MEDICAL JOURNAL OF POKHARA ACADEMY OF HEALTH SCIENCES (MJPAHS)

Medical Journal of Pokhara Academy of Health Sciences is published and distributed by Pokhara Academy of Health Sciences (PAHS), Pokhara. PAHS was established in 2016 A.D. and is in the process of starting academic activities. MJPAHS is one such example. MJPAHS aims to encourage and sustain research in this institute. All members of this academy are requested to pursue academic research and prepare papers for publication.MJPAHS aspires to publish issues in a regular and timely basis. This is a journal which has just begun its first step, but with everyone’s support MJPAHS can be made one of the best of its kind in Nepal.

Articles can be forwarded to the following website:

https://mjpahs.edu.np

AUTHOR GUIDELINES

Manuscripts should be written in simple English. All authors must provide signed consents to publication which has to be sent with the manuscript. Publication materials can be original research articles, case reports, review articles, book reviews, personal experiences and letters to the editor. Submission of a manuscript is an indication that it has not been published previously, nor has been sent for publication to other journals.

The submitted articles are reviewed by the editorial board. Those that need corrections are asked to resubmit after revision. In the next step, the articles are sent to two expert peer reviewers blinded to the authors and vice versa for review and imputs. The final decision is made by the editorial board based on peer review. Accepted articles have to be resubmitted after making the necessary changes. 

Manuscript preparation

Manuscript preparation guidelines is in accordance with ‘Uniform requirements for Manuscripts submitted to Biomedical Journal’ developed by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (October 2006). The instructions are summarized below.

An electronic copy of manuscript must be submitted to the above mentioned website. The article must be typed in MS Office word document, Arial Font with font size of 12. Margins should be a minimum of 25 mm. The pages should be numbered, beginning with the title page. Page number should be typed at middle of bottom page. Standard abbreviations can be used in the text, given that the full forms have been provided when they first appear in the text.  Explanation in a concise manner is encouraged.  Use of signs like ‘&’, ‘@’, ‘#’ is not permitted.

Original Article: up to 3500 words excluding references; abstract up to 250 words.

Review Article: up to 3000 words excluding references; abstract up to 250 words.

Case Report: up to 1000 words excluding references.

View Point: personal views on relevant health issues; up to 800 words excluding references; references up to 8.

Letter to the Editor: up to 400 words and 5 references.

Images and Tables: not more than one table and image per 500 words.

Original Article: Manuscript has to be prepared in sections, which are:

1. Title page


2. Abstract

• Introduction

1. Materials and Methods


2. Result


3. Discussion

• Conclusion


• Acknowledgement (not mandatory)

1. References

Each section of the manuscript should commence on a new page.

Title page

The title page should contain:

1. Title itself: title should be concise and to the point.


2. The name(s) of author(s) in full; family name(s) followed by first name(s)


3. The name of department or institution affiliated to the author(s). The designation should comprise the department, institution, city and nation from which the work originated. It should be typed as a footnote to the author’s name.


4. The name and full mailing address of the corresponding author.

Abstract

The abstract should be the second page of the manuscript. It should not exceed 250 words (for original articles). Use of abbreviations, footnotes or references is not permitted in abstract. Keywords can be provided at the end of the abstract. Up to ten keywords can be included in alphabetical order, separated by semi-colon.

Main text of original article

The main text of original article should follow the format: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion and Conclusion.

Introduction

The main purpose of the study should be outlined by this section. The most helpful references should be used in introduction. Extensive review of the research subject should be avoided.

Materials and Methods

This section has to include a number of points. First, the type of study should be mentioned. The place and duration of study should be added. The study population has to be described in detail. The methods and procedures applied in the research should be explained fully. Statistics applied should also be elaborated. The statistical methods should be described so as to enable a knowledgeable reader with access to the original data to verify the reported results. Statistical terms, abbreviations and symbols have to be made clear. When research on human beings is conducted, prior approval from a medical ethical committee has to be obtained. The researcher should get informed written consent from the subjects to be enrolled in the study.

