The Clinical Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (CJOG) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. Our Ethics and Malpractice Statement is based on the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), and relevant international bodies governing medical and scientific publishing. This statement outlines the ethical obligations of authors, reviewers, editors, and the journal.

Editorial Responsibilities

CJOG’s editorial team maintains full responsibility for ensuring ethical, fair, and consistent treatment of all submitted manuscripts. Editors act independently and without influence from commercial or political bodies.

Evaluate all manuscripts based solely on scholarly merit, originality, and relevance.
Avoid conflicts of interest in decision-making.
Ensure manuscripts undergo unbiased and confidential peer review.
Preserve the integrity of the scholarly record through corrections and retractions when needed.
Respond promptly to ethical concerns raised by readers, reviewers, or editors.

Authorship and Contributor Responsibility

All authors listed on a manuscript must meet the ICMJE authorship criteria and share accountability for the integrity of the work.

Authorship Criteria

Significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or data interpretation of the study.
Participation in drafting or critically revising the manuscript.
Approval of the final submitted version.
Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the research.

Contributors who do not meet authorship criteria must be acknowledged appropriately with their role specified.

Author Responsibilities

Ensure the accuracy and originality of submitted work.
Declare all potential conflicts of interest.
Provide access to raw data for editorial verification when required.
Confirm the manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere.
Cooperate with editor requests during peer review and revision.

Peer Review Ethics

CJOG utilizes a double-blind peer review system. Reviewers must:

Maintain confidentiality of all manuscript materials.
Provide objective, constructive, and timely feedback.
Avoid plagiarism or misuse of privileged information.
Decline reviews where conflicts of interest exist.
Report ethical concerns or suspected misconduct.

Publication Ethics for Clinical and Human Subject Research

Authors must comply with global ethical standards:

Studies involving humans must adhere to the Declaration of Helsinki.
IRB or ethics committee approval must be documented.
Informed consent must be obtained for all human participants.
Patient anonymity must be preserved in clinical images or case reports.
Clinical trials must be registered in recognized registries (e.g., ClinicalTrials.gov).

Ethics for Animal Research

Studies must comply with institutional and international animal care standards.
Authors must provide ethical committee approval details.
Humane treatment and minimization of suffering is required.

Data Integrity and Research Misconduct

Research misconduct includes fabrication, falsification, manipulation of data or images, plagiarism, and failure to comply with ethical standards.

Types of Misconduct

Fabrication: Making up data.
Falsification: Manipulating research methods or data.
Plagiarism: Using others’ work without appropriate citation.
Image manipulation: Altering images beyond clarity enhancement.
Duplicate submission: Submitting the same work to multiple journals.
Redundant publication: Publishing overlapping content without transparency.

Handling Allegations of Misconduct

CJOG follows a transparent process for evaluating allegations of misconduct:

Initial screening by editorial staff.
Formal investigation by the Editor-in-Chief.
Requesting explanations or supporting documents from authors.
Consultation with reviewers or institutional bodies if necessary.
Decision and communication of outcome to authors.

Possible Outcomes

Correction notice.
Expression of Concern.
Retraction.
Manuscript rejection.
Ban on future submissions.
Notification to institutional authorities.

Plagiarism Detection and Prevention

All submissions undergo similarity screening using plagiarism-detection tools. Editors verify:

Similarity levels and matched sources.
Appropriate citation of reused text.
Misuse of images or tables.
Text recycling within an author’s prior publications.

Conflict of Interest Management

Authors, reviewers, and editors must declare financial and non-financial conflicts of interest.

Examples

Receiving consulting fees.
Industry relationships.
Personal relationships affecting objectivity.
Institutional affiliations relevant to the study.

Editorial Handling

Editors with conflicts must recuse themselves.
Alternative editors will be assigned.
Conflicts will be disclosed in published articles where appropriate.

Corrections, Retractions, and Editorial Notices

When issues affecting the integrity of the published record are identified, CJOG may issue:

Corrections: For minor errors.
Retractions: For serious issues affecting reliability or ethics.
Expressions of Concern: When investigations are ongoing.

Editorial Transparency

CJOG ensures transparency by:

Publishing clear editorial policies.
Documenting every stage of peer review and editorial decision-making.
Disclosing all corrections and updates publicly.

Complaints, Appeals, and Ombudsman

Authors may submit complaints regarding:

Delays in editorial handling.
Misconduct by reviewers or editors.
Biased or inappropriate reviewer comments.

Appeals must include:

A detailed rebuttal letter.
Point-by-point response to comments.
Supporting data or clarifications.

Appeals are handled by an independent senior editor.

Ethics for Editors

Editors must:

Ensure confidentiality of all materials.
Make unbiased decisions free from commercial influence.
Avoid coercive citations.
Disclose conflicts of interest.
Take responsibility for correcting the record.

Ethics for Reviewers

Reviewers must:

Review manuscripts within agreed deadlines.
Provide constructive and evidence-based critiques.
Refrain from using privileged information for personal advantage.
Notify editors of any ethical concerns.

Patient Privacy & Consent

All identifiable patient information must be removed unless explicit written consent is provided. Authors must:

Mask identifying features in images.
Provide consent forms when patient data is included.
Ensure anonymization of medical records.

Data Sharing and Reproducibility

CJOG encourages responsible data sharing:

Depositing datasets in open repositories (e.g., Zenodo, Dryad).
Providing detailed methodology for reproducibility.
Including data availability statements in manuscripts.

Malpractice Prevention

CJOG actively prevents malpractice by:

Using similarity checking tools.
Screening image authenticity.
Vettings reviewer credentials.
Conducting editorial audits every quarter.

Ethical Marketing & Communication

All CJOG communication complies with CAN-SPAM Act, GDPR, and ethical outreach standards.

Statement on AI-Assisted Writing and Analysis

Authors must disclose the use of AI tools. AI cannot be credited as an author. Authors remain fully responsible for all AI-generated content.

Conclusion

CJOG is committed to safeguarding the integrity of medical research and ensuring trust in the scholarly record. Ethical publishing is central to our mission of advancing knowledge in obstetrics and gynecology.