Editorial Policies

This peer-reviewed/indexed journal is designed to meet the continuing education needs of practising professionals. Under the Copyright Acts, the senior or corresponding author must accompany each manuscript with a signed copyright transfer statement. Author(s) will be consulted, whenever possible, regarding republication of material.

The journal prioritises publishing high-quality evidence-based scientific research articles to inform clinical practice and advance scientific knowledge in all Acute and General Internal Medicine fields. Manuscripts reporting randomised controlled trials, extensive prospective cohort studies, methodologically robust systematic reviews, and meta-analyses will be given publication priority, as these study designs provide the most reliable evidence for determining causality, efficacy, and safety of interventions. Smaller studies, case series, audits and case reports, while valuable for hypothesis generation or highlighting rare phenomena, will generally be considered for publication only if they present particularly novel or impactful insights. This approach ensures that the journal maintains a high scientific rigour and relevance for its readership. The Editor-in-Chief retains the authority to accept or reject any submission at any stage of the review process.

Use of Generative AI and AI-Assisted Technologies

Authors must disclose the use of any generative AI or AI-assisted technologies (e.g. ChatGPT, Grammarly, etc.) in the writing or preparation of the manuscript. Such tools must be transparently documented, including the tool’s name and the nature of its contribution. Authors are fully responsible for the content’s integrity, originality, and accuracy and should not list AI tools as authors. Disclosure should be included in the manuscript and on the Declaration of Competing Interests form.

The journal will feature:

Research Articles:

Research articles where the subject matter is relevant to acute medicine are encouraged. Articles must not exceed 3000 words, with up to 5 tables, graphs and diagrams. Research submissions should be accompanied by a statement indicating whether ethical committee approval was granted, where relevant.

Case Reports:

We will only consider case reports that deliver a clear and high-impact educational message specifically relevant to physicians working in acute medicine. Submissions must:

• Be directly applicable to the acute medical setting
• Offer substantial insight beyond standard clinical knowledge
• Highlight decision-making, diagnostic uncertainty, or management challenges with the potential to change or reinforce practice

Unusual or rare presentations alone are no longer sufficient for publication unless they carry significant clinical learning.

All case reports must:

• Begin with a clearly defined ‘Teaching Point’ (1–2 sentences) at the start of the manuscript
• Include relevant images (e.g. ECGs, scans, photos) wherever possible
• Present lab results as a structured table
• Contain a concise Discussion section focused on the teaching message and literature context (usually <1000 words)
• Be accompanied by a signed patient consent form

Please note: due to the journal’s evolving priorities, case reports are accepted only at the editorial board’s discretion and are subject to a higher threshold for relevance and originality than previously.

Research:

Research articles where the subject matter is relevant to the field of acute medicine are encouraged. Articles should normally be of <3000 words, but may include any number of tables, graphs and diagrams. Research submissions should be accompanied by a statement indicating whether ethical committee approval was granted, where relevant.

Audits:

Audit reports must be no more than 1000 words and include a maximum of 5 tables, graphs, and diagrams. They must also show the completion of the audit cycle.

Correspondence:

Relevant letters or notes to the editor that comment on articles that have appeared in the journal will be published only at the discretion of the Editor in Chief.

Preparation of manuscripts

All material submitted for publication must be submitted through our dedicated Submission Portal.

Original manuscripts will be considered for publication. If reviewers recommend revisions, the manuscript must be resubmitted via the portal for further review. Where sufficient amendments are made, following review, articles may be recommended for publication at the discretion of the Editor-in-Chief.

Style:

Manuscripts must conform to acceptable English usage. Abbreviations must be limited primarily to general usage and must be defined at first use.

Generic names must be used. If a trading name is included, it should follow the generic name in parentheses the first time it is mentioned. Thereafter, generic names should only be used throughout the article.

Weights and measurements must be expressed in metric units. Temperatures must be expressed in degrees centigrade.

Text

Do not stylise the text.

Do not type any headings or any other text in ALL CAPITALS.

Do not justify the text. Key returns only at the end of paragraphs.

Do not key tables vertically down one column and then start the next column from the top.

Always key tables horizontally from left to right with a single tab between columns and a return at the end of each line.

