Editorial Responsibilities

The journals published by GKMS, together with the academic societies and institutions that own them, are committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and ethical practice in scholarly publishing. While individual journals may adopt editorial policies specific to their discipline and scope, all journals follow internationally recognized publishing and ethical guidelines to ensure the quality, credibility, and integrity of the scholarly record. The journal adheres to the recommendations and principles established by:

• Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
• International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)
• World Association of Medical Editors (WAME)
• Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
• Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA)
• Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing
• Declaration of Helsinki of the World Medical Association (WMA)

All authors, reviewers, editors, editorial board members, and publishing staff are expected to comply with these ethical standards throughout the submission, peer-review, publication, and post-publication processes.

Editorial Responsibilities

The Editor-in-Chief and editorial team are responsible for ensuring fair, unbiased, timely, and confidential handling of all manuscripts submitted to the journal.

• Manuscript Review-Evaluate submissions for originality, relevance, and quality.
• Ethical Oversight
• Quality Assurance
• Peer Review Management
• Editorial Decision-Making
• Strategic Development
• Quality and clarity of presentation

Peer- Review Ethics

Confidentiality

• Reviewers must keep manuscripts and related materials strictly confidential.
• No sharing or discussing content outside the review process.

Conflict of Interest

• Reviewers must disclose any financial, professional, or personal conflicts.
• Recuse themselves if conflicts could compromise judgment.

Integrity

• Do not use unpublished data or ideas for personal gain.
• Respect the intellectual property of authors

Transparency

• Clearly justify recommendations for acceptance, revision, or rejection.
• Maintain accountability in the review process.

Manuscript Submission Policy

Manuscripts must be prepared according to the journal’s Instructions for Authors and relevant reporting guidelines.

Submissions are accepted only through the journal’s official online submission system. Manuscripts submitted through email or other unofficial channels will not be considered.

By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that:

• The manuscript is original
• The manuscript has not been published previously
• The manuscript is not under consideration elsewhere
• All authors have reviewed and approved the submission
• Ethical approvals and informed consents have been obtained where required
• All conflicts of interest and funding sources have been disclosed
• The corresponding author is responsible for all communication with the journal during the editorial and publication process.

Manuscript Withdrawal Policy

Formal Request

• Authors must submit a written request to withdraw their manuscript, stating valid reasons.

Timing of Withdrawal

• Withdrawal is allowed before peer review begins without penalty.
• Once peer review has started, requests require editorial approval.

Post-Acceptance Withdrawal

• Withdrawal after acceptance is discouraged and may incur administrative charges.

Communication Protocol

• All withdrawal correspondence must be through the official journal email.
• Authors will receive written confirmation once the process is complete.

Conflicts of Interest

All authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any financial or non-financial conflicts of interest that could influence the work or its interpretation

Potential conflicts may include:

• Employment
• Consultancy
• Funding support
• Honoraria
• Stock ownership
• Patents
• Institutional affiliations
• Personal or academic relationships
• Conflict of interest disclosures are published with the article where applicable.

If no conflicts exist, authors should explicitly state: “No conflicts of interest declared.”

Plagiarism Screening Policy

Mandatory Screening

• All submitted manuscripts undergo plagiarism detection before peer review.

Use of Software

• Reliable plagiarism detection tools are employed to check similarity levels

Author Responsibility

• Authors must ensure proper citation and acknowledgment of sources.
• Self-plagiarism and duplicate submissions are strictly prohibited.

Ethical Compliance

• Serious cases of plagiarism are reported to authors’ institutions or funding bodies.
• Such cases may result in permanent submission bans

Research and Publication Misconduct

Griffon Knowledge Management Systems is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity in scholarly publishing. The following policies outline unacceptable practices and the actions taken to address them.

Types of Misconduct

• Plagiarism
• Data Fabrication & Falsification
• Duplicate Submission
• Authorship Misrepresentation
• Conflict of Interest
• Peer Review Manipulation
• Citation Manipulation

Ethics Approval and Human & Animal Research

Griffon Knowledge Management Systems is committed to upholding the highest ethical standards in research and publication. All manuscripts involving human participants or animal subjects must comply with internationally recognized ethical guidelines.

• Ethics Committee Approval
• Informed Consent
• Privacy & Confidentiality
• Vulnerable Populations
• Humane Treatment
• Compliance with Guidelines

Animal research must comply with institutional and national ethical standards and include approval from an institutional animal ethics committee where required.

Informed Consent

Written informed consent must be obtained from all participants or their legal guardians before inclusion in research studies.

When identifiable patient information, photographs, or clinical details are included, explicit consent for publication must also be obtained.

The manuscript must include a statement confirming that informed consent was obtained.

The journal reserves the right to request documentation of consent where necessary.

Data Integrity, Availability, and Reproducibility

Authors are encouraged to preserve and share research data, protocols, analytical methods, and supporting materials whenever feasible.

• Data Accuracy
• Transparency
• Data Availability
• Ethical Data Use
• Editorial Oversight
• Corrections & Retractions

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments should include individuals, institutions, organizations, or funding agencies that contributed to the work but do not qualify for authorship.

This may include:

• Technical support
• Statistical assistance
• Editorial or writing assistance
• Administrative support
• Funding sources

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission from acknowledged individuals prior to publication.

Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern

The journal follows COPE recommendations for post-publication corrections and updates.

Corrections (Errata/Corrigenda)

Issued for errors that do not invalidate the scientific findings of the article.

Retractions

Issued when findings are unreliable due to serious error, misconduct, fabrication, plagiarism, or unethical research practices.

Expressions of Concern

Published when investigations are ongoing and significant concerns regarding the integrity or validity of the work remain unresolved.

All correction and retraction notices are linked to the original article to maintain transparency of the scholarly record.

Complaints and Appeals

Complaints regarding editorial decisions, peer review, ethical concerns, or publication processes may be submitted to the Editor-in-Chief or the publisher.

All complaints and appeals are handled confidentially and investigated in accordance with COPE guidance.

Appeals against editorial decisions should provide detailed justification and supporting evidence.

Copyright and Licensing

Authors are required to complete the applicable copyright and licensing forms before publication.

Articles are published under the Creative Commons license specified by the journal.

Authors retain copyright in accordance with the journal’s open access policy unless otherwise stated.

Open Access Policy

The journal supports the principles of open access publishing and dissemination of scientific knowledge.

All published content is freely accessible online immediately upon publication under the applicable Creative Commons license.

The journal does not permit editorial decisions to be influenced by commercial interests, advertising, or sponsorship arrangements.

Adherence to COPE Core Practices

We follow COPE's core practices, which include:

• Authorship and Contributorship
• Complaints and Appeals
• Conflicts of Interest / Competing Interests
• Data Integrity and Reproducibility
• Ethical Oversight
• Intellectual Property
• Peer Review Processes
• Post-Publication Discussions and Corrections
• Journal Management
• Transparency and Best Publishing Practices