Article Corrections, Retractions, Expressions of Concern, and Removals
Archives of Hospital Medicine (eISSN: XXXX-XXXX, pISSN: XXXX-XXXX)
1.0 Preamble: The Integrity of the Scholarly Record
The Archives of Hospital Medicine, published by Yasrebi Hospital, recognizes its profound responsibility to maintain the integrity and completeness of the scholarly record. We attach the highest importance to preserving trust in the authority of every published article. As a general principle, articles that have been published shall remain extant, exact, and unaltered to ensure a permanent and historical record of scientific transactions.
However, to uphold these very principles, circumstances may arise where the scientific record requires amendment. This policy outlines the journal's formal procedures for correcting, retracting, or, in exceptional cases, removing published content. These procedures are designed to be transparent, consistent, and aligned with best practices established by committees such as the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). All actions taken will be permanently linked to the original article to ensure full transparency for the scientific community.
2.0 Overarching Principles and Governance
- Editorial Independence: The Editor-in-Chief is solely and independently responsible for decisions regarding the publication, correction, or retraction of articles, guided by the journal's editorial board and constrained by legal requirements.
- Permanence of the Record: The scholarly record is a permanent document. Therefore, any change is made via a formal, cross-linked notice, not by covert alteration of the original work.
- Collaborative Assessment: Decisions regarding corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern are made by the Editor-in-Chief, often in consultation with the editorial team, peer reviewers, and/or our Research Integrity & Publishing Ethics Center of Expertise.
3.0 Author-Initiated Corrections
Authors who discover a significant error in their published article have an ethical obligation to promptly alert the journal.
- Procedure: The corresponding author must contact the journal's editorial office as soon as possible, providing a detailed description of the error and, if applicable, the corrected text or data.
- Assessment: The Editor-in-Chief or a designated representative will review the proposed correction, which may be sent for further peer review. The editor will determine the most appropriate mechanism to correct the scientific record.
4.0 Types of Notices and Their Applications
4.1 Corrigendum
A Corrigendum is issued to correct an error or omission made by the authors that does not impact the overall integrity, results, or conclusions of the article.
- Examples: Mislabeling of a figure, an incorrect unit of measurement that does not alter the findings, an omitted funding statement.
- Process: The Corrigendum is drafted by the authors, requires agreement from all authors, and is permanently linked to the original article.
4.2 Erratum
An Erratum is issued to correct an error introduced by the publisher or editorial staff during the production process.
- Examples: A formatting error that affects readability, a missing section introduced during typesetting.
- Process: The journal publisher issues the Erratum, which is permanently linked to the original article.
4.3 Editor’s Note
An Editor’s Note is used to alert readers to issues that do not warrant a correction or retraction but where the editor believes caution is advised.
- Applicable Circumstances:
- To report unethical behavior in the peer review process (e.g., coerced citation) that did not affect the article's scientific integrity.
- To report the final outcome of a resolved concern that no longer requires an Expression of Concern.
- To note an unresolved authorship dispute where the validity of the findings is not in doubt.
- Process: Issued at the discretion of the Editor-in-Chief.
4.4 Expression of Concern
An Expression of Concern alerts the community to serious, but not yet conclusively proven, doubts about the reliability, integrity, or ethical standing of a published work.
- Applicable Circumstances:
- Inconclusive evidence of unreliability or misconduct that is under investigation but unresolved.
- Belief that an investigation would not be fair, impartial, or conclusive.
- An investigation is underway, but a judgment will be delayed significantly.
- Nature: An Expression of Concern may be temporary or permanent. If temporary, it will be replaced by a final notice (e.g., Retraction, Editor's Note of exoneration) upon conclusion of the investigation.
5.0 Article Withdrawal (Articles in Press Only)
Articles in Press (AiP) are early versions of accepted articles that have not yet been published in their final version. An AiP may be withdrawn prior to final publication.
- Grounds for Withdrawal:
- Publication due to an editorial or production error.
- Discovery that the AiP is a duplicate of another published article.
- Process: The content is removed and replaced with a notice stating the article has been withdrawn, with a link to this policy.
6.0 Article Retraction
A Retraction is a mechanism for correcting the literature and alerting readers to articles that contain seriously flawed or erroneous content such that their findings and conclusions cannot be relied upon. Retractions are also used in cases of severe ethical breaches.
6.1 Grounds for Retraction
The journal will consider retracting an article or AiP where there is:
- Clear evidence of unreliable findings due to major error (e.g., miscalculation, experimental error), fabrication, or falsification (e.g., image manipulation).
- Plagiarism or redundant publication without proper attribution or justification.
- Unethical research conduct (e.g., without required ethical approval or informed consent).
- Infringement of legal rights (e.g., copyright, libel, privacy).
- Compromised peer review or systematic manipulation of the editorial process.
- Failure to disclose a major competing interest that would have affected interpretation.
- Evidence of authorship for sale or citation manipulation.
- Any other breach of publishing ethics that causes the editor to lose confidence in the work's validity or integrity.
6.2 Best Practice for Retraction Notices
In accordance with international standards, a retraction will be executed as follows:
- A notice titled “Retraction: [Article Title]” is published, signed by the editor and, where possible, the authors.
- The notice is paginated and listed in a subsequent issue's table of contents.
- The online version of the article is permanently linked to the retraction notice.
- The PDF of the article is retained but watermarked on every page as "Retracted."
- The HTML version of the article is removed.
7.0 Article Removal: Legal and Health Risks
Article removal is an action of last resort, taken only in exceptional circumstances where the presence of the article poses a significant risk.
- Grounds for Removal:
- The article is defamatory or infringes upon legal rights, and retraction is an insufficient remedy.
- The article is, or is expected to be, the subject of a court order requiring its removal.
- The article, if acted upon, poses a serious and immediate health risk.
- Process: The article text is replaced with a screen indicating its removal for legal or public health reasons. The article's metadata (title, authors) remains to ensure the scholarly record's transparency.
8.0 Article Replacement
In cases where a published article poses a serious health risk, the authors may retract the flawed version and replace it with a corrected one.
- Process: The standard retraction procedure is followed. The retraction notice will explicitly state that the article has been replaced and will provide a direct link to the corrected, republished version, along with a clear document history.
9.0 Official Archives
To preserve the historical and legal integrity of the scientific record, all article versions, including those that have been retracted or removed, are permanently retained in journal’s official, secure digital archives. This ensures that a complete and unalterable history of all scholarly transactions is available.