Title page:

On the title page, include the title, the author’s name(s), the highest earned academic degrees, and institutional affiliations and locations. Designate one author as a correspondent. (provide an address, telephone numbers and e-mail).

Authors are also invited to submit a short medical biography of approximately 50 words.

Abstract:

Each article must be accompanied by an abstract not exceeding 200 words and a maximum of 5 keywords.

References:

Personal communication should not be cited in the reference list but may appear parenthetically in the text. In order of their mention, references must be identified in the text by superscript Arabic numerals. The reference list should be in a numeric sequence at the end of the text. The format should conform to that outlined in “Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals” (Vancouver style) (JAMA 1993; 269;2282-6). Journal titles should conform to the abbreviations in Cumulated Index Medicus.

Examples of References:

If there are three or fewer authors, list all. If there are four or more, list the first three and add et al.

For Journal articles: Marsden JR, Coburn PR, Marks Janet, et al; Measurement of the response of psoriasis to the short-term application of anthralin. Br J Dermatol 1983; 109: 209-218.

For book chapters: Graham J: Basic pathologic changes in the skin, Graham J, Johnson WC, Helwig EB, editors: Dermal pathology. Hagerstown, MD, 1972, Harper and Row Publishers, Inc.; Chapter. 6, p 123.

For books: Champion RH, Burton JL, Ebling FJG, and editors: Rook, Wilkinson, and Ebling. Textbook of Dermatology, ed. 5, Oxford 1992, Blackwell Scientific Publications, p 3050.

Illustrations and tables:

Tables, figures, and legends should supplement, not duplicate, the text.

Images may be submitted electronically with the following specifications. Size: 21 cm wide min.; resolution: 300 dpi; colour images: CMYK; greyscale: greyscale 16 bit; format: TIFF or EPS (Mac or PC). JPEG images will be accepted only if submitted as a maximum quality (lowest compression)

Type legends double-spaced on a separate page and insert after the references. If an illustration has been published previously, credit to the source must be given in the legend.

Tables should be self-explanatory and numbered in Roman numerals according to their mention in the text. Provide a brief title for each. If a table, or any data therein, has been published previously, full credit to the source must be given in a footnote. Tables to be prepared in MS Word.

Permissions and patient consent forms:

Direct quotations, tables or illustrations that have appeared in copyrighted material must be accompanied by written permission from the copyright owner and the original author, along with complete information as to the source.

Patient consent forms for publications of recognisable photographs must accompany the manuscript. Patients must be identified by simple numbers and /or letters, not by name, initials, or hospital record number.

The patient’s institutional or NHS identification must always be removed entirely. The date of the study and any identifying annotations should be removed.

Institutional consent, if relevant, must also be available.

Procedure for review:

Some degree of manuscript revision should be expected and regarded as constructive. The editorial staff will examine the manuscript and send it for review. Reviewers will pay particular attention to scientific accuracy, relevance, appropriateness of style, and sizing of illustrations.

For further information, please contact:

Rila Publications Ltd.
Production Department
73 Newman Street
London
W1T 3EJ
United Kingdom
Tel: 020 7637 3544
E-mail: production@rila.co.uk  (correspondence only, not for submissions)

Checklist for Authors

1. Title page:

• title of article
• full name(s), academic degrees, and affiliations of the author(s)
• name, address, business and home telephone numbers of the author to whom correspondence should be sent
• biography of max 50 words

2. Abstract (200 words double-spaced) and no more than 5 keywords

3. Key Points

4. References, tables, legends

5. Illustrations and images in electronic format are correctly labelled.

6. A signed patient consent form, if appropriate

7. Permission letters to reproduce material published elsewhere

8. A signed copyright transfer statement (PDF)

9. Patient consent forms (PDF)

10. Ethical approval

11. Declaration of Competing Interests and AI Tool Usage (PDF)
All authors must complete and sign the journal’s standard Declaration of Competing Interests form, which now includes a section on using generative AI or AI-assisted technologies in manuscript preparation. If such tools have been used (e.g. ChatGPT, Grammarly), this must be disclosed, including the tool’s name and how it contributed to the manuscript. Authors remain fully responsible for the content submitted.