Getting your research published: A guide
Support from your Library Service
Introduction
Publishing your research is an essential part of
professional practice and contributes to the evidence base in healthcare. This
guide, created by your Library and Knowledge Services team, provides practical
support and resources to help navigate the publication process.
1. Choosing
the Right Journal
·
Think
about which journals you and your colleagues read – If you attend a journal
club or reflective reading club, which journals are articles often picked from?
·
Your
professional body may have journals to consider – the Royal College of
Nursing (RCN)/ Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) may have suggestions
·
Who is
the audience of your work? Is your research clinical, academic, or policy
focused?
·
Is there
a pattern to the journals your reference in your work? Looking through your
own references, are there any commonly referenced journals?
· Check a journals scope – Does it publish studies like yours?
Library hints and tips:
There are tools online to help your choose a journal: Journal finder
(Elsevier), Jane (Journal/Author Name Estimator) or DOAJ (Directory of Open
Access Journals)
2.
Understanding Journal Metrics
·
Impact
factor - The impact factor (IF) or journal impact factor (JIF) is defined
as the total number of citations in the past year which were of items published
in the journal over the previous two years, divided by the number of “citable
items” published at the time. The IF may indicate the quality or significance
of a journal, but shouldn’t be considered without other factors. The
calculation averaged out any difference between individual papers so can be a
misleading representation of the journal as a whole.
3.
Avoiding Predatory Journals
·
What is a
predatory journal? - Predatory journals deceive authors by
claiming to provide peer review and editorial services but in
fact publishing anything submitted without proper scrutiny.
Predatory journals use a number of strategies to disguise their
true nature, however, with a few precautions and checks it is possible to
identify and avoid them.
·
Identifying
a predatory journal - A predatory journal/publisher may display one or more
of these characteristics:
§
A journal title which can be easily confused
with another journal or is misleading
§
Displays of unofficial impact factors
§
False claims of being indexed in major services
like PubMed or DOAJ
§
No clear information e.g. publisher address or
contact information, no editorial board listed, no information on the policies
of the journal, such as peer review, licensing and copyright, or charging
§
Spams researchers with many emails inviting
submissions,
§
Advertises very fast times from submission to
publication
§
Publishes out-of-scope articles
§
Publishes nonsense articles
§
No named editorial board or fake affiliations
§
Poor or non-existent editing of articles (many
spelling mistakes or very poor grammar)
Library hints and tips: We
can help you vet journals using Cabell’s Predatory Reports or Think. Check.
Submit. (www.thinkchecksubmit.org
)
4. Open
Access and APCs (Article Processing Charges)
·
Open
Access(OA) – OA publishing enables free and unrestricted access to the
research outputs from publicly-funded work. Open access allows all to read
published research papers as well as search and re-use the content of papers.
Pros
§
Articles and papers are more accessible
§
Articles have a wider reach
§
May increase citations
§
Often required by funders (e.g. NIHR)
Cons
§
It may involve the payment of an article
processing charge (APC) to the publisher so that the article is immediately
publicly accessible on a publisher’s website.
Library hints and tips:
see Peter
Suber, Open Access Overview (definition, introduction)
5.
Navigating Author Guidelines
·
Read the journals ‘Instructions for Authors’ before submitting
·
Pay attention to:
§
Word
count limits
§
Referencing
style
§
Structure
(e.g IMRAD- Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion)
§
Ethical
declarations and data sharing requirements
§
Number of
tables/ figures allowed
Library hints and tips:
we can help interpret complex submission guidelines and formatting requirements
6.
Manuscript Preparation, Preparing Cover Letters
and Responding to Revisions
·
Manuscript-
Follow the standard structure (title, abstract, main text, references, key
words). Use reporting guidelines (E.g. CONSORT,
PRISMA).
·
Cover
letter: brief, polite and professional- explain why the article fits the
journal and highlight key contributions
·
Revisions:
revisions aren’t uncommon so don’t be put off if you’re asked to revise your
work
§
Address all reviewer comments systematically
§
Use a response table to track changes
§
Be professional and polite, even when you
disagree
Library hits and tips:
Use the EQUATOR Network to find
the right reporting guideline. we can review cover letters and help structure
your response to reviewers
7. Authorship
and ICMJE Guidelines
·
Authorship should be based on:
§ 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 reviewing 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.
ICMJE
(International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) offers clear criteria
– consult it to avoid disputes.
Library hints and tips: we can help you locate guidance on ethical
authorship practices to resolve questions around acknowledgements Vs authorship
8.
Using AI tools for Support
·
How can
AI tools help with publishing?
§ Proof reading tools
§ Grammar checking tools
§ Reference formatting
·
Be cautious!: Always double-check AI- generated content
for accuracy. Be aware of copyright when using AI.
9.
How the
Library Can Help You
·
Your
library service is here to support you at every stage:
§ Literature
searching
§ Proof
reading search strategies
§ Journal
selection
§ 1:1
consultations
§ Help with cover letters, revisions and publication strategy
·
We have
created a Padlet which has links to useful tools and resources to support with your
publishing journey.
Please contact the
MTW Clinical Librarians via mtw-tr.clinical-librarians@nhs.net for support and training opportunities.
Acknowledgements
ICMJE
| Recommendations | Defining the Role of Authors and Contributors
finding-journals-to-publish.pdf
open
access guidance | Knowledge and Library Services
