Information for Authors
Author Guidelines
It is a condition of acceptance of any article for the Australian Orthoptic Journal that original material is submitted.
The cover letter accompanying the submission must state that the manuscript has not been published or submitted for consideration for publication elsewhere.
The types of manuscripts accepted are as follows:
- Editorials (by invitation)
- Original Scientific Research Papers
- Reviews/Perspectives
- Case Studies
- Letters to the Editor
- Book Reviews
Manuscript Submission
Submitted manuscripts must include a cover letter, title page, abstract (including keywords), the paper itself, any acknowledgements, references and tables and/or figures. Each of these sections should begin on a separate page. Pages should be sequentially numbered. The manuscript submission should be electronic, via email to: AOJ@orthoptics.org.au
Cover Letter
The cover letter must include information regarding ethical considerations, informed consent and potential conflicts of interest, in addition to the statement regarding the originality of the manuscript.
- Ethical Considerations:
Authors must state that the protocol for any research project has been approved by an appropriate Ethics Committee that conforms to the provisions of the Declaration of Helsinki in 1995 (as revised in Edinburgh 2000). Investigators who do not have a formal ethics review committee must indicate they have adhered to the aforementioned provisions.
- Informed Consent:
Research on human subjects must include a statement that the subject provided informed consent and investigators must ensure patient confidentiality. Animal experiments must be demonstrated to be ethically acceptable and where relevant conform to institutional and national guidelines for the care and use of animals in research.
- Conflict of Interest:
Authors must declare any financial support or relationships that may, or may be perceived to, pose a conflict of interest. If there is none this should be stated.
Title Page
The title page should include the title of the manuscript and each author’s name, academic qualifications and institutional affiliation(s). A ‘corresponding author’ should be designated and their address, telephone number, fax number, and email address listed. The title page should also include the word count for the abstract and text.
Abstract and Keywords
The abstract should not exceed 250 words. It should be a clear and succinct summary of the paper presented and need not be structured into subsections. However, where appropriate, it should relate to the format of the paper, including aim, methods, results and conclusion. Beneath the abstract, include up to five keywords or terms suitable for use in an index or search engine.
Text
Where appropriate the structure of the text should be as follows: Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion and Conclusion. For scientific research the methods section of the manuscript should also address ethical considerations and informed consent. Authors should also use subheadings for Case Studies, generally as follows: Introduction, Case Report and Discussion (Conclusion is optional).
References
References must be numbered consecutively in order of appearance in the text. In-text references should be designated a superscript number following all punctuation. When there are five or more authors, only the first three should be listed followed by et al. References to journal articles should conform to abbreviations in Index Medicus.
Examples of reference styles are as follows:
- Article:
Wilson ME, Eustis HS, Parks MM. Brown’s Syndrome. Surv Ophthalmol 1989;34(3):153-172.
- Book:
Kline LB, Bajandas FJ. Neuro-ophthalmology: Review Manual. 5th Ed. Thorofare: Slack Inc; 2004.
- Book Chapter:
Murphee AL, Christensen LE. Retinoblastoma and malignant tumors. In: Wright KW, Spiegel PH, editors. Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus. 2nd Ed. New York: Springer; 2003. p. 584-589.
- Web Page:
Cancer Council Australia. Position statement: eye protection; 2006 [Updated Aug 2008, cited 2010 31st Jul]
Available from: http://www.cancer.org.au//policy/ positionstatements/sunsmart/eyeprotection.htm.
Tables and Figures
Tables and figures must be accompanied by a suitable title and numbered consecutively as mentioned in the text. It is preferable if images are supplied as high resolution jpeg, tiff or EPS files.
Acknowledgements
Identify all sources of financial support including grants or sponsorship from agencies or companies. Include any acknowledgements to individuals who do not qualify for authorship.
Writing A Case Report
A presentation is now available to assist in the writing of case reports for the Australian Orthoptic Journal.
“Writing A Case Report for the Australian Orthoptic Journal” by Ms Linda Santamaria
Editorial Policies
Publication decisions for the Australian Orthoptic Journal remain with the Co-Editors in Chief. Manuscripts that require peer review include: Original scientific research papers; Reviews/Perspectives; Case studies. Editorials, Letters to the Editor and Book reviews are not part of the peer review process.
Manuscripts submitted to the Australian Orthoptic Journal are assessed by either or one Co-Editor in Chief and if considered suitable for peer review the manuscript is assigned to a minimum of two referees. The referees are masked to each other for the duration of the review process, in a double-blind format. Reviewers are asked to provide formative feedback on all manuscripts. Authors will be notified of the decision once the reviews have been received. The expected time-frame for returned reviews is four to six weeks. Where revisions are required, the author must re-submit within twelve weeks or an agreed timeframe. Revised papers received after this timeframe will be treated as new submissions. Based on the reviewer reports, either or one Co-Editor in Chief will recommend the manuscript be accepted, revised with minor or major changes or rejected. Overall editorial responsibility is with the Co-Editors in Chief, with support from the Australian Orthoptic Journal’s international expert Editorial Board.
The Co-Editors in Chief and reviewers must declare any conflict of interest if they are a co-author or have involvement with any manuscript submitted to the journal. A Co-Editor in Chief who is a co-author will be masked from the review process and administration of the review process will be conducted by the other Co-Editor in Chief. Invited reviewers with a conflict of interest must decline the invitation to review.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism or “unattributed use of large portions of text and/or data, presented as if they were by the plagiarist” (Committee on Publication Ethics https://publicationethics.org/) is not acceptable by Australian Orthoptic Journal Standards. All manuscripts received by the journal are scanned using iThenticate Professional Plagiarism Prevention software. The similarity report for each manuscript is assessed by the Co-Editors in Chief. Minor issues may be resolved after communication with the author/s prior to publication of the article. However, authors will be asked to explain any obvious cases of plagiarism and the manuscript may be rejected for publication and all the authors informed, in the event that the similarity index cannot be explained.
Appeals
Authors are able to appeal decisions regarding publication by contacting the Co-Editors in Chief. Appeals will be assessed on an individual basis by the Co-Editors in Chief. A decision can be reversed as part of this process.
Complaints
Any complaints involving the journal or submitted and/or published manuscripts are taken very seriously. In the event of an allegation of misconduct, this will be deferred to the publisher (Orthoptics Australia) and dealt with in accordance with guidelines on publication ethics provided by the Committee on Publication Ethics https://publicationethics.org/.
Corrections
Post-publication corrections can be requested where the error affects the presentation of data or information and will be assessed on an individual basis. Approved corrections are published on a numbered page in the next available issues, will cite the original article and are linked electronically to the original publication.
Corrections can include an error made by the author/s of a paper, an error made by the journal or a retraction where the work is found to be plagiarised, fraudulent or invalid. Corrections will follow the guidelines from the Committee on Publication Ethics https://publicationethics.org/