Terms and Conditions

These are the Terms and Conditions Governing the Submission, Review, and Publication of Manuscripts to ARD Medical Journal.
Please read these Terms carefully before submitting a manuscript.

Document:  Author Terms and Conditions

Journal:  ARD Medical Journal

Publisher:  Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), UPTH Chapter Editorial Board

Version:  1.0

IMPORTANT: By submitting a manuscript to the ARD Medical Journal, you — and each co-author on whose behalf you act — confirm that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions in their entirety. Submission constitutes a legally and professionally binding agreement between the author(s) and the ARD Medical Journal Editorial Board. If you do not agree to any part of these Terms, you must not submit your manuscript.

1. Definitions

In these Terms and Conditions, the following definitions apply:

 

Term	Meaning
"Journal"	The ARD Medical Journal, published by the ARD Editorial Board, UPTH Chapter.
"Editorial Board"	The governing editorial body of the ARD Medical Journal, comprising the Editor-in-Chief, Section Editors, and appointed Board Members.
"Author"	Any individual who submits or is named as a contributor to a manuscript submitted to the Journal, including the Corresponding Author and all co-authors.
"Corresponding Author"	The author designated to communicate with the Editorial Board on behalf of all co-authors throughout the submission, review, revision, and publication process.
"Manuscript"	Any original scientific, clinical, or academic work submitted by an author for consideration for publication in the Journal, in any manuscript category.
"Submission"	The act of transmitting a manuscript and all associated materials to the Journal via any designated submission channel.
"Publication"	The release of a manuscript in final published form in the Journal, whether in print, digital, or any other format.
"Accepted Manuscript"	A manuscript that has successfully completed peer review and has been formally accepted for publication by the Editor-in-Chief.
"Intellectual Property"	All copyrights, moral rights, database rights, and related rights subsisting in a manuscript or any part thereof.
"Open Access"	A publication model under which published articles are made freely available to all readers without subscription or payment barrier.
"APC"	Article Processing Charge — a fee paid by or on behalf of the author to cover the costs of publication under an open access model.
"Retraction"	The formal withdrawal of a published article from the scientific record of the Journal.
"These Terms"	This document — the ARD Medical Journal Author Terms and Conditions — as amended from time to time.

 

2. Eligibility to Submit

2.1  Who May Submit

The ARD Medical Journal welcomes manuscript submissions from:

 

• Resident doctors, medical officers, and trainees at any stage of postgraduate medical education;

• Consultants, specialists, and allied health professionals;

• Academic researchers and public health practitioners;

• Students undertaking supervised clinical or scientific research, where the submission is co-authored by a qualified supervisor.

2.2 Corresponding Author Responsibility

The Corresponding Author submits the manuscript on behalf of all named co-authors and warrants that:

• They have the authority to act on behalf of all co-authors;

• All co-authors have reviewed, approved, and consented to the submission of the final manuscript;

• All co-authors agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions;

• The contact details provided for the Corresponding Author are accurate and current.

2.3 Multiple Submissions

An author may have more than one manuscript under review at the Journal at the same time, provided each manuscript is independent in its subject matter, data, and conclusions. Authors who are unsure whether simultaneous submissions constitute duplicate publication should seek editorial guidance before submitting.

3. Submission Requirements and Warranties

3.1 Originality

By submitting a manuscript, the Author(s) warrant that:

• The manuscript is wholly original and has not been previously published, in whole or in any substantial part, in any language, in any peer-reviewed or non-peer-reviewed publication, conference proceedings, or institutional repository;

• The manuscript does not reproduce, without proper attribution, any text, data, figures, or tables from any other source;

• All sources consulted and cited are accurately referenced in accordance with the Journal's referencing style.

3.2 Simultaneous Submission

The Author(s) warrant that the manuscript is not currently under review at, or has not been accepted by, any other journal or publication at the time of submission to the ARD Medical Journal. Simultaneous submission of the same manuscript to more than one journal is strictly prohibited and constitutes grounds for immediate rejection or retraction.

Note: Preprints posted on recognised preprint servers (e.g., medRxiv, bioRxiv, SSRN) prior to submission are permissible, provided the preprint status and server details are disclosed in the cover letter at the time of submission.

