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Health Information Management Journal Guidelines for authors
Click Here to download Guidelines in PDF format

Table of Contents

Ø     Introduction

Ø      General information concerning all articles

Ø     Special guidelines for peer reviewed articles

Ø     Special guidelines for non-reviewed articles

Ø     Submitting your manuscript

Introduction

The Editorial Board of the Health Information Management Journal invites contributions in the following categories:

Peer reviewed articles. This section is reserved for original articles which describe research outcomes, or processes, techniques or applications which enhance the practice of health information management. They should not exceed 5,000 words in length.

Non-reviewed articles can be submitted in the following categories:

·        Professional Practice and Innovation. Authors are invited to submit to this section articles which present interesting and innovative programs in all areas relevant to the profession. Length of articles: between 1500 and 5,000 words.

·        Reports. The Journal welcomes reports on any topic, activity or concept of interest to health information management practitioners, or which pertain to health information management; for example information technology, health classification, data analysis, management and privacy issues. Standards and recent policy directions can also be reported in this section. Reports may present the personal view, experience or opinion of the author or authors. An acceptable length for reports is between 1500 and 5000 words.

• Conference Reports. The Journal invites those who have attended any conference of particular interest to the Journal’s readership to submit a short overview and critique of the conference proceedings.

·      Reviews. Reviews of software, hardware, books and other media of interest and relevance to health information managers and related professionals are encouraged. Articles in these categories are typically between 200 and 500 words in length.

·      Case Studies.

• Sounding Board. Articles of approximately 1,000 words which initiate or contribute to the debate on new and evolving issues and ideas appear in this section.  
  
• Letters to the Editor. Letters on any topic of relevance and interest to professionals interested in health information management and informatics are welcome. Letters should not exceed 300 words in length. Professional decorum should be observed; letters are published at the Editor’s discretion.  
  
• Professional profiles. This section is intended to demonstrate the depth and breadth of professional work roles of individual Health Information Managers, including recent graduates, through personal accounts of workplace experiences.

Please note: It is not the policy of the Editorial Board to publish materials intended for commercial purposes

 
General information concerning all articles

Style
Authors should aim to use simple, direct and correct English, and spelling should conform with the third edition of the Macquarie Dictionary. Health Information Management Journal conforms with the Harvard (Author-Date) referencing style. For details, please refer to the Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers. Revised by Snooks & Co. (6^th edition), 2002. Milton, QLD: John Wiley & Sons. In addition the following website is a valuable resource: go to http://www.lib.latrobe.edu.au/reference/mb-style.html#Harvard  then click on ‘Harvard (Author-Date) System’.

Headings and subheadings
Clear distinctions should be made between headings and subheadings.

Tables and figures
Tables, figures and other graphics are to be submitted on separate pages at the end of the document, and not embedded in the text. The body of the text is to include notations about placement of tables, figures or graphics by leaving four lines of space and making a note ‘Insert table/figure/graphic x here’. Tables, figures and graphics should be clearly identified by consecutive numbering using arabic numerals and by providing concise titles for all figures used. A legend for each table and figure should be included.

References
Titles of journals must be written in full; e.g., Medical Journal of Australia, not MJA. References should be listed in alphabetical order at the end of the paper, using the Harvard format for sequence of details and for punctuation.

Acknowledgments
Acknowledgments may include significant contributions made in the support of the study or, in writing the manuscript. Permission should be obtained from any individuals named in the acknowledgments. (Be aware that people being identified may need to give their permission, since inclusion of names may infer potentially unwarranted endorsement of the paper’s conclusions). Copies of permission statements should be submitted with the manuscript.

Copyright
Manuscripts submitted to Health Information Management should not have been published elsewhere, nor to have been offered, or be under consideration by any other journal or publisher in any medium. Inclusion in conference proceedings (apart from abstracts) is considered as prior publication.

Upon acceptance for publication, authors are requested to assign copyright to the Health Information Management Association of Australia Limited (HIMAA) at the Editor’s discretion. It should be noted that acceptance for publication does not imply endorsement of authors' opinions by the HIMAA or the Editorial Board. Contributing authors are protected by the Copyright Act 1968 (Commonwealth of Australia). To view the Copyright Agreement, click here.      
Click here to download Copyright Agreement as PDF file.

Timelines and publication
For most manuscripts allow a minimum of three months from initial submission to acceptance and publication. Successful authors are notified in writing when their manuscript has been accepted for publication. Where possible, a date for publication is specified at that time. In some cases, the editors reserve the right to hold manuscripts over to future issues of the Journal for publication.

Special guidelines for peer reviewed articles

Articles submitted for publication in this category are reviewed by two independent and impartial reviewers who are unaware of the author’s identity. Similarly, authors are not informed of the identity of the reviewers. All communication with reviewers is conducted via the editors. No direct contact is made between reviewers and authors.

Text

The Editorial Board of Health Information Management Journal suggests the usual academic model of abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion and conclusion for most original articles. Substantial non-reviewed articles may also follow this model, or variations of it.

