The ICME Journal of Laboratory Medicine follows a rigorous, transparent, and structured editorial workflow designed to safeguard research integrity, scientific quality, confidentiality, and ethical publishing. Every submission undergoes an impartial editorial assessment informed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices, the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and the transparency principles reflected in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) criteria.
Authors submit manuscripts through the official journal portal and confirm that:
The Editor-in-Chief or a designated editor conducts a preliminary assessment of:
Submissions undergo similarity screening using appropriate detection software, such as iThenticate or Turnitin. Similarity reports are interpreted by the editorial team and are not used as the sole basis for a decision. Manuscripts containing suspected plagiarism, inappropriate text recycling, duplicate publication, or other integrity concerns may be returned to the authors, rejected, or investigated in accordance with the journal's policies and relevant COPE guidance.
Manuscripts that pass the initial assessment are normally assigned to at least two independent reviewers with relevant subject expertise. The identities of authors and reviewers are concealed from one another to the extent reasonably possible. Reviews are conducted confidentially, objectively, and free from inappropriate influence.
Authors submitting a revised manuscript must provide a detailed, point-by-point response explaining how each reviewer and editor comment has been addressed. The Editor-in-Chief or handling editor evaluates the revision and may return it to the reviewers when further expert assessment is required before issuing the final editorial decision.
Accepted articles undergo copyediting, technical formatting, JATS XML preparation, and PDF proof production. The corresponding author reviews the galley proofs and communicates essential corrections before the article is approved for publication.
Following final production approval, the article is published online as freely accessible open access content with the following features, where applicable:
The ICME Journal of Laboratory Medicine is committed to ethical publishing practices informed by the COPE Core Practices and to maintaining editorial independence, fairness, confidentiality, and transparency throughout the editorial and peer-review process.
Disclaimer: Peer review and editorial quality-control procedures are intended to assess the scientific quality and integrity of submitted work. Authors remain responsible for the accuracy, authenticity, and reliability of their data, analyses, conclusions, and expressed opinions.
Portal submission, ethics approval & conflict-of-interest disclosure
Scope assessment & reporting-guideline review
Similarity assessment & editorial verification
Double-blind review by at least two subject experts
Reviewer recommendations & editorial assessment
Point-by-point response & final editorial decision
Copyediting, JATS XML & publication proofs
Immediate Gold Open Access publication