Complaints and Appeals Procedure
Policy Statement:
The Archives of Hospital Medicine (eISSN: XXXX-XXXX, pISSN: XXXX-XXXX) (Arch Hosp Med) takes all complaints and appeals regarding the editorial process, published content, or potential breaches of ethics seriously. We are committed to addressing grievances promptly, fairly, and confidentially.
Process for Submitting a Complaint:
Complaints should be directed in writing to the journal's Complaints Officer, via the dedicated email address: ahospitalmed@gmail.com
Procedure:
- Acknowledgment: The Complaints Officer will acknowledge receipt of the complaint within 5 business days.
- Assessment: The complaint will be assessed, which may involve consultation with the relevant Editor-in-Chief, Associate Editors, or the full Editorial Board.
- Investigation: A fair investigation will be conducted. The party against whom the complaint is made will be given an opportunity to respond.
- Resolution: The Complaints Officer will aim to provide a substantive response and proposed resolution within 30 business days. If the matter is complex, the complainant will be kept informed of the progress.
- Escalation: If the complainant is dissatisfied with the initial resolution, they may appeal the decision by requesting a review by an independent arbiter appointed by the journal's Publisher.
Scope: This procedure covers complaints about the peer review process, editorial decisions, published errors, authorship disputes, and allegations of research misconduct.
