Introduction

The International Journal of Nursing Studies Advances (IJNS Advances) is an open access journal that publishes excellent original research, reviews and discussion relevant to nursing, midwifery and other health related professions around the globe. We aim provide a forum for research and scholarly discourse that address topics of national or international significance.

We particularly welcome methodologically sound studies that explore and explain patient or staff experience, studies that develop or translate instruments to measure patient and staff outcomes, and studies that develop and/or evaluate interventions to improve patient experience, their clinical outcomes or the capabilities of healthcare staff. We welcome papers that describe novel and important healthcare interventions in sufficient detail to allow their replication provided reporting conforms to the template for intervention description and replication (TIDieR) checklist and guide, especially when such interventions are the subject of an ongoing programme of research. Intervention descriptions must include an account of the theoretical mechanisms of action, the relevant research from which the intervention was developed and describe the current state of evidence about the effectiveness of the intervention. Feasibility, pilot and definitive studies are considered provided there is sufficient rationale for publication and, in the case of intervention studies, a full description of the intervention. We welcome "negative" results (i.e. studies which do not support a hypothesised difference or association) provided that the design was robust.

Discussion papers that elaborate issues and challenges facing health care in one country are welcomed, provided the discussion is grounded in research based evidence and the authors are addressing a global audience as well as a local one. Similarly we welcome papers that develop theory or research methods and those which elaborate on novel methods for the discipline, provided they are of general applicability. We will publish protocols for significant studies that are reported in sufficient detail to provide replication and verification of the final published research if submitted prior to the commencement of data collection.

1.1 Types of papers

IJNS Advances publishes original research, reviews, and short reports. In addition, we publish editorials and letters. Where a case is made we will also publish protocols of trials which meet our general criteria for interest and significance.

1.1.1 Research Papers - 2,000-7,000 words

Full papers reporting original research can be a maximum of 7000 words in length (excluding references and text in tables or figures), although shorter papers are preferred. IJNS Advances publishes instrument development or validation papers only if they are accompanied by a copy of the full instrument, included as a supplementary file at submission stage so it can be published as an appendix online if accepted. Research papers should adhere to recognised standards for reporting (see guidance below and the Author Checklist).

1.1.2 Review Papers - 2,000-7,000 words

We publish systematic reviews (addressing focused research questions) and broader literature reviews (such as scoping reviews). We also publish discussion papers, which are scholarly articles of a debating or discursive nature. In all cases, there must be engagement with and critical analysis of a substantive body of research or other scholarship. Systematic reviews should adhere to recognised standards for reporting (see guidance below and the Author Checklist).

1.1.3 Editorials - 1,000-2,000 words

Authors who have ideas for editorials that address issues of substantive concern to the discipline, particularly those of a controversial nature or linked directly to current/forthcoming content in the journal, should contact the Editor in Chief ([email protected]).

1.2 Submission system

Submission to this journal is online at https://www.editorialmanager.com/ijnsa.You will be guided stepwise through the creation and uploading of your files.

1.3 Elsevier Researcher Academy

Researcher Academyis a free e-learning platform designed to support early and mid-career researchers throughout their research journey. The "Learn" environment at Researcher Academy offers several interactive modules, webinars, downloadable guides and resources to guide you through the process of writing for research and going through peer review. Feel free to use these free resources to improve your submission and navigate the publication process with ease.

2. Before You Begin

2.1 Ethics in publishing

IJNS Advances is a supporter of the Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals, issued by the International Committee for Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), and to the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) code of conduct for editors. Our guidelines should be read in conjunction with this broader guidance. The ICJME requirements can be found at https://www.icmje.org/ and the COPE's guidelines at http://publicationethics.org. The work to be described in your article must have been carried out in accordance with The Code of Ethics of the World Medical Association for experiments involving humans (Declaration of Helsinki) and research on health databases (Declaration of Taipei) https://www.wma.net/what-we-do/medical -ethics/. Further information on Ethics in Publishing and Ethical guidelines for journal publication can be found at: https://www.elsevier.com/authorethics and https://www.elsevier.com/ethicalguidelines

2.2 Reporting guidelines

The editors require that manuscripts adhere to recognized reporting guidelines relevant to the research design used and require authors to submit a checklist verifying that essential elements have been reported for all primary research and systematic reviews. We suggest that you consult the guidelines at an early stage of preparing your manuscript. You can search for the correct guideline for your study using the tools provided by the EQUATOR network: http://www.equator-network.org/ The guideline used must be indicated in the journal's Author Checklist, which is to be submitted with every paper.

2.3 Study Registration

All clinical trials (as defined by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) must be registered in a publicly accessible trials registry and registration must have taken place before any participants were recruited. Please cite the registry, registration number, date of registration and, where relevant, date of first recruitment in both the abstract and in the body of the paper. Details of registration will be reviewed to ensure the manuscript is consistent with the registered study and so authors should not redact registration details (see below 'blinded manuscript'). For all other study types, including systematic reviews, we strongly encourage prospective registration.

