Submission of Manuscripts

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The editor is pleased to consider manuscripts on a wide range of topics related to the publication’s mission. All manuscripts and corresponding materials/documents must be submitted to the manuscript submission portal or to the editor who oversees the publication. Manuscripts submitted for peer review should also meet a word count minimum of 1000 words. There are no fees or charges associated with submitting to or publishing your manuscript or paper in Pharmacy Practice in Focus: Oncology™ (PPFO) or Pharmacy Practice in Focus: Health Systems™ (PPFHS).

Please see our current call for papers for PPHS and PPFO to learn more about topic areas of interest for each publication.

If you have questions about the manuscript submission process or wish to speak to an editor, please email Alana Hippensteele (ahippensteele@mjhlifesciences.com).

Manuscript Submission Requirements

The submission of a manuscript for peer review must include blinded (names of authors and affiliated institutions removed) and unblinded (all names and institutions included) copies of each document submitted, when relevant:

  • Two copies of the cover letter: one blinded and one unblinded
  • Two copies of the manuscript: one blinded and one unblinded
  • A document containing all necessary tables and figures (blinded), when relevant

Manuscript submissions for each publication generally fall into one of the following content categories:

  • Original research: <5000 words (excluding abstract, references, tables, etc). These should contain no more than 5 combined graphic elements (tables/figures) and no more than 50 references. Supplemental data (extra tables, figures, or appendices) will be made available at www.pharmacytimes.com at the time of publication.
  • Literature review: <5000 words. These should present a thorough synthesis of the literature and offer new insights and/or recommendations on how to improve the standard of care. These should contain no more than 5 graphic elements and no more than 100 references.
  • New drug review: <5000 words. These should present a thorough synthesis of data and literature on a new drug that has become or is becoming available, with insights and/or recommendations on the standard of care. These should contain no more than 2 graphic elements and no more than 100 references.
  • Case description: <2000 words. These should provide case analysis of a single organization’s efforts or practices. These reports should contain no more than 2 graphic elements and no more than 30 references.
  • Case report: <2000 words. These should provide analysis of a clinical case and the treatment and care for the patient(s), often because of the unique nature of the patient case. These reports should contain no more than 2 graphic elements and no more than 30 references.
  • Insights: <1500-word opinion pieces. These are usually solicited from recognized thought leaders that discuss pertinent and sometimes controversial issues in health care. These should contain no more than 2 graphic elements and no more than 30 references.
  • Editorial: <1000 words. These are solicited to accompany key articles and either extend or offer opposing perspectives on a specific subject. These should contain no more than 1 table or figure and no more than 10 references.
  • Letter to the editor: <1000 words. These are published as space allows. These should contain no more than 1 table or figure and no more than 10 references.

Requirements for all submissions conform to the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals. By submitting your manuscript, you hereby guarantee that: (1) all sources used have been cited and listed in the references section; and (2) all necessary permissions have been obtained and credit properly given for content (ie, text and graphical items such as tables and figures) used in whole or part in the manuscript/eAppendix not considered to be original work.

For the submission of research, it is encouraged to refer to EQUATOR (Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research) guidelines and checklist. Additional recommended guidelines are as follows:

  • CONSORT 2010 Statement: Updated guidelines for reporting parallel group randomized trials
  • STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology) Statement: Guidelines for reporting observational studies
  • PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews
  • CARE Guidelines - Consensus-based clinical case reporting guideline development for case reports
  • SQUIRE 2.0 (Standards for QUality Improvement Reporting Excellence) for quality improvement studies

In the reporting of research outcomes, consistency is requested in the provision of a confidence interval (CI) or a P value. For example, progression-free survival and overall survival outcomes compared between different therapies with a hazard ratio can suggest a real difference/benefit of a therapy, but that may not be significant. For this reason, a CI or a P value is beneficial.

Manuscript Specifications:
  • Title (<10 words) should be concise and stimulate reader interest
  • Running head (about 5-8 words)
  • Abstract (≤250 words)
    • If Original Research, the abstract must include 5 paragraphs: Objectives, Study Design, Methods, Results, and Conclusions
  • Precis (<25 words, concise summary of the article)
  • Full names of each author, followed by their highest academic degree and additional credentials
  • Institutional affiliations and titles for each author
  • Name and email information of corresponding author
Use of AI-Assisted Technologies

PPHS and PPFO have adopted the following policies, as specified by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in materials submitted for peer review or non–peer reviewed publication.