3.3 Authorship

The Author(s) confirm that all individuals listed as authors of the manuscript satisfy all four criteria for authorship as defined by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE):

1. Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work, or to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data;

2. Drafting the manuscript or revising it critically for important intellectual content;

3. Final approval of the version submitted for publication;

4. Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work, including the accuracy and integrity of all parts.

Individuals who contributed to the work but do not meet all four ICMJE criteria must be named in the Acknowledgments section rather than listed as authors. The inclusion of honorary, gift, or ghost authors is prohibited. The Corresponding Author is responsible for ensuring that all persons who qualify for authorship are included and that no person who does not qualify is listed.

3.4 Changes to Authorship

Any addition, deletion, or reordering of author names after submission must be approved by the Editor-in-Chief. Such requests must be submitted in writing, signed by all affected authors, and accompanied by a clear explanation of the reason for the change. The Editorial Board reserves the right to decline requests for authorship changes that cannot be satisfactorily justified.

3.5 Research Ethics

The Author(s) confirm that:

• All research involving human participants was conducted with prior approval from a recognised institutional or national research ethics committee;

• Informed consent was obtained from all participants (or their legal guardians) where required, and this is documented in the manuscript;

• All research involving animals was conducted in accordance with applicable national and institutional regulations governing animal welfare;

• The ethics approval reference number and the name of the approving committee are stated in the manuscript;

• Where ethics approval was not required (e.g., for certain types of case reports or secondary data analysis), this is clearly stated and justified in the manuscript.

Manuscripts that lack appropriate ethics documentation shall not be accepted for publication. The Editorial Board reserves the right to request proof of ethics approval at any stage of the submission or review process.

3.6 Data Integrity

The Author(s) confirm that:

• All data, results, and findings reported in the manuscript are accurate and have not been fabricated, falsified, or selectively manipulated;

• All images, figures, and graphs accurately represent the underlying data and have not been inappropriately altered;

• Primary research data and associated records will be retained by the authors for a minimum of five (5) years following publication and will be made available to the Editorial Board upon request;

• Where data sharing is applicable, the manuscript includes a Data Availability Statement indicating how the underlying data may be accessed.

3.7 Conflict of Interest Disclosure

The Author(s) must disclose, at the time of submission, any financial, professional, personal, or institutional interests that could — or could reasonably be perceived to — bias the design, conduct, reporting, or interpretation of the research. Such disclosures must include:

• All sources of funding for the research, including grants, institutional support, and industry contributions;

• Any equity interests, consultancy arrangements, honoraria, or speaker fees received from organisations with a financial interest in the subject of the manuscript;

• Employment or advisory roles held by any author with entities directly relevant to the manuscript;

• Any non-financial interests (personal, ideological, or competitive) that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the manuscript.

A declaration of no conflict of interest is equally required where no conflicts exist. Failure to disclose a material conflict of interest is a form of research misconduct and may result in rejection, retraction, and referral to the author's institution.

3.8  Patient Privacy and Confidentiality

Where a manuscript contains information that could identify individual patients — including case reports, case series, or clinical images — the Author(s) must provide written confirmation that:

 

• The patient (or their legal guardian) has provided written informed consent for publication of the relevant information;

• The patient's identity has been adequately protected by anonymisation where consent was not obtained;

• The Journal's Patient Consent Form (available from the Editorial Secretary) has been completed and submitted alongside the manuscript.

3.9 Use of Artificial Intelligence in Manuscript Preparation

The following rules govern the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in the preparation of manuscripts submitted to the ARD Medical Journal:

• AI language tools (including large language models) may be used to assist with grammar checking, language editing, and structural organisation, provided the intellectual content of the manuscript including all scientific arguments, analytical conclusions, and interpretation of data remains entirely the authors' own work;

• AI tools may not be listed as authors under any circumstances;

• The use of any AI tool in manuscript preparation must be disclosed in the Methods section or in an Author Contribution Statement, describing the tool used and the nature of its contribution;

• Authors are fully responsible for the accuracy, integrity, and originality of all content submitted, regardless of the tools used in preparation;

• The use of AI to generate, fabricate, or substantially paraphrase data, results, or scientific conclusions is strictly prohibited and constitutes research misconduct.

