Peer Review Policy
PEER REVIEW PROCESS
All research articles, and most other article types, published in Springer journals/proceedings undergo peer review.
Initial evaluation of Research Paper: All submitted papers are first evaluated by the Journal editors from the specialty physiotherapy. The technical aspects of articles are checked by editors. Also, editors check whether the articles match the objectives of the journals. Editors can decide at this stage whether to accept or reject the submitted papers. Manuscripts are rejected if they are not fitting in guidelines, with some scientific flaws, have poor grammar or English language, or they are outside the aims and scope of the VIMS Journal of Physical Therapy. The articles which meet the criteria are sent at least 2 experts in the field of physiotherapy for review.
Type of Peer Review : Double-blind reviewing of all articles is conducted wherein, both the reviewer and author remain anonymous throughout the process.
Selection of the Reviewers: Reviewers are selected based on the Set criteria of the Journal. They are matched to the specialty of the paper submitted, according to their expertise. Preference is given to experienced teachers in Physical therapy with vast research experience.
Anonymity of the reviewers: It will be maintained by the journal office from the authors. However, reviewers should also take the precaution to avoid getting identified in the comments written by authors for clarification of the work. Reviewers can disclose themselves for being a reviewer of the journal but not for specific manuscripts, publicly.
Review Reports: All reviewers are expected to complete the review process in the stipulated time and submit the report online through their login id. Reviewers are asked to evaluate whether the manuscript: - Is original - Is methodologically sound - Follows appropriate ethical guidelines - Has results that are clearly presented and support the conclusions - Correctly references previous relevant work and the possibility of plagiarism.
Final Decision: A final decision to accept or reject the research paper will be sent to the author along with any recommendations made by the reviewers. The editor plays an important role in decision-making as the reports are received by editors too.
Editor’s Role Reviewers send their decisions to the editor, who is responsible for the final decision to accept or reject the article.
Review Policy
Manuscripts submitted in VIMS Journal of Physical Therapy first screened by editorial board members, for their eligibility for a particular section (Editorial/ Original article/ Case Report/ Review article). If appropriate, then manuscripts will be undergone a plagiarism check, by Urkund plagiarism check software and as per UGC (promotion of academic integrity and prevention of plagiarism in higher educational institutions) Regulations, 2018.
The manuscript will be rejected if not written according to the author's guidelines or journal aims & scope or not fulfilling the acceptable plagiarism criteria.
After preliminary screening article is sent for peer review who is an expert in the respective subject, it is the double-blinded review process, in which the author identities are concealed from the reviewers, and vice versa, throughout the review process.
The submission of reviewers will be discussed by editorial board members before deciding on acceptance/ revision or rejection of a manuscript.