At submission of the manuscript or article:

  • Authors must disclose whether they used AI-assisted technologies (such as large language models, chatbots, or image creators) in the production of the submitted work. If so, both the cover letter and the submitted work should include a description of the technologies used and what was produced in the appropriate section of the paper.
  • For most papers, the appropriate section for this information will be the disclosures section at the top of the article.
  • For original research, if AI was used for data collection, analysis, or figure generation, authors should describe this use in the methods section.
  • Authors should not list AI and AI-assisted technologies as an author or co-author, nor cite AI as an author. Chatbots (such as ChatGPT) and other AI-assisted technologies cannot be responsible for the accuracy, integrity, and originality of the work, and these responsibilities are required for authorship. Likewise, humans are responsible for any submitted material that include the use of AI-assisted technologies.
  • Authors should carefully review and edit all materials produced through the use of AI to prevent the submission of authoritative-sounding information that is incorrect, incomplete, or biased.

Authors should be able to assert that there is no plagiarism of text or images in materials produced by AI. Humans must ensure that all quoted material is properly attributed, including full citations.

Text. Article text should be in a Word document in 12-pt font size, with citations included throughout the article with a corresponding list of references at the end of the article following AMA Manual of Style (11th edition). Any tables, figures, and legends included with the article can either be placed in the article document or submitted alongside the article as a jpeg or gif. Cited references, tables, and figures should be in sequential order.

Abbreviations or acronyms must be spelled out in full on first appearance in the text, followed by its abbreviation in parentheses. Additionally, state the generic name (not the trade/brand name) for all pharmaceutical products, with the trade/brand name and manufacturer in parentheses following the first mention of the pharmaceutical product.

References. It is the responsibility of the authors to include and verify all references, which should conform to the AMA Manual of Style (11th edition). Also, as specified by ICMJE, authors should not cite AI and AI-assisted technologies as an original resource or reference. Additionally, for any areas where AI and AI-assisted technologies were used in the development of the paper, humans must ensure that there is appropriate attribution of all quoted material with full citations.

References should be cited in the text sequentially as a superscripted number after any punctuation mark. Two references are cited separated by a comma, with no space. Three or more consecutive references are given as a range with a hyphen.

Per AMA style, references should be numbered sequentially in the order they appear in the text (do not alphabetize author names in the references). Identify references with superscript Arabic numerals. References cited only in tables or figures should be numbered in accordance with the sequence established by the first mention of that particular table or figure in the text.

In the reference list, list authors and/or editors up to 6 names; if more than 6 authors, list the first 3 followed by et al. Journal references should include the issue number in parentheses after the volume number. Journal names should be abbreviated according to the journals list in PubMed.

References to papers accepted but not yet published should be designated as "in press" and included in the reference section. Information from articles submitted but not accepted should be cited in the text as "unpublished observations" with written permission from the source. Reference for "personal communication" that provides essential information not available from a public source, should include the name of the person, his or her degree, and the date of communication should be cited in parentheses in the text. In text, do not use footnotes; instead include them in parentheses in the body of the article. (Footnotes should only be used in tables and figures.)

Reference Style Samples

Journal Article, 6 or Fewer Authors
Skriver LKL, Nielsen MW, Walther S, Nørlev JD, Hangaard S. Factors associated with adherence or nonadherence to insulin therapy among adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a scoping review. J Diabetes Complications. 2023;37(10):108596. doi:10.1016/j.jdiacomp.2023.108596

Journal Article, More Than 6 Authors
Dietz WH, Solomon LS, Pronk N, et al. An integrated framework for the prevention and treatment of obesity and its related chronic diseases. Health Affairs (Millwood). 2015;34(9):1456-1463. doi:10.1377/hlthaff.2015.0371

Journal Article, Authors and Organization
Hogan P, Dall T, Nikolov P; American Diabetes Association. Economic costs of diabetes in the US in 2002. Diabetes Care. 2003;26(3):917-932.

Online Journal Article
van der Kam S, Roll S, Swarthout T, et al. Effect of short-term supplementation with ready-to-use therapeutic food or micronutrients for children after illness for prevention of malnutrition: a randomised controlled trial in Uganda. PLoS Med. 2016;13(2):e1001951. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001951

Journal Article That Appears Online Before Print
Tamburini S, Shen N, Chih Wu H, Clemente JC. The microbiome in early life: implications for health outcomes. Nat Med. Published online July 7, 2016. doi:10.1038/nm4142

Journal Supplement
Johnson EM, Wortman MJ, Lundberg PS, Daniel DC. Orderly steps in progression of JC virus to virulence in the brain. Brain Disord Ther. 2015;4(suppl 2):2003. doi:10.4172/2168-975X.S2-003

Conference Abstract or Poster
Tannir N, Formiga MN, Agarwal N, et al. Bempegaldesleukin (BEMPEG) plus nivolumab (NIVO) compared to the investigator’s choice of sunitinib or cabozantinib in previously untreated advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC): results from a phase III randomized study (PIVOT-09). Paper presented at: European Society for Medical Oncology Congress 2022; September 9-13, 2022; Paris, France. Session LBA68.

