7. Instruction for Original Article Write up

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1. You can write from 2500 to 3000 words, excluding Abstract and references, while writing an original article.

2. Font type Calibri, size 14 for text

3. Citation in text should be in superscript without bracket.

4. TITLE:

  • Should be catchy, concise and smart.
  • It should reflect the objective of study.
  • Avoid abbreviations in title.
  • Consider a title no longer than 12 words.

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5. ABSTRACT: Abstract of original article should be structrued with around 150 to 250 words.

Include following Sub-headings:

  • Objective: Objective should start with measurable term as per blooms taxonommy.
  • Study Design:
  • Place and Duration of Study: Including department and institution name, and exact date of starting and completion of study.
  • Materials and Methods: 
  • Results: In Abstract you mention the main results in percentages only. There is no need to discuss the statistical significance here.
  • Conclusion:
  • KEY WORDS: At least 5 Key words written in italic. Arrange them in alphabetical order. Use terms from Medical subject Headings (MeSH) list of Index Medicus.

* Use of Abbreviation in abstract: Preferably no abbreviation is used in Abstract. If you have to use a terminology frequently, then write down complete terminology with abbreviation in the bracket first and subsequently you can use abbreviation.

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6. INTRODUCTION: Write down Introduction with references as per following instructions:

  • Give historical background information about the subject matter and nature of the problem & its significance.
  • What is the existing state of knowledge of this topic? You ask (with citations):
    • What is known?
    • What is unknown or not clear about the subject?
    • What are the gaps in knowledge this study will fill?
  • What are you going to do and what do you expect to find?
  • After identifying the literature gap you will write the rationale/justification) of your study.(How your study will fill this gap).
  • Finally you mention the objective of your study in past tense.
  • Give only strictly pertinent references & do not include data or conclusions from the work being reported.
  • Introduction should not exceed 500 words.

7. MATERIALS AND METHODS:

  • Written in past tense
  • Follow this sequence without headings:
  • Study design
  • Place and Duration of Study
  • Sample size
  • Sampling technique
  • Mention about permission of ethical review board and other ethical issues addressed (Evidence of permission from ERC by mentioning the letter number with date). Survey Articles and Studies more than five years old at the time of submission are not accepted for publication in JIIMC.
  • Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria
  • Data collection procedure - Detail (how and who collected data).
  • Data analysis; including Statistical Software packages and versions used, and statistical test applied for the calculation of p value and
  • To determine the statistical significance. Exact p values and 95% confidence interval (CI) limits must be mentioned instead of only stating greater or less than level of significance. All percentages must be accompanied with actual numbers.

8. ETHICS:

When reporting on human subjects' experiments, explain if the procedures used were in conformity with the ethical norms of the relevant committee on human experimentation (institutional or regional) and the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 1983. In illustrative material, do not use patient's names, initials, or hospital numbers. 

9. STATISTICS:

Describe statistical methods in adequate detail for a knowledgeable reader with access to the source data to verify the stated results. When possible quantify findings and report them with appropriate indicators of measurment error or uncertainty (such as confidence intervals). Avoid using solely statistical hypothesis testing, such as p values, which fail to convey key quantitative information. Discuss the eligibility of experimental subjects. Give detials about randomization. Describe the methods for and success of any blinding of observations. Report the complications of treatment, if any. Give numbers of observations and report losses to observation ( such as dropouts from a clinical trial). References for the design of the study and statistical methods sould be to standard works when possible( with page stated) rather than to papers in which the designs or methods were originally reported. Specify any generlal use computer programs used. Put a general description of methods in methods section.

10. RESULTS:

In results section present your results in past tense in a logical sequences in the text, table, and figures, giving the main or most important finding first.

  • Do not repeat all the data in the tables or figures in the text; emphasize or summarize only the most important observations.
  • Provide data on all primary & secondary out comes identified in the methods section.
  • Give numeric results in absolute numbers as well as in percentages.
  • Restrict tables and figures to those needed to explain the argument of the paper and to assess supporting data.
  • Use graphs as an alternative to tables with many entries ; do not duplicate data in graphs and tables.
  • Avoid nontechnical uses of technical terms in statistics, such as "random" (which implies a randomizing device), "normal," "significant," "correlations," and "sample."

11. TABLES:

  • Tables are numbered consecutively in the order of their first citation in the text.
  • Supply a short but self- explanatory "Title" in tables.
  • Be sure that each table is cited in the text.
  • Give each column a short or an abbreviated heading.
  • Author should place explanatory matter in footnotes, and use symobls to explain information if needed.
  • Maximum 04 Tables/figure are allowed for original article. Author wil have to pay for extra Table/Figure.

