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Submission Guidelines

1. Article Types and Review Process

IDPJ accepts a wide range of article types that reflect the interdisciplinary and inclusive nature of the journal. Each submission must align with one of the following categories and meet the associated word limit.

Peer-Reviewed Articles (Double-Blind Peer-Review)

  • Research Articles (up to 5,000 words):
    Full-length original studies using empirical or qualitative methods to address infectious disease policy questions.
  • Review Articles (up to 5,000 words):
    Systematic, scoping, or narrative reviews of the literature relevant to infectious disease governance and policy.
  • Brief Reports (up to 2,000 words):
    Short studies or pilot data presentations that offer novel insights or early findings.
  • Case Studies (up to 2,000 words):
    Real-world analyses of public health or policy interventions with transferable lessons.
  • Policy Briefs (up to 1,500 words):
    Evidence-based summaries targeting policymakers, offering actionable recommendations.

Editorially Reviewed Articles (Internal Review)

  • Commentaries & Perspectives (up to 1,000 words):
    Expert reflections on current trends, debates, or experiences.
  • Comments (up to 1,000 words):
    Responses to previously published IDPJ articles. APCs waived.
  • Editorials (up to 3,000 words):
    Commissioned opinion pieces.
  • Position Papers (up to 3,000 words):
    Formal institutional or coalition statements supported by evidence and analysis.
  • Conference Abstracts (Up to 500 words):
    From Infectious Disease Alliance (IDA) events, summarizing research or policy work relevant to the aims and scope of the journal and event.

2. Submission Process

Submit manuscripts through the IDPJ online submission system:

Submissions are accepted on a rolling basis.

For technical or editorial inquiries, contact:
✉️ journal@idpj.org

3. Manuscript Structure and Required Components

A complete manuscript must include:

  • Title Page:
    Full article title (Avoid abbreviations), names and affiliations of all authors, and the corresponding author’s contact information.
  • Abstract or Executive Summary (max. 250 words):
    Summary of background, methods, results, and implications (no references or figures). Required for peer-reviewed articles. Executive summaries may be used for commentaries or policy briefs.
  • Keywords:
    5–8 keywords that capture the main themes.
  • Main Text:
    Structure depends on the article type.
    • Research and Review Articles: Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion.
    • Policy Briefs: Background, Issue, Recommendations.
    • Case Studies: Background, Case Description, Outcomes, Lessons Learned
    • Commentaries & Perspectives: Introduction, Discussion, Conclusion (optional).
    • Position Papers: Background, Position Statement, Evidence, Implications.

Note: Authors may adapt these based on their needs, but clarity and purpose must be preserved.

  • Acknowledgments (optional):
    Recognize contributions not qualifying for authorship.
  • References:
    Vancouver style (see Section 7).
  • Supporting Information (if applicable):
    Tables, figures, or appendices submitted separately.

Note: Commentaries and Editorials may omit abstracts. Position Papers and Policy Briefs may include Executive Summaries in lieu of abstracts.

4. Formatting and Style Requirements

  • Language:
    IDPJ requires submitted manuscripts to meet international English language standards to be considered for publication. Please write your text in English (American or British usage is accepted, but not a mixture of these). Authors who feel their English language manuscript may require editing to eliminate possible grammatical or spelling errors and to conform to correct scientific English may wish to use a Language Editing service. Please see the links below for Language Editing Services. 

https://webshop.elsevier.com/language-editing/ 

https://www.editage.com/services/english-editing 

https://secure.authorservices.springernature.com/en/researcher/submit/get-started 

Note: Use of these services does not guarantee acceptance and is not required for submission.

  • Font and Layout:
    Times New Roman or Arial, size 12, double-spaced, single-column, 1-inch margins.
  • Headings:
    Use up to three levels of headings with consistent formatting.
  • Abbreviations:
    Define on first use. Provide a glossary if necessary.
  • Pagination:
    Include page numbers in the footer of every page.
  • File Format:
    Submit manuscripts in .doc or .docx. Do not submit PDFs for text files.

