Human Subjects Research
The authors are required to declare if their experiments involving human subjects were conducted following the best ethical standards in place as described in the Declaration of Helsinki and Independent Data and Safety Monitoring Committee ( IDMC). It is pertinent to note that the use of any information that can lead to the identification of human subjects is strictly prohibited. Likewise, reports of experiments should state the institutional or national standards that were followed during experiments. The authors should obtain ethical clearance before starting any study from the relevant review board (institutional/provincial/national bioethics committee). It is mandatory to provide information regarding the ethical Review Committee or equivalent ethics committee's name and approval/certificate number in the manuscripts. The editorial board/reviewers might also judge the article regarding ethical issues despite approvals by Ethical Review Committees.

Informed Consent
Researchers are expected to safeguard the rights of the study participants, and they must not be used as a means to an end. Researchers must strive to empower their study participants regarding their participation in the study. Therefore, written informed consent must be obtained from all the study participants until otherwise waiver has been granted by the Ethical Review Committee. Taking informed consent is a whole process involving :(1) delivery of information in a comprehensible form regarding study title, objectives, methodology, risks, and benefits, and confidentiality; (2) comprehension by the study participants, which requires delivery of information in plain language and understanding and, (3) lastly, allowing them to participate voluntarily in the study.

Written informed consent must be obtained from all the study participants or legal guardians/parents (in the case of minors). Authors must state in the manuscript how the informed consent was obtained from participants of different age groups, gender, vulnerable population (e.g., children, pregnant females, prisoners, unconscious patients).  Formal assent might also be taken in case of minors (9 -16 years) in addition to informed consent from the parents/legal guardians. The main components of informed consent include:

            >> Study information
            >> Purpose of the study
            >> Methodology
            >> Confidentiality
            >> Possible benefits / risks or discomforts
            >> Financial considerations
            >> Treatment alternatives
            >> Right to refuse to participate and withdraw from the study
            >> Contact details of the researcher
            >> Undertaking by the research participant

In the case of mentally incapacitated patients, informed consent might be taken from their immediate relatives or legal guardians. In community-based studies, researchers should ensure that individuals agree to participate in research without coercion or undue inducements from community leaders or representatives. Informed consent preferably is obtained in written form. However, if it cannot be obtained, the other forms (audio/video) of it are obtained and witnessed. The Journal reserves the right to ask the authors to submit copies of the informed consent if required.

In situations where it is impossible to take informed consent due to some physical and mental conditions, the reason for not obtaining informed consent must be stated in the manuscript, and approval must be taken from Ethical Review Committee. Please read the Declaration of Helsinki for further information.

Research Involving Animals
Studies involving animals (lab-reared or non-lab-reared, vertebrates or invertebrates) must adhere to nationally/globally accepted animal care and welfare standards. The studies involving animals must be approved by Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) or equivalent. The authors must mention such approvals in the methodology section, mentioning the approving body's name and certificate number with the date of its issuance. The Journal reserves the right to ask authors for additional information regarding experiments involving animals if required. It is desirable to briefly mention the procedures and institutional/national/international guidelines they followed regarding animal welfare.

The Journal will reject any manuscripts where there is enough reason to believe that the animals have been subjected to unnecessary or avoidable pain/distress. Animals should only be used for experimentation if it is essential and no alternatives are available. Please read the International Association of Veterinary Editors' Consensus Author Guidelines on Animal Ethics and Welfare for further information.

Publication Misconduct
This section is dedicated to issues related to publication ethics other than plagiarism which is discussed in detail in the next section. In reporting publication misconduct, the case will be dealt with according to Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines. The corresponding author will be contacted for an explanation given the available evidence. The article will be processed for correction or retraction according to the severity of the misconduct. In case of no or unsatisfactory response from the authors, the manuscript will be dropped from consideration if unpublished and retracted if published. Due notice of retraction will be given in print and on the website. The authors might be blacklisted for further submissions and considerations at the Journal. The authors' institutional Head might also be informed of the action in such a case. Plagiarism and other publication misconduct like fabrication (text or figures), falsification, a duplicate submission, redundant publication, selective and misleading reporting, selective and misleading referencing will be liable to strict action.

Plagiarism Policy
The editors are committed to observing zero tolerance for unethical practices and plagiarism. The JFJMU follows the guidelines of ICMJE (www.icmje.org) and the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (www.hec.gov.pk). All the manuscripts submitted for publication will be screened for similarity index through Turnitin software and immediately rejected in case of plagiarism. In case of any complaint regarding plagiarism in the published article, a notice will be served to the authors demanding an explanation on the matter in the stipulated time duration. In case of an unsatisfactory response, the published article will be retracted, and the retraction will be published on the journal website.

It is the authors' responsibility to apprise themselves of plagiarism in any form, including paraphrasing and self-plagiarism. Manuscripts submitted to JFJMU can be sent to HEC, other medical journals' editors, and international agencies for authentication of originality. The disciplinary committee of JFJMU would deal with cases of plagiarism and comprise the staff, editors, and the Chief Editor or his representative. For a plagiarized article in processing, the identification of actions will lead to the dropping of an article from further processing/ consideration of publication. The author will be required to give an explanation on demand. In case of an unsatisfactory reply, the matter will be referred to the disciplinary committee to decide the course of action. The allegedly plagiarized article will be temporarily retracted from publication for published articles. The author will be served an explanation demand. In case of non-response in the stipulated time or unsatisfactory explanation, the article will be permanently retracted, and the author will be on the watch. HEC, PMC, and the author's institute will also be notified. In case of multiple submissions, other editors will also be informed. The author(s) will have to provide documentary proof of retraction from publication if such a defense is pleaded. Those claiming intellectual/idea or data theft of an article must provide documentary proof in their claim.