About JUCM
The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine welcomes original articles and case reports which provide practical clinical and practice management information for our readers―the nation’s urgent care clinicians and business leaders. Clinical manuscripts submitted for publication in JUCM should report the results of original research, explore clinical or practice management topics from a uniquely urgent care perspective, or describe a case study dealing with clinical problems commonly encountered in the day-to-day practice of urgent care.JUCM articles should offer practical advice and solutions to issues commonly encountered on a frequent, routine basis in urgent care. Our aim is to combine scientific precision and evidence-based content with a concise, lively style that’s easy to read.
JUCM has developed a loyal readership among practitioners. The information you provide should be of practical use to our readers, practitioners of urgent care medicine, who trained in a variety of clinical backgrounds. Your article should take their perspective into account by considering key issues, such as:
- Why is this issue relevant in urgent care medicine?
- What are the important aspects of the history and exam?
- What laboratory tests or diagnostics are required?
- What immediate management is indicated?
- What are the next steps—with whom should the patient follow up?
- Who should be admitted or referred to the emergency department?
Helpful Resources- Download these files to help you write your article:
JUCM Instructions for Authors JUCM Outline for Clinical Review Articles JUCM Outline for Practice Management Articles
JUCM Topic Suggestions for Practice Management Articles
JUCM Outline for Case Reports
JUCM Sample Case Report – Back pain
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Potential Topics
With such a broad audience, the scope of JUCM is equally wide-ranging. The following are some examples of topics we’d like to cover in clinical review and practice management articles in the future.Clinical Potential Topics:
- Burns: chemical, thermal
- Common soft-tissue injuries, such as those caused by fishhooks, foreign bodies, animal or human bites, and envenomation (bees, ants, spiders, marine animals, snakes, scorpions)
- Complications of malignancy
- Constipation
- Diarrhea
- Elbow pain and injury
- Electrolyte disturbances, such as hypo- or hypernatremia and hypo- or hyperkalemia
- Epididymitis, orchitis, prostatitis
- Gastrointestinal bleeding
- Geriatric falls
- Hypertension (stable versus urgent versus emergency)
- Joint pain—evaluation in the urgent care center
- Neck pain and trauma
- Pancreatitis and hepatitis
- Shoulder pain and injury
- Vomiting
- Weakness and fatigue
Practice Management Potential Topics:
- Accountable care and new reimbursement models
- Billing and coding insights and changes
- HIPAA and patient privacy
- Hospital system integration of urgent care
- Human resources issues
- Integrating ancillary services
- Integrating physician assistants and nurse practitioners
- Leveraging electronic medical record systems
- Marketing to attract patients
- Patient satisfaction measurements and improvements
- Provider recruiting and retention
- Quality and compliance
- Risk management and patient safety
- Working with primary care physicians and specialists
Publication Ethics & Standards
The JUCM adheres to the best practices and procedures in medical journal publishing as set forth by the major ethical standards organizations in the industry. It undertakes a rigorous peer review process, has strict advertising guidelines, and supports the future preservation and access of its contents.Of special concern is patient privacy. Throughout the JUCM content, no patient’s name is ever included. If the need arises to identify a patient for some reason, a pseudonym replaces the patient’s real name. It is stated in the article that the name is a pseudonym. If an image reflecting an actual patient is published only the relevant body part (such as in an x-ray or electrocardiogram) is shown. Should it be necessary to show a patient’s face in any image the patient is not identified by name and the author must provide documentation that the patient gave permission for the image to be published. As a member of the American Society of Health Care Publications, the Editor in Chief, Executive Editor, and editorial staff of JUCM adhere to its statement of ethical standards, as stated on the ASHCP website as follows:
- “Accept as their primary motivation and responsibility the selection of editorial content based upon the needs and interests of their readers.
- Control all editorial content of the publications.
- Avoid all conflicts of interest as well as any potential perceptions of such conflicts.
- Maintain honesty, integrity, accuracy, thoroughness and fairness in the writing and presentation (including headlines, decks and graphics) of articles and all associated elements.
- Show distinction between articles, editorials, columns and any opinion or advocacy content.
- Provide attribution of sources, quotes and published technical information published word-for-word in editorial material. Plagiarism, in any part, is unacceptable.
- Maintain a clear distinction between editorial and advertising content in their publications. Editors have an obligation to their readers to identify what content has been purchased and/or sponsored versus what is independent editorial material.
- All paid/purchased content (e.g., advertorial articles and sections in print, or online pages) that might be confused with independent editorial material should be labeled as advertising.
- Maintain an appropriate professional distance from the direct preparation of special advertising sections, supplements or other advertising-directed content.”
