HANDLING VIOLATIONS OF PUBLICATION ETHICS: OUR TRANSPARENT PROCEDURES

2023-09-29

At Scientific Route OÜ, we uphold the highest standards of publication ethics. In cases where there are suspicions of a reviewer appropriating an author’s ideas or data or concerns regarding ethical issues related to a submitted manuscript, we follow clear and ethical guidelines based on the COPE schemes "What to do if you suspect a reviewer has appropriated an author’s idea or data" and "What to do if you suspect an ethical problem."

Reviewer's Appropriation of Ideas or Data:

  1. Evidence Collection and Verification:

    • We consider allegations with solid documentary evidence from the author or other credible sources, such as publications, abstracts, meeting reports, grant applications, etc.
    • An expert examination is conducted to evaluate the validity of the claims.

  2. Investigation Process:

    • If the allegations are substantiated, an investigation request is submitted to the implicated reviewer and their affiliated institution.
    • Links between the accused and the named reviewer are investigated, including departmental affiliations, personal relationships, and potential conflicts of interest.

  3. Appropriate Action:

    • If the reviewer's guilt is established, they are permanently removed from our publisher's database.
    • If the appropriated idea or data has been published elsewhere, we request the relevant publication sources to accept the withdrawal policy for the published material.

Ethical Concerns with a Submitted Manuscript:

  1. Identification of Ethical Concerns:

    • Suspicions of ethical issues may arise due to the absence of ethical approval, concerns regarding patient consent, animal experiments, etc.

  2. Request for Relevant Details:

    • The corresponding author is asked to provide supporting details, such as an ethics committee certificate or copies of informed consent documents, to address the concerns.

  3. Decision and Further Actions:

    • If the necessary ethical documentation is not provided, the manuscript is rejected and will not be published.
    • The case is then referred for investigation to the institution(s) of the author(s) involved.

We remain dedicated to ensuring a publication process that is fair, transparent, and ethical, upholding the integrity of academic research and the trust of the scientific community.