishing. Plagiarism in any form is considered a serious breach of ethical practice and is strictly prohibited.

1. Definition of Plagiarism

Plagiarism refers to presenting another person’s ideas, words, methods, or research findings as one’s own without proper acknowledgment. This includes, but is not limited to:

Direct Plagiarism

Copying text, tables, images, or data verbatim from another source without citation.

Mosaic / Patchwork Plagiarism

Using phrases, sentence structures, or concepts from a source without proper attribution.

Self-Plagiarism

Reusing substantial parts of one’s own previously published work without citation or disclosure.

Data / Results Plagiarism

Using someone else’s clinical data, experimental results, patient records, or images without permission or citation.

Improper Paraphrasing

Rewriting content in a way that remains too close to the original structure or meaning without appropriate referencing.

2. Plagiarism Detection

All manuscripts submitted to the journal undergo plagiarism screening using reliable software (e.g., iThenticate, Turnitin, or equivalent tools).
Similarity reports are assessed carefully to distinguish acceptable matches—such as common medical terminology, standard clinical methods, and references—from unethical copying.

3. Acceptable Similarity Index

The journal allows a similarity index of 15–20%, excluding:

  • References
  • Author names and affiliations
  • Standard medical or scientific terminology

Manuscripts exceeding the allowable limit may be returned to authors for revision or may be rejected based on the extent and nature of overlap.

4. Consequences of Plagiarism

If plagiarism is detected at any stage—submission, review, or post-publication—the journal will take strict action:

Before Acceptance

Immediate rejection of the manuscript.

After Acceptance but Before Publication

Withdrawal of the manuscript from the editorial process.

After Publication

Formal retraction of the article.

A retraction notice will be published online.

Additional actions may include:

Blacklisting the authors from future submissions.

Notification to the authors’ institutions, supervisors, or funding bodies.

5. Author Responsibilities

Authors submitting to Annals of Medical and Health Research must:

  • Ensure their work is original and free from plagiarism.
  • Provide proper citations for all sourced material.
  • Use quotation marks where exact wording is reproduced.
  • Avoid duplicate or simultaneous submissions.
  • Disclose related work or overlapping manuscripts.

6. Editorial and Reviewer Responsibilities

Reviewers must report any suspected plagiarism to the editorial office.

Editors will investigate such concerns impartially and thoroughly.

All decisions follow COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) guidelines for integrity and transparency.

7. Self-Plagiarism Policy

Authors must not reuse substantial parts of their own previously published work.

Reuse of methodology, standard procedures, or background must be cited appropriately.

Submitting the same manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously is strictly prohibited.

8. Appeals and Clarifications

Authors may appeal plagiarism decisions by submitting a written justification to the Editorial Office.
The Editor-in-Chief and the Ethics Committee will review all appeals, and their decision will be final.