• Abstract. Abstracts should be approximately 100 words in length, and summarise the purpose, method, results, summary of key findings and conclusions of the paper.
• Introduction. This should state the purpose of the paper. Normally, introductions include a short, relevant literature review, including pertinent background information.
• Method. includes selection of subjects (population and sample sizes, for example), mode of observation, apparatus and statistical procedures. The aim of the method section is to provide enough information to allow replication of the procedures used in the original research. Reasons for selection of methods should also be included in this section.
• Results should be presented logically, and can include text, tables, figures or other graphics. Do not duplicate data presented in tables within the text.
• Discussion. Major, new and significant observations and findings should be highlighted and discussed. The significance of results compared with similar previous studies is to be included. If a hypothesis was being tested, it is necessary to report whether the hypothesis was supported or rejected. The implications and limitations of the findings, along with their practical implementations, should be reported here. The significance of the study’s results should be compared and contrasted with similar, previously published information in this section. It may be helpful to readers to accurately sub-head the section to make clear differentiations between the ‘discussion’ and the ‘literature review’.
• Conclusion. The conclusion contains a brief summary of the major findings of the study, but is not a reiteration of the abstract. Statements which cannot be supported by the information are not to be presented in the manuscript. Do not include new information, nor summarise the manuscript.
• Footnotes. Footnotes may be used to elaborate a point, and in some cases to cite information not normally included in the references at the end of the manuscript. Footnotes may, for example, provide further technical information about computer hardware or software used in a project, which, if included in the body of the text, is confusing to the reader. It is also useful for adding an aside, or valid comment apart from the text. Footnotes should be numerically identified by using superscript roman numerals in the text, with links at the bottom of the page on which the footnote indicator appears.

Submitting a manuscript for review

Authors should ensure that they adhere to the following guidelines:

• If possible, articles should contain no more than 5,000 words (this does not include footnotes, endnotes or references).
• Type should be double-spaced, pages printed single-side only.
• All pages of main text should be numbered.
• Three hard copies are to be submitted; it is not necessary to provide an electronic version at this stage.
• Conventional photographs are discouraged because of download time; digital photographs are preferred. If they are essential, photographs accompanying manuscripts should be clearly identified and captioned. In addition, the subject’s permission to publish may be required.
• Formatting of the document should be kept to a minimum. Do not try to achieve a ‘typeset’ look as your formatting commands will be discarded during final typesetting and may interfere with this process.
• A formal covering letter should be included with the manuscript.
• Ensure that the manuscript includes the following on separate pages:

o       Title page. The title should indicate concisely the purpose of the paper.

o       Abstract, followed by four key words or key terms. Abstracts should be approximately 100 words in length, and cover the purpose, method, results, summary of key findings and conclusions. Key words and terms should be selected from the Index Medicus Medical Subject Headings list (MeSH): http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html

o       Author identification page. Details on this page should include:

§         Author(s) given names and family name (in bold print), followed by appropriately abbreviated academic qualifications and awards, institutional affiliations and positions and other relevant information.

§         For manuscripts with multiple authors, the author to whom correspondence is to be directed should be identified.

§         Contact details: telephone numbers and email and postal addresses are to be included, and if the manuscript is submitted by more than one author the lead author should be identified.

o       Acknowledgements. Acknowledgments of sources of funding for research projects should be included here. Please note that this information will be published.

Contributors checklist for refereed papers

Please ensure that you have:

Special guidelines for non-reviewed articles

Contributions such as reports, letters and other short communications which do not present original research are not usually reviewed; they are, however, subject to editorial scrutiny. Such articles may be edited to improve the quality of expression and to comply with the Journal’s established style. Minor changes, including correcting spelling, grammar and typographical errors, will be made without consultation with authors.

 Submitting a non-reviewed manuscript

Authors should ensure that they adhere to the following guidelines:

·                    Reviews, reports etc. should have a maximum length 5,000 words; letters, 300 words.

·                    All pages of main text should be numbered.

·                    Articles should be submitted electronically.

·                    Conventional photographs are discouraged because of download time; digital photographs are preferred. Photographs should be clearly identified and captioned. In addition, the subject’s permission to publish may be required.

·                    Formatting of the document should be kept to a minimum. Do not try to achieve a ‘typeset’ look as your formatting commands will be discarded during final typesetting and may interfere with this process.  

Authors should ensure that the manuscript includes the following details:

·                    Title

·                    If appropriate, an abstract, followed by four key words or key terms. Abstracts should be approximately 100 words in length, and summarise the context, key outcomes, recommendations and conclusions drawn from the report. Key words and terms should be selected from the Index Medicus Medical Subject Headings list (MeSH): http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html

·                    Author(s) given names and family name(s) (in bold print), followed by appropriately abbreviated academic qualifications and awards, institutional affiliations and positions and other relevant information.

·                    Corresponding author in the case of manuscripts with multiple authors.

·                    Contact details: telephone numbers and email and postal addresses are to be included, and if the manuscript is submitted by more than one author the lead author should be identified.

·                    Acknowledgements. Acknowledgments of sources of funding for research projects should be included here. Please note that this information will be published.

Contributors checklist for non-refereed papers

Please ensure that you have:

 Submitting your manuscript

 Please forward manuscripts to

 The Editor, Health Information Management Journal
School of Public Health
La Trobe University
Bundoora, Victoria 3086
Australia
Tel: (03) 9479 1750
Email: K.Robinson@latrobe.edu.au