Study Design and Ethics of Research Involving Human Subjects
High quality research begins with conscientious study design and is conducted to appropriately address the research question while strictly adhering to ethical standards for investigations involving human subjects. The JUCM affirms the standards for research ethics outlined by the World Medical Association (WMA) in the Declaration of Helsinki, 1964 and its subsequent amendments (last updated 2018). Prospective authors are encouraged to review the Declaration prior to undertaking research, with special consideration for conducting appropriate informed consent and whether intended subjects are considered a vulnerable population. Submissions to the JUCM are expected to comply with the principles outlined within the Declaration.
All research involving human subjects submitted for consideration in the JUCM must comply with their respective Institutional Review Board’s (IRB) standards. For authors considering submission of research planned within an organization without an IRB, the use of an independent IRB is acceptable. To determine if planned investigations fall within the definition of “human subjects research,” the National Institutes of Health (NIH) decision tool can be used for clarification. Manuscripts describing research involving human subjects must include a statement of approval or exemption for the study from an appropriate IRB or other research ethics committee.
Research Misconduct
The JUCM also conforms to standards for research misconduct laid forth by the Office of Research Integrity (ORI) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The ORI specifies the following as instances of misconduct in proposing, performing, or reviewing research, or in reporting research results with the definitions cited on its website:
- Fabrication is making up data or results and recording or reporting them.
- Falsification is manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing or omitting data or results such that the research is not accurately represented in the research record.
- Plagiarism is the appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit. JUCM uses plagiarism detection software to screen submissions.
- Research misconduct does not include honest error or differences of opinion.
Duplicate (multiple) publication is sometimes referred to as redundant or overlapping publication. At issue is the potential for unnecessary peer review, editing, and publication by two or more separate journals. In addition, duplicate publications can result in increased attention and credit (i.e. citations) for authors. Thus, authors should not submit the same manuscript, in the same or different languages, simultaneously to more than one journal. Simultaneous submissions by author(s) will be considered as acts of misconduct and may result in suspending an author for a certain period or indefinitely from the JUCM as well as informing the author’s institution. ICMJE “overlapping publications,” accessed June 29, 2020.
Prior Publication
Authors should submit only original work that has not been previously published and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. Authors must note any use of a preprint server, patents, and dissertations in the Author Checklist. The following does not constitute prior publication: theses in print or online; patents; and preprint servers. Authors who choose to post their work on a preprint server should choose one that clearly identifies preprints as not peer-reviewed work and includes disclosures of authors’ relationships and activities. It is the author’s responsibility to inform a journal if the work has been previously posted on a preprint server. In addition, it is the author’s (and not journal editors’) responsibility to ensure that preprints are amended to point readers to subsequent versions, including the final published article. ICMJE “overlapping publications,” accessed June 29, 2020.
Authorship Credit The ICMJE recommends, and the JUCM concurs, that authorship be based on the following 4 criteria:
- Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; AND
- Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; AND
- Final approval of the version to be published; AND
- Agreement to be 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.
Process in the advent of publication misconduct
The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine (JUCM) has a zero-tolerance policy towards papers associated with any of the forms of publication misconduct cited above. Should a paper be identified as being an instance of one (or more) definitions of research and/or publication misconduct, the Journal will undertake an unbiased process for handling allegations, however they are brought to the Journal’s or publisher’s attention. The process stages are:
- Receipt of an allegation either pre- or post-publication
- Preliminary assessment of the allegation
- Conduct of the inquiry and investigation
- Results which confirm the allegation trigger a decision on the part of the Journal to reject the manuscript or withdraw the published article not accept manuscripts submitted by the same author, authors, or research team for an appropriate time period (i.e. the next two-three years) determine whether the infraction is serious enough to inform the institution(s) which the corresponding author(s) is affiliated with and the research funder(s) about such misconduct, and post all penalty documents on the Journal site.
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Peer Review Policies
OBLIGATIONS OF JUCM PEER REVIEWERSReviewers receive instructions on the rating sheet which accompanies the manuscript to be reviewed. It is important that reviewers understand six important guidelines:
- Reviewers should be able to evaluate the entirety of a paper.
- Reviewers do not edit manuscript content but rather provide comments and suggestions for improvement regarding readability of a paper when a medical term or procedure or a basic scientific concept is poorly presented.
- Reviewers are required to maintain anonymity and confidentiality during the entire peer review process.
- Reviewers may not contact the author(s) without permission from the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal.
- Reviewers should inform staff immediately if they ascertain a conflict of interest with the contents of the paper they have been asked to review.