12. ILLUSTRATIONS (FIGURES):

Digital images of manuscript illustrations should be submitted in a suitable format for print publication. Most submisison system have detailed instructions on the quality of images and check them after manuscript uploded.

  • For print submissions, figures should be either professionally drawn and photographed, or submitted as photographic-quality digital prints.
  • For radiological and other clinical and diagnostic images, as well as pictures of pathology specimens or photomicrographs, send high-resolution photographic image files.
  • Before and after images should be taken with the same intensity, direction, and color of light.
  • Since blots are used as primary evidence in many scientific articles, editors may require deposition of original photographs of blots on the journal's website.
  • Although some journas redraw figures, many do not.
  • Letters, numbers, and symobls on figures should therefore be clear and consistent throughout, and large.

13. DISCUSSION:

The discussion section should include author's comments on the results.

  • Write in present tense, active voice- except for results, which are written in past tense. It should be written in following sequence:
  • First of all, briefly summarize, interpret and discuss main results ( give results in % only) and don't merely repeat the results (avoid unnecessary or too much results).
  • Each variable/parameter of the study should be discussed seperately in seperate paragrahp.
  • Discuss key studies relevant to your study.
  • Compare the findings of your study with the finding of these similar studies Give reasons/ justification if result varies.
  • Make it directed towards conclusion.
  • Describe limitations of your study.
  • Suggest future work if necessay.

14. CONCLUSION:

  • Conclusion should be provided under a separate heading and written in present tense.
  • In conclusion you don’t write the findings of your study. Conclusion is based on the findings of your research and it should match the objective of study.
  • should be same in abstract and text.

15. REFERENCES:

In the text:

  • The original article should have no more than 25 references, a case report should have no more than 10 references, and a review article should have no more than 50 references.
  • The references should be listed on a separate sheet and should be numbered consecutively in the order in which they are cited in the text.
  • The data should be supported with 20 to 25 locals as well as international references. More than 50% of the references should be from last five years.
  • Cite in the text by the appropriate Arabic number e.g. 1, 2, 3, and the numbers should be in the superscripts, without brackets, in the order in which they are superscripted in the text. It should be after period if it refers to full sentence. e.g, .1
  • The author must verify the references against the original documents before the article.
  • References to papers accepted but not yet published should be designated as “in press” or “forthcoming”; authors should obtain written permission to cite such

In the list:

Article with 1 to 6 authors:

  • Petitti DB, Crooks VC, Buckwalter JG, Chiu V. Blood pressure levels before dementia. Arch Neurol. 2005 Jan;62(1):112-6. doi: 10.1001/archneur.62.1.112

Article with more than 6 authors:

  • Title of the journal abbreviated according to the style of the Index Medicus (see “List of Journals Indexed”, printed yearly in the January issue of Index Medicus)
  • Hallal AH, Amortegui JD, Jeroukhimov IM, Casillas J, Schulman CI, Manning RJ, et al. Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography accurately detects common bile duct stones in resolving gallstone pancreatitis. J Am Coll Surg. 2005 Jun;200(6):869-75. dio:10.1016/j.jamcollsurg.2005.02.028.

Electronic Journal Article:

  • Stockhausen L, Turale S. An explorative study of Australian nursing scholars and contemporary scholarship. J Nurs Scholarsh [Internet]. 2011 Mar [cited 2013 Feb 19];43(1):89-96. Available from: http://search.proquest.com/docview/ 858241255 10.1111/j.1547-5069.2010.01378.x

Doi should be provided with every reference if available, in the format as shown here:

  • Kanneganti P, Harris JD, Brophy RH, Carey JL, Lattermann C, Flanigan DC. The effect of smoking on ligament and cartilage surgery in the knee: a systematic review. Am J Sports Med [Internet]. 2012 Dec [cited 2013 Feb 19];40(12):2872-8. doi: 10.1177/0363546512458223

Reference to books:

a) References to books should give the names of editors, place of publication, publisher, and year. papers as well as verification that they have been accepted for publication

b) Print book

  • Carlson BM. Human embryology and developmental biology. 4th ed. St. Louis: Mosby; 2009. 541 p.

Electronic book reference:

  • Shreeve DF. Reactive attachment disorder: a case-based approach [Internet]. New York: Springer; 2012 [cited 2012 Nov 2]. 85 p. Available from: http://

Government reports:

  • Rowe IL, Carson NE. Medical manpower in Victoria. East Bentleigh (AU): Monash University, Department of Community Practice; 1981. 35 p. Report No.: 4.