4. Intellectual Property and Copyright

4.1  Copyright Assignment

Upon formal acceptance of a manuscript for publication, the Author(s) assign to the ARD Medical Journal Editorial Board the exclusive worldwide copyright in and to the manuscript in all formats and media, including print, digital, and any other format developed in the future, for the full term of copyright protection. This assignment includes the right to:

• Publish, reproduce, distribute, and communicate the manuscript;

• Create derivative works, including translations, adaptations, and summaries;

• License third parties to access the manuscript under any access model adopted by the Journal;

• Include the manuscript in databases, indices, and repositories.

4.2 Author Retained Rights

Notwithstanding the copyright assignment in Clause 4.1, the Author(s) retain the following rights:

• The right to use the published article for teaching, educational, and professional development purposes, without further permission, provided proper attribution to the Journal is given;

• The right to post the accepted (pre-publication) version of the manuscript on a personal or institutional website or repository, provided it is clearly identified as a pre-publication version and a link to the published article in the Journal is included;

• The right to reproduce the article, in whole or in part, in a thesis or dissertation, provided the Journal is acknowledged as the source of original publication;

• Moral rights  including the right to be identified as the author of the work which are non-assignable and are hereby expressly reserved.

4.3  Open Access and Licensing

The access model for the ARD Medical Journal is currently under review by the Editorial Board. Once finalized, the applicable licensing terms including any Creative Commons licence under which accepted articles are made available will be published in an updated version of these Terms and communicated to all authors at the point of acceptance.

Pending Decision: Authors will be notified of the Journal's access model and licensing framework before the publication of their article. Authors who have preferences regarding access terms are encouraged to communicate these to the Editorial Board at the time of submission.

4.4 Article Processing Charges

If the Journal adopts a full or hybrid open access model, Article Processing Charges (APCs) may apply. Where APCs are applicable:

• Authors will be notified of the applicable APC at the time of acceptance, before any charge becomes payable;

• APC waivers or reductions may be available for authors from low- or middle-income countries, or for authors who can demonstrate financial hardship — such requests must be submitted in writing to the Editor-in-Chief;

• APCs, once paid, are non-refundable except where the Journal withdraws from the publication commitment through no fault of the author;

• Payment of an APC does not guarantee publication if the manuscript fails to meet the Journal's quality and ethical standards.

Until the Journal's access model is formally adopted and published, no APCs shall be charged.

4.5 Third-Party Content

Where a manuscript includes text, figures, tables, photographs, or other content from third-party sources, the Author(s) are solely responsible for:

• Obtaining prior written permission from the copyright holder for the reproduction of all third-party content;

• Providing evidence of such permissions to the Editorial Board upon request;

• Ensuring that any terms and conditions attached to the permissions are complied with;

• Properly crediting the source of all reproduced content in the manuscript.

The Journal accepts no liability for claims arising from the unauthorized reproduction of third-party intellectual property in submitted manuscripts.

5. Peer Review Process

5.1 Open Peer Review

The ARD Medical Journal operates under an Open Peer Review (OPR) model in which the identities of both authors and reviewers are disclosed to each other. By submitting a manuscript, the Author(s) acknowledge and accept this model, including:

• That their identity will be disclosed to assigned peer reviewers;

• That reviewer identities will be disclosed to the Author(s);

• That reviewer reports may, at the discretion of the Editorial Board and with reviewer consent, be published alongside the final article.

5.2  Editorial Decisions

Following peer review, the Editor-in-Chief shall communicate one of the following decisions to the Corresponding Author:

• Accept — the manuscript is accepted as submitted;

• Minor Revision — limited revisions are required within fourteen (14) calendar days;

• Major Revision — substantial revisions are required within thirty (30) calendar days;

• Reject with Invitation to Resubmit — the manuscript may be resubmitted as a new submission after substantive revision;

• Reject — the manuscript does not meet the standards required for publication.