- Reviewers are requested to tell staff at the earliest possible date whether there is the potential for not meeting the deadline to submit their review
Editorial Policies
Editorial Decision-MakingThe aim of the JUCM is to publish original manuscripts relevant to Urgent Care practice. Decisions regarding publication are made by multi-level editorial review with consideration for the manuscript’s clarity, originality, and value for the audience. Publication decisions must subsequently be corroborated through the process of peer review (see the peer review flow chart above). All finalized manuscripts are reviewed by the JUCM’s Executive Editor and Editor-in-Chief. Authors may appeal the manuscript rejections by re-submitting a revised manuscript with a detailed description of the changes made and their grounds for appealing the editorial decision. Appeals will be reviewed by the appropriate section editor and editor-in-chief.
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Pre-submission Checklist
Before submitting your manuscript, please make sure to follow these guidelines:
- Declare That Your Manuscript Is Not Published Elsewhere. A manuscript submitted to JUCM must not have appeared previously in any publication, including other print journals or technical magazines, preprint servers, blogs, websites, or repositories.
- Declare Any Conflicts Of Interest (COI) Conflict of interest (COI) as defined by the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) “exists when there is a divergence between an individual’s private interests (competing interests) and his or her responsibilities to scientific and publishing activities such that a reasonable observer might wonder if the individual’s behavior or judgment was motivated by considerations of his or her competing interests.” For additional information, including examples, please go to: http://wame.org/conflict-of-interest-in-peer-reviewed-medical-journals.
- Check That All Coauthors Meet Criteria For Authorship & Ensure Appropriate Acknowledgements Made In The Manuscript. An individual should be cited as an author of an article only if that person has made substantial intellectual contributions to the submitted manuscript. Supporting activities after the work has been completed are not considered substantial intellectual contributions. If you (and/or your coauthors) still have questions about authorship you can find an extensive resource at the COPE website: https://publicationethics.org/files/u7141/Authorship_DiscussionDocument_0_0.pdf
- Include Appropriate Funding Statements In The Manuscript. If during the conduct of the work or preparation of the manuscript any author received financial compensation from any individual or institution outside his or her principal employer such funding should be stated in order to determine any potential COI.
- Be Alert To Bias And Follow Guidelines For Accurate And Complete Reporting. “A case report is a narrative that describes, for medical, scientific or educational purposes, a medical problem experienced by one or more patients” as stated by the CARE (CAse REport) guidelines. A 2013 BMJ Case Report explained that: “The primary items of the checklist are title, key words, abstract, introduction, patient information, clinical findings, timeline, diagnostic assessment, therapeutic interventions, follow-up and outcomes, discussion, patient perspective and informed consent. We believe the implementation of the CARE (CAse REport) guidelines by medical journals will improve the completeness and transparency of published case reports and that the systematic aggregation of information from case reports will inform clinical study design, provide early signals of effectiveness and harms, and improve healthcare delivery.” For additional information regarding the CARE guidelines go to: http://www.equator-network.org/reporting-guidelines/care/
- Inform The Journal If You Subsequently Find Errors In Your Article. There is no time limit on an author’s responsibility to inform the journal in which his or her article was published that errors have been identified. Depending on the consequences of the error the Editor may decide to include a short Errata in the next print version and/or a permanent comment appended to the digital version of the journal. Only extreme cases will create the need for a full retraction of an article.
- Sign A Copyright Agreement. Failure for all authors of an accepted manuscript to sign a copyright agreement will result in their manuscript not going forward to production and ultimate publication. The copyright agreement protects both the author and the publisher from a third-party stealing the intellectual property submitted for publication.
- Continuing Medical Education (CME) Primary clinical and practice management articles, as well as key case reports, published in JUCM articles are the basis of Continuing Medical Education (CME) opportunities in each issue. If the editors determine that your accepted manuscript will be one of these articles, you will be asked to complete an additional disclosure form, which JUCM will submit to its CME accreditor on your behalf.
Corrections, Errata, and Retractions Policies
Corrections (also cited as corrigenda) are changes requested by authors to their articles at any point after acceptance. Requests for these changes should be sent directly to the Editor in Chief who will evaluate the impact of the change and what consequent action should be taken. Should the correction request be received prior to posting online or printing and be deemed appropriate, the correction(s) will be made at that time to the article. If corrections are requested after online and print publication, they will be made to the online version of the article with a mention at the end of the article. Corrections to the print article will be included in a notice labeled “Author Corrections” in the next issue subsequent to the correction being accepted by the Editor in Chief. If the Editor in Chief thinks that the requested corrections do not clarify, enhance, or otherwise improve the article, that decision will be communicated to the author(s) and no indication of the request or its contents will be included in either the print or online version of the Journal.Corrections may be requested by the author(s) or initiated by the Editor to address important issues or correct errors and omissions of consequence that arise after publication of an article. All corrections and retractions are subject to approval by the Editor and should bring new and directly relevant information and corrections that fix scientific facts. Minor corrections and additions will not be published. Readers who detect errors of consequence in the work of others should contact the corresponding author of that work.