Dictionaries and encyclopedias- Article from online reference work:

  • D.A.M. medical encyclopedia [Internet]. Atlanta (GA): A.D.A.M., Inc.; c2005. Ear barotrauma; [updated 2006 Oct 20; cited 2006 Nov 16]; [about 4 screens]. Available from: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001064.htm

Dictionaries and encyclopedias - Article from electronic drug guide:

  • AHFS consumer medication information [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc.; ©2008. Protriptyline; [revised 2007 Aug 1; reviewed 2007 Aug 1; cited 2008 Oct 2]; [about 5 p.]. Available from: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a604025.html

Web page/homepage:

  • Diabetes Australia. Diabetes globally [Internet]. Canberra ACT: Diabetes Australia; 2012 [updated 2012 June 15; cited 2012 Nov 5]. Available from: http://www.diabetesaustralia.com.au/en/ Understanding-Diabetes/Diabetes-Globally/

Web page / part of website:

  • Australian Medical Association [Internet]. Barton ACT: AMA; c1995-2012. Junior doctors and medical students call for urgent solution to medical training crisis; 2012 Oct 22 [cited 2012 Nov 5]; [about 3 screens]. Available from: https://ama.com.au/media/junior-doctors -and-medical-students-call-urgentsolution-medical-training-crisis.

Image from web:

  • Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Shingles on the face. [image on Internet]. 2011 [updated 2011 Jan 10; cited 2012 Nov 6]. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/shingles/about/photos.html

Patent:

  • Clarke J, Pines A, McDermott RF, Trabesinger AH, inventors. University of California, assignee. SQUID detected NMR and MRI at ultralow fields. European Patent 1474707. 2004-11-10.

Print conference:

  • Luca J, Tarricone P. Does emotional intelligence affect successful teamwork? In: Kennedy G, Keppell M, McNaught C, et al, eds. Meeting at the Cossroads: Proceedings of the 18th Annual Conference of the Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education, 2001 Dec 9-12; Melbourne: Biomedical Multimedia Unit, The University of Melbourne; 2001. p.367-76.

Online conference:

  • Cloherty SL, Dokos S, Lovell NH. Qualitative support for the gradient model of cardiac pacemaker heterogeneity. In: Proceedings of the 2005 IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology 27 Annual Conference [conference proceedings on the Internet]; 2005 Sep 1-4; Shanghai, China. New York: IEEE; 2005 [cited 2013 Sep 2]. p. 133-6. Available from: IEEE Xplore.

16. ABBREVIATIONS:

  • Use only standard abbreviations
  • Avoid abbreviations in the title of the manuscript.
  • The spelled-out abbreviation followed by the abbreviation in parentheses should be used on first mention unless the abbreviation is a standard unit of measurement.

17. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:

Contributions from anyone who does not meet the authorship criteria according ICMJE guidelines should be listed, with permission from the contributor, in an Acknowledgments section, such as someone who only provided technical assistance or writing assistance, or a department head who only provided general support.

  • Financial and material assistance should be acknowledged as well.
  • Groups of people who contributed materially to the paper but did not merit authorship may be listed under a heading such as "clinical investigators" or "participating investigators," and their contribution should be described, such as "served as scientific advisors," "critically reviewed the study proposal," "collected data," or "provided and cared for study patients."
  • All individuals must have provided written permission to be acknowledged because readers may infer their endorsement of the data and conclusions.

18. CONFLICT OF INTEREST:

None/ or Any interest, financial relationship, personal relationship, religious or political beliefs that might influence the objectivity of the author can be considered as a potential source of conflict of interest.

  • All manuscripts submitted to the journal must include a conflict of the interest disclosure statement or a declaration by the authors that they do not have any conflicts of interest to declare.
  • Any funding source for the research work must be informed at the time of submitting the manuscript for publication in JIIMC.
  • Any associations that might be construed as a conflict of interest (stock ownership, consultancies, etc.) shall be disclosed accordingly.
  • Examples of financial conflicts include employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patents or patent applications, and travel grants, all within 3 years of beginning the work submitted.
  • If there are no conflicts of interest, authors should state that. All authors are required to provide a signed statement of their conflicts of interest as part of the author’s declaration.

19. FINANCIAL SUPPORT:

None/ or Please describe the sources of funding, relevant grant numbers, and the URL of any funder’s website that have supported the research. Also, please describe the role of any sponsors or funders.

  • Author is supposed to declare the funding source as acknowledgement at the end of the manuscript.
  • Author will describe the role of the study sponsor (s), if any, in study design; in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; and in the decision to submit the paper for publication.
  • If there is no Methodology section, the role of the funding source should be stated as an acknowledgment.
  • The corresponding author should confirm that he/she had full access to all the data in the study and had final responsibility for the decision to submit for publication.
  • JIIMC publishes FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE & ROLE OF THE FUNDING SOURCE statement for each article.