5. Tables and Figures

  • Tables:
    Insert after the first citation within the manuscript. Use sequential numbering and brief titles. Large tables (>2 pages) should be submitted as supplementary files. Tables should be self-explanatory, and the data they contain must not be duplicated in the text or figures.

Note: Tables embedded as Excel files within the manuscript are NOT accepted. 

  • Figures:
     Submit separately in high resolution. Include descriptive captions and cite in order.
  • Accepted File Formats:
    .jpeg, .png, .tiff, .pdf, .ppt (single slide), or Word files.
  • Resolution:
    Minimum 300 DPI for all images. Avoid low-quality screenshots.

* We are an inclusive journal, and we ask that all submissions be in line with our inclusive language policy. When preparing your manuscript for submission, take a mindful approach towards personal biases and a concerted effort to limit their influence. Authors should remove any suggestion or implication of superiority or inferiority of one person over another based on age, gender, race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, disability, religion, or socio-economic class. We ask authors to use inclusive language practices and awareness of diversity, equity, and inclusion in their research and keep it at the forefront during the composition of their findings. 

6. Declarations and Ethical Compliance

All submissions must comply with the IDPJ Ethical Authorship Guidelines. Authors must include the following declarations in their submission:

  • Conflicts of Interest: Declare any potential conflicts or include the statement.
  • Funding Statement: Indicate whether funding was received and describe the role of the funder.
  • Ethical Approval: For studies involving human subjects, provide IRB/REC approval details and informed consent procedures.
  • Data Availability: Include a data availability statement and repository link, if applicable.
  • AI Use: Disclose any use of AI in writing or analysis, with appropriate attribution.

Templates and examples are provided in the IDPJ Ethical Authorship Guidelines.

7. Referencing Style

IDPJ uses the Vancouver referencing style (numerical, sequential citation). Number references in the order they appear in the text. Enclose each citation in round brackets on the same line as the text, before any punctuation, with a space before the bracket (1).

Examples:

Books 

Author surname Initial(s). Title: subtitle. Edition (if it is not the first edition). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Cooke A. A guide to finding quality information on the Internet: selection and evaluation strategies. 2nd ed. London: Library Association Publishing; 2001.

Two to six authors:

First author surname Initial(s), second author surname Initial(s), third author surname Initials. Title: subtitle. Edition (if it is not the first edition). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Feldman RS, Meyer JS, Quenzer LF. The American Psychiatric Press textbook of psychopharmacology. 2nd ed. Washington DC: American Psychiatric Association; 1998.

Seven or more authors/editors:

If there are 7 or more authors/editors, only the first 6 are listed followed by et al.

First author surname Initial(s), second author surname Initial(s), third author surname Initial(s), fourth author surname Initial(s), fifth author surname Initial(s), sixth author surname Initial(s), et al., editors.  Title: subtitle. Edition (if it is not the first edition). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Fauci AS, Braunwald E, Isselbacher KJ, Wilson JD, Martin JB, Kasper DL, et al., editors. Harrison's principles of internal medicine. 14th ed. New York: McGraw Hill; 1998.

Book with organisation as author:

SCONUL Advisory Committee on Information Literacy. Learning outcomes and information literacy. London: SCONUL; 2004.

Edited book:

Editor(s) surname Initial(s), editor(s). Title: subtitle. Edition (if it is not the first edition). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Ennis F, editor. Infrastructure provision and the negotiating process. Aldershot: Ashgate; 2003.

Editors should have editor or editors after their name or list of names. If there are no authors or editors given, the title should be listed first, followed by place of publication.

Conference proceedings

Individual conference paper

Author(s) Initial(s). Title of contribution. In: Editor(s) surname Initial(s). editor(s). Title of conference proceedings, date, place of conference. Place of publication: publisher; Year. p. page numbers.

Nelmes G. Container port automation. In : Corke P., Sukkarieh S. editors. Field and service robotics: results of the 5th international conference, 29-31 July 2005, Port Douglas. Berlin: Springer; 2006. p. 3-8.

If conference proceedings are published in a journal, the article/contribution should be cited as for a journal article.

If the proceedings have been published as chapters in a book, treat the entire proceedings as a book, and individual presentations as a book chapter. Add details of the conference to the book title.