Corrections must be submitted as new manuscripts by the Corresponding Author for publication in the “Addition/Correction” section of the Journal. The corresponding author should obtain approval from all coauthors prior to submitting or provide evidence that such approval has been solicited. The manuscript should include the original article title and author list, citation including DOI, and details of the correction. Concerns regarding errors in published articles can be submitted to [email protected].
Errata are the identification and correction of errors in an article made by the publisher at any stage in the editorial process. Most of these are highlighted to the author when found during the copy editing and/or proofing stages of publication. Ideally the author identifies and corrects these errors before final publication so that an accurate article is published online and in print. If publisher errors are found by the author post-publication they should be sent to the Editor in Chief who will ensure that a notice of Errata be immediately posted online and included in the very next print issue following receipt of the author’s notification.
Retractions of an accepted article which has been published in both the online and print versions of the Journal are made based on requests by the author, the publisher, or a third party but are ultimately published at the discretion of the Editor in Chief. The retraction of an article signifies that the contents should not be considered valid or used as the basis for future research or adopted for clinical practice. Retraction requests are based on a variety of reasons from errors in conclusions to gross misconduct (such as falsification of data) to plagiarism (or self-plagiarism).
Upon identification of the need for a retraction, the article is immediately removed from the online version of the journal and a Notice of Retraction will be published containing information about the reason for the retraction in the very next issue of the print journal following the determination. If a third party identified the need for a retraction the Editor in Chief may decide to acknowledge that person’s contribution to maintaining a high standard of accuracy in the JUCM.
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Copyright Policy
All manuscripts submitted to the JUCM are considered for publication on the condition that they have not been submitted to or published in another publication (in print or online). All manuscripts and reviews are submitted via the online content management system, Scholastica. The JUCM does not accept submissions through any other method.For a manuscript to be considered for publication, the author warrants that:
- (a) the manuscript is original (except for material in the public domain or as to which permission has been obtained from the copyright owner)
(b) neither the manuscript nor one with substantially similar content under the author’s name has been published or is being considered for publication elsewhere
(c) that the Author has identified in writing any material obtained from any source other than the Author and has obtained all permissions required for the inclusion and reproduction of such material
(d) the manuscript does not contain any libelous or otherwise infringe on any personal or proprietary right of any person or entity.
Neither the editorial staff, the Editor-In-Chief, or the Publisher, Stuart Williams, are responsible for any expression of opinion or statement of fact, all of which are published solely on reliability and integrity of the author (or authors) whose name is attached to the published article.
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Advertising Policies
Advertising submitted to the Journal of Urgent Care Medicine is reviewed by the Publisher prior to publication. JUCM has the right to reject any advertisement for any reason. Advertising should clearly identify the advertiser and the product or service being offered.Advertising should be clearly distinct from editorial content. Advertisements must not be deceptive or misleading or make false claims. Any advertisements that include indecent copy or contain negative content of a personal, racial, ethnic, medical, sexual orientation, or religious character will not be accepted. Advertising of any product or service deemed detrimental to the public health will be rejected upon receipt.
Products and services and their indicated uses must conform to the principles of acceptable medical practice. Alcoholic beverages and tobacco or cigarette-related products of any kind are not eligible for advertising in the JUCM. Acceptance of advertising should not be considered an endorsement or recommendation of any kind of the products or services being advertised. In addition, acceptance does not imply that JUCM has conducted an independent scientific review to validate any product’s safety, efficacy, or other claims.
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Archiving Policy
JUCM is dedicated to supporting perpetual access to the Journal’s contents to the extent that innovations in information technology allow. The Journal’s archive of all past issues can be accessed by all subscribers. Subscriptions are complimentary to all health care professionals working in urgent care settings. Readers of the JUCM have the option of entering a specific term in the SEARCH box on the JUCM’s homepage in order to go directly to a specific subject of interest in specific articles. This allows readers to search the entire archive without being subscribers. JUCM allows authors to deposit the official published version of their articles in an institutional repository or on their own websites immediately upon publication of the article online.BACK TO TOP
Questions about any of the policies mentioned above should be directed to the JUCM publication office to the attention of Stuart Williams via email at: [email protected]