2.4 Informed consent and ethical approval

Informed consent must be sought from participants who are able to give it, and this should be documented in the paper. Where informed consent is not obtained, consistent with recognised ethical principles and local legal frameworks this must also be documented in your paper. Ethical approval must be stated at an appropriate point in the article. The approving body and approval number should be identified in the manuscript. If the study was exempt from such approval the basis of such exemption and the regulatory framework must be described.

2.5 Patient details

The personal details of any patient included in any part of the article and in any supplementary materials (including all illustrations and videos) must be removed before submission. Where an author wishes to include case details or other personal information or images of patients or any other individuals in an Elsevier publication, appropriate consents, permissions and releases must be obtained by the author. Written consents must be retained by the author, but copies should not be provided to the journal unless specifically requested. For more information, please review the Elsevier Policy on the Use of Images or Personal Information of Patients or other Individuals (see https://www.elsevier.com/about/policies/patient-consent

2.6 Copyright

If excerpts from other copyrighted works are to be included, the author(s) must obtain written permission from the copyright owners and credit the source(s) in the article. This includes permission to translate scales where a third party holds the copyright.

2.7 Multiple, redundant or concurrent publication

To aid editorial decisions about distinctiveness and to avoid redundant or duplicate publication, we ask that you provide full references of any publications drawing on the same data in the journal's Author Checklist. If the sources are not readily available, please upload a copy of the manuscript for editors to consider. If other publications are under review or in preparation this should be mentioned in your letter to the Editor. To verify originality, your article may be checked by the originality detection service Crossref similarity Check.

All published and in press accounts of the wider study must be referred to in the paper and the relationship between this and other publications from the same study must be made clear. It is not sufficient to simply cite a prior publication, rather text must clearly state that results are from the same study. Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except in the form of an abstract), a published lecture or academic thesis that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in English or in any other language, including electronically without the written consent of the copyright-holder.

2.8 Preprints

Preprints can be shared anywhere at any time, in line with Elsevier's sharing policy. Sharing your preprints e.g. on a preprint server will not count as prior publication (see 'Multiple, redundant or concurrent publication' for more information).

2.9 Authorship, contributors and acknowledgements

All authors should have made substantial contributions to all of the following: (1) the conception and design of the study, or acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data, (2) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content, (3) final approval of the version to be submitted. Everyone who meets these criteria should be listed as an author. You will be asked to confirm this on submission. Other individuals who made substantial contributions (e.g., collecting data, providing language help, writing assistance or proofreading the article, etc.) should not be listed as authors but should be acknowledged in the paper. Those who meet some but not all of the criteria for authors can be identified as 'contributors' at the end of the manuscript with their contribution specified. For papers with ten or more authors, we ask that you give a collective name for the research group (e.g. ATLAS Research Group) to appear at the front of the article and list all authors at the end of the paper.

For transparency, authors must submit a file outlining individual contributions to the paper for all authors and named contributors using the relevant CRediT roles: Conceptualization; Data curation; Formal analysis; Funding acquisition; Investigation; Methodology; Project administration; Resources; Software; Supervision; Validation; Visualization; Roles/Writing - original draft; Writing - review & editing. This contribution statement will be published with the paper.

CRediT contributions statement: For transparency, authors must submit a file outlining individual contributions to the paper for all authors and named contributors using the relevant CRediT roles (see. https://www.elsevier.com/authors/policies-and-guidelines/credit-author-statement).

2.10 Changes to authorship

Authors are expected to consider carefully the list and order of authors before submitting their manuscript and provide the definitive list of authors at the time of the original submission. It is important that all authors agree this. Any addition, deletion or rearrangement of author names in the authorship list should be made only before the manuscript has been accepted and only if approved by the journal Editor. To request such a change, the Editor will require from the corresponding author: (a) the reason for the change in author list and (b) written confirmation (e-mail, letter) from all authors that they agree with the change. In the case of addition or removal of authors, this includes confirmation from the author being added or removed.

2.11 Conflict of interest

All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could influence their work. Potential conflicts of interest do not necessarily preclude publication and authors are advised to err on the side of transparency and openness in declaring any relevant relationships. Examples of potential conflicts of interest include employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications/registrations, and grants or other funding. Details must be included at the end of your manuscript and in a file that must be uploaded on submission. We recommend you use the ICMJE standard form to help you prepare this declaration. If there are no conflicts of interest then please state this: 'Conflicts of interest: none'. See also https://www.elsevier.com/conflictsofinterest.

2.12. Role of the funding source

You are requested to identify who provided financial support for the conduct of the research and/or preparation of the article and to briefly describe the role of the sponsor(s), if any, in study design; in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; and in the decision to submit the article for publication. If the funding source(s) had no such involvement, then this should be stated. If you received no external funding (i.e. other than your main employer) please state 'no external funding'. Please see https://www.elsevier.com/funding

3. Manuscript Preparation

3.1. Documents required for submission (overview).

Author Checklist - a brief checklist to ensure that you have provided all essential information. The Author Checklist is available as a word file.

