Research Ethics & Informed Consent

Journal policies · Author instructions

Authors are responsible for conducting research ethically and in accordance with applicable institutional and national requirements. Ethical approval must precede the research activities for which it is required.

Human participants

State the reviewing ethics committee’s full name, approval reference and approval date in the manuscript. Explain how informed consent was obtained. Where an authorised committee granted an exemption or waiver, identify the committee and explain that decision; authors must not declare their own exemption. Research involving vulnerable groups must describe relevant safeguards.

Consent for publication

Written consent for publication is required for potentially identifiable patient information, images and case reports. Research participation consent is distinct from publication consent. Remove unnecessary identifiers and confirm publication consent in the manuscript. Do not upload signed consent forms containing personal identifiers with the public article; retain them securely and provide verification if requested.

Animals and other regulated research

Animal studies must identify the approving committee, approval details, welfare standards and measures to minimise suffering. Describe relevant permits for regulated materials or field research. Editors may request supporting documentation.

Clinical trials and transparency

Prospectively register interventional clinical trials in a publicly accessible recognised registry before enrolling the first participant. Give the registry, registration number, date and access link. Explain any retrospective registration openly; it does not replace prospective registration. Include a data-sharing statement and report deviations from the protocol.

Missing or unreliable ethical documentation may lead to rejection or investigation. Concerns may be referred to the responsible institution. See also the policies on misconduct, data availability and corrections.

Policy enquiries: editor@jmhmr.com · Updated 1 October 2026.