Book
Etzel RA, Balk SJ, eds. Pediatric Environmental Health. American Academy of Pediatrics; 2011.

ASCO Education Book
Norton L. Cancer Log-Kill Revisited. Am Soc Clin Oncol Educ Book. 2014;34:3-7.

E-Book
World Health Organization. Health Worker Roles in Providing Safe Abortion Care and Post-abortion Contraception. World Health Organization; 2015. Accessed August 15, 2016. https://srhr.org/safeabortion/

Chapter in a Book
Prince M, Glozier N, Sousa R, Dewey M. Measuring disability across physical, mental, and cognitive disorders. In: Regier DA, Narrow WE, Kuhl EA, Kupfer DJ, eds. The Conceptual Evolution of DSM-5. American Psychiatric Publishing Inc; 2011:189-227.

News Publication, Print or Website, Blog
1. Liptak A. Yale finds error in legal stylebook: contrary to claim, Harvard didn’t create it. New York Times. December 8, 2015:A24.
2. Narula SK. WHO has only declared three public health emergencies in its history—Zika virus just became the fourth. Quartz blog. February 1, 2016. Accessed August 16, 2016. http://qz.com/607331
3. Guber S. When music is the best medicine. New York Times. September 26, 2019. Accessed September 30, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/26/well/live/music-therapy-cancer.html

Websites
1. International Society for Infectious Diseases. ProMED-mail. Accessed February 10, 2016. http://www.promedmail.org
2. Charlton G. Internal linking for SEO: examples and best practices. SearchEngineWatch. Accessed February 10, 2016. https://searchenginewatch.com/sew/how-to/2428041/internal-linking-for-seo-examples-and-bestpractices
3. Zika travel information. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. January 26, 2016. Updated August 11, 2016. Accessed June 18, 2019. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/zika-travel-information

Government/Organization/Agency Reports
1. US Department of Health and Human Services. Protection of human subjects. 45 CFR §46. Revised July 19, 2018. Accessed June 23, 2019. https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/regulations-and-policy/regulations/45-cfr-46/revised-common-rule-regulatory-text/index.html
2. World Health Organization. Infection prevention and control: recovery plans and implementation: Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone inter-country meeting: July 20-22, 2015. Accessed March 3, 2016. http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/204370/1/WHO_HIS_SDS_2015.23_eng.pdf
3. Carpenter CS, McClellan CB, Rees DI. Economic conditions, illicit drug use, and substance use disorders in the United States. National Bureau of Economic Research working paper 22051. February 2016. Accessed March 3, 2016. http://www.nber.org/papers/w22051
4. Johnson DL, O’Malley PM, Bachman JG, Schulenberg JE. HIV/AIDS: Risk & Protective Behaviors Among American Young Adults, 2004-2008. National Institute on Drug Abuse; 2010. Monitoring the Future. NIH publication 10-7586. June 2010. Accessed March 3, 2016. https://monitoringthefuture.org/pubs/monographs/hiv-aids_2010.pdf

National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guidelines
NCCN. Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology. Bladder cancer, version 4.2019. Accessed September 30, 2019. https://www.nccn.org/professionals/physician_gls/pdf/bladder.pdf

Clinical Trials
This is an exception to AMA 11, which leaves out the NCT and European registry numbers because those appear in the URLs.
1. Study of pembrolizumab (MK-3475) in participants with advanced solid tumors (MK-3475-158/KEYNOTE-158. ClinicalTrials.gov. Updated February 18, 2020. Accessed February 28, 2020. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02628067
2. Use of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) for enhanced early detection of colorectal neoplasms. German Cancer Research Center. Posted May 30, 2012. Accessed November 2, 2019. https://www.clinicaltrialsregister.eu/ctr-search/trial/2011-005603-32/DE

Databases
PDQ: NCI’s Comprehensive Database. National Cancer Institute; 2015. Updated July 17, 2015. Accessed March 16, 2016. http://www.cancer.gov/publications/pd

Prescribing Information
Zithromax. Prescribing information. Pfizer; 2017. Accessed June 23, 2019. https://www.pfizermedicalinformation.com/en-us/zithromax

Press/News Release
1. Dying in pursuit of the news. News release. Associated Press; March 30, 2015.
2. Device reduces risk of brain injury after heart valve replacement. News release. JAMA For the Media. August 4, 2016. Accessed August 18, 2016. https://media.jamanetwork.com/news-item/device-reduces-risk-of-braininjury-after-heart-valve-replacement/

MANUSCRIPT AUTHORSHIP

1) AUTHOR DISCLOSURE FORM

All authors must read and sign the publication’s Author Disclosure Form. It is our policy to have all authors disclose relationships with any commercial interest that may present a conflict of interest if: (a) the relationship is financial and occurred within the past 12 months; and (b) the author discusses products or services of that commercial interest. Relevant financial relationships are those relationships in which the author (and/or the author's spouse or partner) benefits in any dollar amount by receiving a salary, royalty, intellectual property rights, consulting fee, honoraria, ownership interest (eg, stocks, stock options, or other ownership interests, excluding diversified mutual funds), or other financial benefit. Financial benefits are usually associated with roles, such as employment, management position, independent contractor (including contracted research), consulting, speaking and teaching, membership on advisory committees or review panels, board membership, and/or other activities for which remuneration is received or expected. In addition, authors are required to report all financial and material support for their research, which includes (but is not limited to) grant support and funding sources and any provision of equipment or supplies.