 

5.3  Revision Obligations

Where a revision is requested, the Author(s) must submit:

• The revised manuscript with all changes clearly marked (e.g., using track changes or highlighting);

• A point-by-point response letter addressing each reviewer comment individually, indicating where and how each point has been addressed, or providing a reasoned rebuttal where the author respectfully disagrees.

Failure to submit a revision within the specified deadline without prior communication to the Section Editor may result in the manuscript being treated as withdrawn.

5.4  Appeals

Authors who wish to appeal an editorial decision may do so in accordance with the ARD Medical Journal Peer Review Policy. Appeals must be submitted in writing to the Editor-in-Chief within fourteen (14) calendar days of the decision. The Editor-in-Chief's decision on appeal is final and binding.

5.5  Withdrawal of Submission

An author may withdraw a manuscript at any point before formal acceptance, by submitting a written withdrawal request to the Editorial Secretary. Once a manuscript has been accepted for publication, withdrawal is subject to agreement by the Editorial Board and may result in a formal retraction notice if the manuscript has already been published in any form. Costs incurred by the Journal in processing and publishing the manuscript prior to withdrawal may be recoverable from the author in such cases.

6. Research Misconduct and Sanctions

6.1 Definition of Research Misconduct

Research misconduct includes, but is not limited to:

• Fabrication: inventing data, results, or findings that were not obtained during the research;

• Falsification: manipulating research materials, equipment, data, or results such that the research is not accurately represented;

• Plagiarism: the use of another person's ideas, data, methods, or text without appropriate attribution;

• Self-plagiarism: the undisclosed re-use of the author's own previously published work;

• Duplicate or redundant publication: submitting or publishing substantially the same research in more than one journal without disclosure;

• Undisclosed conflict of interest: failure to declare material financial or personal interests;

• Ghost or gift authorship: listing individuals who do not qualify for authorship, or omitting individuals who do;

• Image manipulation: inappropriately altering images, figures, or graphs beyond what is technically acceptable;

• Ethics violations: conducting or reporting research without required ethics approval;

• Breach of patient confidentiality: identifying or exposing patient information without consent.

6.2  Investigation Process

Where the Editorial Board receives or identifies credible evidence of potential research misconduct — whether before or after publication — it shall:

5. Notify the Corresponding Author of the concern in writing, with sufficient detail to allow a meaningful response;

6. Provide the Author(s) with a reasonable opportunity to respond;

7. Conduct a fair and documented investigation in accordance with established research integrity guidelines, including those of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE);

8. Communicate the outcome of the investigation to the Author(s) and, where appropriate, to the author's institution.

6.3  Sanctions

Depending on the nature and severity of the misconduct established, the Editorial Board may impose one or more of the following sanctions:

• Rejection of the submitted manuscript;

• Retraction of a published article, with a public retraction notice;

• Publication of an Expression of Concern;

• Prohibition on future submissions to the Journal for a defined period or permanently;

• Formal notification to the author's employer, training institution, or professional regulatory body;

• Public notice to the scientific community, including notification to relevant indexing bodies and databases.

7. Post-Publication Obligations and Rights

7.1  Corrections

Where a published article contains a factual error that does not affect the core conclusions or integrity of the work, the Author(s) must notify the Editorial Board promptly. The Journal shall publish a formal Correction (erratum) and update the article in all digital repositories accordingly. The Author(s) have an ongoing obligation to notify the Editorial Board of any errors they become aware of after publication.

7.2  Retraction

The Editorial Board reserves the right to retract a published article, with or without the Author's consent, where grounds for retraction exist (see Clause 6). The Author(s) may also request retraction of their own article where they become aware of a fundamental error or ethical problem. Retracted articles shall remain accessible in the Journal's archive with a clear retraction notice overlaid.

7.3  Promotion and Attribution

Following publication, the Author(s) are encouraged to promote their work through professional and academic networks. In doing so, authors must:

• Accurately represent the findings and conclusions of the published article;

• Clearly attribute the work to the ARD Medical Journal with the correct citation details;

• Not misrepresent preliminary or pre-publication versions as the final published article;

• Correct any misrepresentation of their published work by third parties, where reasonably practicable.

