MedicoMindsPro

The author(s) of any scientific manuscript would desire that their article should reach and be read by as wide an audience as possible. This is quite understandable, especially when it is an article based on an original study. Every researcher/author also knows that a very small percentage of articles submitted to medical journals eventually get published, Yet, thousands of articles do get published every year. As the world is moving more and more towards open access, the excitement of successful publication is even higher because open access opens up a huge opportunity for a wide reach. Hence, it becomes even more important that the journal selection is correct; many of the rejections are due to incorrect journal selection. Several factors need to be considered while selecting an appropriate journal for submission.

1. Scope of the journal – It is very important to read and understand the scope of a journal minutely. After reading the scope, you might have answers to many of the points covered below. Also, look at some of the recent issues to go through the kind of articles published.
2. Who is your target audience?- e.g., the article might be about a topic related to cardiology. But to whom is it directed? All cardiology articles might not be directed towards cardiologists. There might be an article that talks about the need for early referral in certain types of cases. General practitioners (GPs) might be the more appropriate target for such an article as they are the first point of contact for the patients, and the referrals originate from the GPs. It might not be a very good idea to submit such an article to a leading journal like the Lancet, as not many GPs might be reading the Lancet. There are journals specifically focused towards the GPs. Though Lancet might have a wider reach and publishes articles on all therapy areas, it might reject an article on such a topic based on the breakup of subscribers of the journal. Even if the article does get published in Lancet, the number of readers might be low. It might have wider readability in a journal focused on GPs. Hence, the author needs to be clear about who is the target audience for the article.
3. What is unique about the article? e.g., a study that brings out the cost of treatment using modality A vs modality B in India might be of less interest to an international audience, especially in countries where insurance coverage is high. Moreover, the cost of treatment varies significantly based on a lot of local factors. Such an article published in an Indian journal might have a wider reach. In contrast, a study that shows an additional/new benefit/dimension of a disease or treatment on which there are few publications would appeal to an international audience, and a journal with high international reach would be a good target.
4. What is likely to be the immediate impact on clinical practice? – e.g., an article that shows how lack of regular follow-up and exercise during COVID-19 led to an increase in blood glucose levels and HbA1c would be of interest to academicians, researchers, and policymakers but bring little change in the day-to-day practice of a clinician. Hence, it could be a good fit even in a journal directed towards such an academic audience. In contrast, an article about how certain types of rehabilitation exercises have better outcomes after orthopaedic surgery and incur no additional equipment cost is likely to attract the attention of clinicians and the recommendations are likely to be immediately tried in clinical practice. Such an article would be a better fit in a journal focused on clinical practice.
5. Impact factor of a journal: What is the impact factor (IF)? I quote from a published article (PMID: 25191134), ‘Impact factor is commonly used to evaluate the relative importance of a journal within its field and to measure the frequency with which the “average article” in a journal has been cited in a particular time period. A journal which publishes more review articles will get highest IFs.’
6. Is the journal indexed? – An indexed journal is one that is indexed in various databases. Being indexed increases the chances of being discovered by search engines like google. When a user is searching for articles on a particular topic, those published in indexed journals show up higher. Hence, an indexed journal is a rational choice.

7. Time taken for review- some journals do mention the average time within which they will convey the outcome of the review of your article. However, most do not, and the wait can stretch for months. Usually, journals with high IF do take a longer time, though there are many exceptions. You might want to wait or submit to a journal with a lower IF.

8. Review guidelines- some journals require the author(s) to suggest the names of a few reviewers, although the journal might not necessarily go with the authors’ recommendations. There are also prespecified criteria about who can be suggested as reviewers. If you are planning to submit your manuscript to such journals, you should be able to come up with reviewers’ names.

9. Cost- There are journals that do not charge for publishing; there are others who charge only if the manuscript is accepted for publishing, while some others charge even for reviewing the manuscript. This call about the choice has to be taken by the authors and/or the sponsors.

I hope this article helps you in deciding on the journal for your next manuscript. Best wishes for the publication!!