The name of the organization funding or initiating a research project should be made explicit on the title page (eg, “This study was funded by the XYZ Corporation.”). Relevant financial relationships (whether direct to the authors or through a third party) for research and/or writing, including funding, grants, honoraria, etc, must also be named on the title page. If the funding organization had any role in the collection of data, its analysis and interpretation, and/or in the right to approve or disapprove publication of the finished manuscript, this must be noted in the cover letter and described in the Methods section of the text. The editorial staff may inquire further about financial disclosure after the manuscript is submitted. If the manuscript is accepted for publication, disclosure statements will be printed as part of the published article.

2) AUTHORSHIP FORM

All authors must read and sign the publication’s Authorship Form. PPFO and PPFHS use the criteria provided by the ICMJE Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals to determine authorship. Each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for the content. Authorship credit should be based only on substantial contributions to (a) conception and design, or analysis and interpretation of data; and to (b) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and on (c) final approval of the version to be published. All authors are required to read and sign the publication’s Authorship Form affirming that they have met the criteria for authorship and have agreed to transfer copyright to MJH Life Sciences®. Individuals who have contributed to a paper but who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be acknowledged.

Forms can also be sent to Alana Hippensteele, Managing Editor at ahippensteele@mjhlifesciences.com after submission. Please be sure to include the manuscript title, author names, and/or manuscript number in the email.

MANUSCRIPT PROCESSING AND PEER REVIEW

Acknowledgment of Receipt

Following submission of your manuscript or paper, editorial staff will respond confirming receipt before assessing whether the manuscript submission meets the publication’s specifications in terms of word count, blinded materials, and other guidelines, and will communicate any required changes to the authors.

Internal Review by Editor

Each manuscript is sent to the editor in chief for an internal evaluation to determine its appropriateness for the publication. Manuscripts that do not meet the publication’s criteria for overall appropriateness, relevance, originality, and scientific merit will be returned promptly (usually within 2 weeks) so that authors may pursue alternate avenues for publication.

Peer Review

Manuscripts deemed appropriate for the publication will be sent to external peer reviewers. Typically, a manuscript will be sent to a minimum of 2 reviewers who will be asked to provide feedback on the scientific merit and relevancy of the paper. The reviewer’s evaluation is requested back within 2-4 weeks.

Reviewer selection is ultimately the decision of the editorial team, but authors may suggest the names and email addresses of preferred/nonpreferred peer reviewers.

Criteria for Editorial Decisions

Manuscripts are judged on the interest/importance of the topic, the intellectual and scientific strength, the clarity of the presentation, and relevance to PPFO and PPFHS readers. The paper’s strength is compared with others under review and the number of accepted/previously published papers in the category. Original research and review articles should describe how their findings add to the existing literature.

Acceptance, Revision, or Rejection

Most authors can expect a first decision on their manuscript in approximately 2 months. However, we communicate editorial decisions on acceptance, revision, or rejection only to the corresponding author.

If the authors are offered the opportunity to revise their paper, the revision will be assessed by the editor in chief (and often the original peer reviewers) to confirm that the comments have been addressed.

On Acceptance

All accepted papers require editorial revision and formatting before publication. An edited version of the manuscript in Microsoft Word will be sent to the corresponding author approximately 4 to 6 weeks before the issue date. Additionally, a final proof will be sent to the corresponding author for review before publication. Manuscript edits and final proofs must be returned to the editorial office within 48 hours.

ETHICAL POLICIES

By submitting a manuscript to PPFO or PPFHS, the authors confirm that the research meets ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements of the study country. Manuscripts submitted to PTOE or HSE that describe research on human subjects must include in the Methods section, a statement of institutional review board approval or exemption, and a confirmation that informed consent was obtained from study participants. Please see the ICMJE Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals for further details on protection of research participants.

EDITORIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

Final decisions regarding manuscript publication are made by the editor in chief (EIC) of each publication. In the event that the EIC of PPFO or PPFHS has a conflict of interest with a submitted manuscript or the authors, the editorial decisions are made by the EIC of the sister publication—for PPFO this would be PPFHS, and for PPFHS this would be PPFO—who does not have a conflict of interest related to the manuscript or its authors.