7.4  Ongoing Data Retention

Authors must retain primary research data, instruments, and records for a minimum of five (5) years following the date of publication, and must make such data available to the Editorial Board or to relevant institutional authorities upon reasonable request.

8. Confidentiality

The Author(s) acknowledge that the editorial review process including reviewer reports, editorial communications, and board deliberations is confidential. Authors must not:

• Publicly disclose the content of reviewer reports without the consent of the reviewer and the Editorial Board;

• Approach reviewers directly outside of the formal editorial process;

• Seek to identify the reviewers of their manuscript through any indirect means.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the OPR model adopted by the Journal involves the mutual disclosure of author and reviewer identities, this is an express and consented feature of the model and does not constitute a breach of editorial confidentiality.

The Journal shall treat author personal data, manuscript content, and submission correspondence with appropriate confidentiality and shall not share such information with third parties except as necessary for the editorial process or as required by law.

9. Representations and Warranties

By submitting a manuscript, the Author(s) represent and warrant to the ARD Medical Journal Editorial Board that:

9. The manuscript is original, has not been previously published, and is not under simultaneous consideration elsewhere;

10. The Author(s) have full authority to grant the rights and licences set out in these Terms;

11. The manuscript does not infringe the intellectual property rights of any third party;

12. The manuscript does not contain defamatory, libellous, unlawful, or otherwise objectionable content;

13. All research reported in the manuscript was conducted in compliance with applicable ethical, legal, and regulatory requirements;

14. All co-authors have read, approved, and consented to the submission;

15. All conflicts of interest have been fully and accurately disclosed;

16. All data and results are accurate and have not been fabricated, falsified, or selectively reported;

17. Patient privacy and confidentiality obligations have been met;

18. All third-party content permissions have been obtained.

The Author(s) agree to indemnify and hold harmless the ARD Medical Journal, its Editorial Board, officers, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, costs, and expenses (including legal fees) arising from any breach of these representations and warranties.

10. Limitation of Liability

The ARD Medical Journal and its Editorial Board shall not be liable to the Author(s) for:

• Any decision to reject or not to publish a submitted manuscript, whether before or after peer review;

• Any delay in the review or publication process, however caused;

• Any loss, damage, or harm arising from the publication or use of the manuscript by third parties;

• Any errors introduced during the production or editing process, provided a reasonable opportunity was given to the Author(s) to review proofs;

• Any technical failure, data loss, or interruption to submission or publication systems.

Nothing in these Terms shall limit or exclude liability for fraud, wilful misconduct, or any other matter for which liability cannot lawfully be excluded.

11. Production, Proofing, and Publication

11.1 Production

Following acceptance, the manuscript will undergo copy-editing, typesetting, and formatting by the Journal's production team. The Editorial Board reserves the right to make minor editorial corrections for clarity, grammar, and house style without seeking author approval, provided such corrections do not alter the scientific meaning of the text.

11.2 Author Proofs

The Corresponding Author will be provided with a proof of the final typeset article for review prior to publication. The Author(s) must:

• Review the proof carefully for typographical, grammatical, or factual errors introduced during production;

• Return the corrected proof to the Editorial Secretary within five (5) working days of receipt, or by such other deadline as specified;

• Limit corrections to typographical errors and production errors — substantive changes to the text, data, or authorship at the proof stage will require Editorial Board approval and may delay publication.

Where the Corresponding Author does not respond to proofs within the allotted timeframe, the Journal reserves the right to publish the article without author-approved proof corrections.

11.3   Publication Date and Format

The Editorial Board retains sole discretion over the format, date, and placement of publication. The Journal reserves the right to publish articles in any format — including print, digital, or online-first — and to include or exclude an article from a particular issue or volume at editorial discretion, without obligation to provide reasons.

12. Amendment of These Terms

The ARD Medical Journal Editorial Board reserves the right to amend these Terms and Conditions at any time. Amendments shall take effect upon publication of the updated Terms on the Journal's official platforms. Authors with manuscripts already under review at the time of amendment shall be subject to the Terms in force at the time of their submission, unless the Editorial Board specifies otherwise and provides reasonable notice.