Result

While constructing result section, only important observations should be emphasized. Not all the data derived from the study need to be focused on. The author is responsible for turning his/her study into an attractive one by highlighting only the pertinent issues. Repetition should be avoided.

When data is summarized in results section, one should mention numeric results as derivatives (for example, percentages) as well as the absolute numbers from which the derivatives were calculated, along with statistical methods used to analyze them.

Graphs can be used as an alternative to tables with many entries. Data should not be duplicated in graphs and tables. Use of non-technical terms should be avoided, such as ‘random’, ‘normal’, ‘significant’.

Discussion

The findings of the study should be discussed in relation to similar other studies. New and important aspects of the study need to be focused, including the implications of the findings, and their relation to other relevant studies. The positive points can be laid out. At the same time, limitations of the study also can be stated. It is useful to begin the discussion by summarizing briefly the main findings, then exploring possible mechanisms or explanations for these findings, comparing the results with other related studies.

Conclusion

The conclusions should be clearly linked to the objectives of the study. Conclusions that are not supported by the data need to be avoided. Unqualified 

statements and conclusions not supported by the data should be avoided. One should not claim priority.

Acknowledgement

Acknowledgement is placed as the last section of the text before references. Acknowledgements should be made to funding institutions/organizations. Authors are responsible for obtaining written permission from anyone acknowledged by name.

References

References should be framed in Vancouver System.

Tables and Figures

Tables should not have more than 10 columns and 25 rows. Each table should be cited in the text. Tables need to have a descriptive title. Short footnotes can be added to tables. Following symbols should be used for footnotes in sequence: *, +, $, I I,* *.

Illustrations

Graphs, charts and diagrams can be included in the scientific paper. Miniature photo prints are accepted in case of x-rays. Photographs should be submitted dimension of 640*480 to 800*600 pixels. The picture format should be JPEG (*.jpg, *.jpeg) or TIFF (*.tif, *.tiff).

Units of Measurement

Measurements of length, height, weight and volume should be in metric units (meter, kilogram or liter). Temperature should be taken in degrees Celsius and blood pressure in millimeters of mercury.

Case report

A case report represents “any unique clinical presentation with management outcome, etiological factor but not reported before”.

The sections of a case report should be:

1. Title


2. Abstract ( up to 100 words)

• Introduction

1. Case report


2. Discussion


3. References

For case report, 1000 words are allowed in total, excluding references. Up to three pictures are allowed. Up to ten references are required.

Copyright Transfer and Author Agreement

Submission of manuscript means that the authors agree to grant exclusive copyright to JPoAHS. All authors must sign a Copyright Transfer and Author Agreement form upon submission of the manuscript to the journal. The article cannot be published in any other without the written consent of this JPoAHS.

All persons presented as authors should qualify for authorship. The first author must take the responsibility for ensuring that all the co-authors have provided approval. Also, it is required that all authors get permission from their institution to publish the material. Authorship credit should be based upon significant contribution to (i) conception of the study, its design, data analysis and discussion (ii) drafting the article and final form of the article.  If the manuscript submitted is found to be published elsewhere, the author will be barred from approaching the Journal.

Check list

The following documents should be included while submitting the manuscript:

1. Forwarding letter:

This is a covering letter which should have the name and complete postal address ‘corresponding author’. It has to be signed by all the contributors.

1. Authorship:

Complete author information should be provided.

1. Declaration:

This is a document stating that the manuscript holds genuine work and that this work has not been published before. It should also state that the authorship of the article will not be challenged by anyone and that the order of authorship as mentioned in the manuscript is final. This document has to be signed by all the authors in the order as mentioned in the article.

1. Manuscript


2. Ethical clearance:

A letter expressing clearance from National Health Research Council or Institutional Review Committee or Hospital Authority has to be included in cases of studies or case reports involving human beings.

All these documents should be submitted at the same time.

Click Here to Download Declaration Form 

Click Here to Download Forwarding Letter

Click Here to Download Authorship_author contribution MJPAHS