Policies

Peer-review Policy

Peer-review is the system used to assess the quality of a manuscript before it is published. BJBM operates a double-blind peer-review system, where the reviewers are unaware of the names and affiliations of the authors. In the same line, the reviewer reports provided to authors are anonymous. The benefit of double-blind peer review is that the reviewer is not bias in reviewing the research article/s and also the author/s is able to get true feedback from the reviewers.

Submitted manuscripts will generally be reviewed by two or more experts who will be asked to evaluate whether the manuscript is scientifically sound and coherent, whether it duplicates already published work, and whether or not the findings are significant and add value to the existing knowledge. The editors will reach a decision based on these reports and, where necessary, they will consult with members of the editorial board.

The Editorial Board members and Managing Editor of the BJBM should avoid publishing their research papers in the journal to avoid the conflict of interest. 

Authorship

An author is a person who has contributed significantly to the preparation of a manuscript. The policy for authorship in BJBM shall be based on the following criteria:

major contributions to the conception, design, analysis, and interpretation of the data for the work.

• taking responsibility for any revision (major/minor);
• final approval of the version to be published and
• accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
• The lead author who seeks major help from any individual for the development of the manuscript should be acknowledged. Besides, the organization/s that provided support in terms of funding and/or other resources should also be acknowledged.

Conflict of Interest and Ethics

• Conflict of Interest exists when there is a divergence between an individual’s private interests (competing interests) and his or her responsibilities to scientific and publishing activities. The respective author/s of the submitted manuscript in the BJBM should disclose all financial/relevant interest that may have influenced the development of his/her article.
• Reviewers of the submitted manuscript(s) in the journal should disclose any conflict of interest and if necessary, decline to review that manuscript to which they may have a conflict of interest. Editors should also decline from considering any manuscripts that may have conflict of interest. Such manuscripts will be re-assigned to other editors.
• To protect authors’ and reviewers’ rights, publishers are responsible for (a) selecting reviewers who do not have a conflict of interest with the authors, (b) protecting reviewers’ identity, and (c) maintaining a neutral and objective stand in the peer review process.
• Confidentiality: Once manuscripts are submitted to the editorial board of BJBM, they are considered as confidential material. The BJBM shall not disclose any submitted manuscript (if accepted for review) to anyone except the corresponding author/s, editorial staff, potential reviewers, actual reviewers, and editors.  However, in suspected cases of misconduct, a manuscript may be reviewed by the CRC.
• The misconduct would mean any violation of editorial policy of BJBM, not adhering to the manuscripts submission guidelines by the author/s, not following publication ethics or any such policies specified by BJBM. Besides, any such activities that threaten or compromise the integrity of the research/publication process are considered as potential misconducts. All such cases of misconduct will be investigated both by editorial board and the CRC of the college.