It is the Author's responsibility to review these Terms at the time of each submission, as they may have changed since a prior submission.

13. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

13.1 Governing Law

These Terms and Conditions, and any dispute arising from or in connection with a submission to or publication in the ARD Medical Journal, shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

13.2 Dispute Resolution

In the event of a dispute between an Author and the Editorial Board arising under or in connection with these Terms, the parties shall attempt to resolve the dispute through good faith negotiation in the first instance. Where negotiation fails, the dispute shall be referred to mediation, with a mediator agreed upon by both parties. Failing resolution through mediation, either party may pursue such legal remedies as are available under applicable law.

13.3 Jurisdiction

The parties submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Rivers State, Nigeria, for the resolution of any disputes that cannot be resolved through mediation.

14. General Provisions

14.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms and Conditions, together with the ARD Medical Journal Peer Review Policy, Author Guidelines, and any specific instructions communicated to the Author(s) at the time of submission or acceptance, constitute the entire agreement between the Author(s) and the Journal with respect to the submission and publication of a manuscript.

14.2  Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable in any jurisdiction, that provision shall be deemed modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it valid and enforceable. The validity and enforceability of all other provisions shall not be affected.

14.3 Waiver

No failure or delay by the Editorial Board in exercising any right or remedy under these Terms shall constitute a waiver of that right or remedy. Any waiver must be given in writing and is effective only in the specific instance and for the specific purpose for which it was given.

14.4 Assignment

The Author(s) may not assign, transfer, or sub-licence any of their rights or obligations under these Terms without the prior written consent of the Editor-in-Chief. The Editorial Board may assign its rights and obligations under these Terms, including in connection with any transfer of publication responsibilities, without the Author's consent.

14.5  Notices

All notices, requests, and communications required under these Terms shall be made in writing and addressed to the Editorial Secretary of the ARD Medical Journal at the official contact address published on the Journal's platforms. Notices to the Author(s) shall be sent to the contact address provided by the Corresponding Author at the time of submission.

14.6 Force Majeure

The Editorial Board shall not be in breach of these Terms, and shall not be liable, for any failure or delay in performing its obligations arising from causes beyond its reasonable control, including acts of God, civil unrest, power failure, natural disaster, public health emergencies, or disruption to digital infrastructure.

Summary: Key Author Obligations at a Glance

Obligation	Requirement	Clause
Originality	Manuscript must be entirely original and not previously published.	3.1
No simultaneous submission	Must not be under review elsewhere at time of submission.	3.2
ICMJE authorship compliance	All authors must meet all four ICMJE criteria.	3.3
Ethics approval	Required for all research involving human or animal subjects.	3.5
Data integrity	No fabrication, falsification, or selective manipulation.	3.6
Conflict of interest disclosure	Full disclosure mandatory, even where no conflict exists.	3.7
Patient consent	Written consent or anonymisation required for identifiable patient information.	3.8
AI use disclosure	Any AI tool used in preparation must be disclosed. AI cannot be listed as author.	3.9
Copyright assignment	Copyright assigned to Journal on acceptance.	4.1
Third-party permissions	Author responsible for obtaining all third-party content permissions.	4.5
Revision deadlines	Minor revision: 14 days. Major revision: 30 days.	5.3
Data retention	Primary data retained for minimum 5 years post-publication.	7.4
Proof review	Return corrected proofs within 5 working days.	11.2

Author Declaration

The Corresponding Author, on behalf of all co-authors, confirms the following by submitting this manuscript:

• I have read and understood the ARD Medical Journal Terms and Conditions for Authors in full;

• I accept these Terms and Conditions on my own behalf and on behalf of all co-authors;

• All statements made in the submission , including those relating to originality, authorship, ethics, conflicts of interest, and data integrity are true and accurate to the best of my knowledge;

• I am authorised to submit this manuscript and to grant the rights set out in these Terms on behalf of all co-authors.

Corresponding Author	Signature	Date
Full name: ___________________ Institution: __________________ Email: _______________________ ORCID (if applicable): ________	______________________________	______________________________

 

Terms’(ARD)  and Conditions for Authors  |  Version 1.0  |  2026  |  For Official Use