Conference proceedings as a whole

Editor(s) surname Initial(s). editor(s). Title of conference proceedings, date, place of conference. Place of publication: publisher; Year.

Corke P., Sukkarieh S. editors. Field and service robotics: results of the 5th international conference, 29-31 July 2005, Port Douglas. Berlin: Springer; 2006
Journal article

Journal article (print)

Author(s) surname Initial(s). Title of article. Abbreviated title of journal. Year of publication;volume number(issue number):page numbers.

Meric F, Bernstam EV, Mirza NQ, Hunt KK, Ames FC, Ross M I, et al. Breast cancer on the world wide web: cross sectional survey of quality of information and popularity of websites. BMJ. 2002;324(7337):577-81.

Journal article (electronic)

Author(s) surname Initial(s). Title of article. Abbreviated title of journal [online]. Year of publication;volume number(issue number):page numbers. [Accessed date]. Available from: URL

Ross CTF. A conceptual design of an underwater vehicle. Ocean engineering [online]. 2006;33(16):2087-2104. [Accessed 6 July 2007]. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/

When citing online journal articles, it is now widely preferred to include a DOI (Direct Object Identifier) where available rather than a URL.

De Pinto M, Jelacic J, Edwards WT. Very-low-dose ketamine for the management of pain and sedation in the ICU. Acute Pain [online]. 2008;10(2):100. [Accessed 8 September 2008]. Available from:<doi:10.1016/j.acpain.2008.05.023>

Electronic journal articles 

Author’s Surname INITIALS. Title of article. Title of journal (abbr) [Internet]. Date of publication [Date cited];volume number(issue):pages. Available from: URL

Hulka BS, Stark AT. Breast cancer: cause and prevention. Lancet [Internet]. 1995 Sep 30 [cited 2022 Nov 22];346(8979):883-7. Available from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673695927131

Abood S. Quality improvement initiative in nursing homes: the ANA acts in an advisory role. Am J Nurs [Internet]. 2002 Jun [cited 2018 Sep 12];102(6):23. Available from: https://www.jstor.org/stable/3522839

Li Y, Li S, Meng X, Gan R-Y, Zhang J-J Li, H-B. Dietary natural products for prevention and treatment of breast cancer. Nutrients [Internet]. 2017 Jul 8 [cited 2022 Nov 14]; 9(7): [38 p.]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5537842/pdf/nutrients-09-00728.pdf

Electronic Book

Author’s Surname INITIALS. Book Title [Internet]. Edition/version. Place of publication: Publisher; Date of original publication [Date cited]. Available from: URL.

Foley KM, Gelband H, editors. Improving palliative care for cancer [Internet]. Washington: National Academy Press; 2001 [cited 2002 Jul 9]. Available from: https://www.nap.edu/catalog/10149/improving-palliative-care-for-cancer.

Website

Author(s)/Organisation. Title of webpage [Internet]. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of original publication OR Year of Copyright [updated year month day; cited year month day]. Available from: URL.

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Antiplatelet treatment: management [Internet]. London: NICE; c2018 [updated 2018 Jun; cited 2018 Sep 28]. Available from: https://cks.nice.org.uk/antiplatelet-treatment.

8. Submission Checklist

Before submitting, ensure:

✅ Manuscript follows structure and article-type requirements
✅ File is formatted correctly (.doc/.docx/.rtf)
✅ Abstract or Executive Summary is included if required
✅ Figures are submitted separately in accepted formats
✅ Tables are embedded and numbered
✅ All ethical declarations are included
✅ Vancouver style is used for references
✅ Files are named clearly (e.g., Surname_IDPJ_Manuscript.docx, Surname_Figure1.png)

9. Licensing and Open Access Policy

All IDPJ articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). Authors retain copyright.

Article Processing Charges (APCs):

  • High-Income Countries: €500
  • Middle-Income Countries: €250
  • Low-Income Countries: €100 (waivers available on request)

Infectious Disease Alliance (IDA) members and sponsors may qualify for full or partial APC waivers under IDPJ’s sponsorship framework.