Title page (with author details) - This should include the title, authors' names and affiliations, and a complete address for the corresponding author including telephone and e-mail address. Twitter handles for one, or all, authors may also be included on the Title Page if they wish for these to be published. A template word file to help guide you is available.

Blinded manuscript (no author details) - The main body of the paper including where relevant the abstract, contribution statements, references, figures, tables and any acknowledgements. This should not include any identifying information, such as the authors' names or affiliations. Please ensure that the manuscript includes page numbers for ease of reference during the review process. A template word file to help guide you is available.

Covering letter to the Editor (optional) in which you address any matters you may wish the editors to consider (for example requests for exceptions to policy or the relationship of this work to other studies, elaboration on potential conflicts of interest). Additionally, the following are required for all full papers (excluding letters and editorials)

Reporting guideline checklist - Additional reporting guidelines checklist for the relevant research design. For discussion papers and non-systematic reviews, where no checklist applies, upload a file with 'reporting guideline not applicable'

CRediT contributions statement:For transparency, authors must submit a file outlining individual contributions to the paper for all authors and named contributors using the relevant CRediT roles (see. https://www.elsevier.com/authors/policies-and-guidelines/credit-author-statement).

3.2. Title page

  • TitleConcise and informative. The journal requires titles for research and review papers to be in the format Topic (or question): method (e.g. Nurse staffing in intensive care units: a systematic review). The country in which the study was conducted should not normally be named in the title unless it is an essential element (for example a national survey).
  • Author names. Please clearly indicate the given name(s) and family name(s) of each author and check that all names are accurately spelled. You can add your name between parentheses in your own script behind the English transliteration
  • Affiliations. Give the authors' affiliation addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all affiliations with a lower-case superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address. Provide the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name and the e-mail address of each author
  • Corresponding author. Clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication. This responsibility includes answering queries about the research that may arise after publication.
  • Present/permanent address. If an author has moved since the work described in the article was done, or was visiting at the time, a 'Present address' (or 'Permanent address') may be indicated as a footnote to that author's name. The address at which the author actually did the work must be retained as the main affiliation address. Use superscript Arabic numerals for such footnotes.

3.3. Blinded manuscript

It is the authors' responsibility to ensure that the manuscript file contains no details that readily identify them to prospective reviewers. However, we recognise that on occasion essential information or the nature of the work itself may make it impossible to guarantee anonymity to authors. Authors may exercise discretion in relation to redacting details of prior research.

Authors who reveal their identity in the manuscript will be deemed to have declined anonymity and the review will be single blind (i.e. authors do not know reviewers' identities).

The blinded manuscript must include the following essential elements (except as noted above):

3.3.1. Abstract

All submissions (except letters and editorials) should include an abstract of 400 words or less.

In general, the following detail is required: Background, Objectives, Design, Settings (including geographical location if important), Participants; Methods; Results; and Conclusions, which should relate to study aims and hypotheses. Abstracts for Discussion Papers should provide a concise summary of the line of argument pursued and conclusions.

When reporting quantitative results in the abstract report parameter estimates and confidence intervals in preference to p-values (e.g. "risk of death was reduced [Odds ratio 0.9, 95% confidence interval 0.87-0.92]" rather than "risk of death was significantly reduced [p=0.001]")

Study registration details (e,g, isrctn number) should be included at the end of the abstract.

Abstracts should not include references or abbreviations other than standard systeme international (SI) units. Abstracts of research papers must be structured and should adopt the headings suggested by the relevant reporting guidelines.

3.3.2. Tweetable abstract

Optionally authors may add a `tweetable abstract? to the end of the abstract as a final section. The tweetable abstract should be 140 characters or fewer (to allow people using it to add additional hashtags, links to the article and other twitter handles). Tweetable abstracts should provide the main conclusions or the key message of a paper in a way that is easily understood.

3.3.3. Contribution of the Paper

All submissions (with the exception of Letters and Editorials) should include "Contribution of the Paper" statements comprising a series of short single sentence bullet points under the headings "What is already known about the topic" (2 or 3 bullets) and "What this paper adds" (2 or 3 bullets). The statements should be placed in the manuscript file between the Abstract and the main body of text.'What is already known' should identify existing research knowledge relating to the specific research question / topic, rather than general background detail. 'What the paper adds' should summarise new knowledge (outcomes) as opposed to offering process statements of what the paper does. eg. "We have demonstrated in this review that nurse-led intermediate care reduces hospital stay but increases total inpatient stay" (outcome), NOT "We considered in this review the impact of nurse-led intermediate care on acute stay and total inpatient stay" (process).".

3.3.4. Keywords

Provide between four and ten key words that accurately identify the paper's subject, purpose, method and focus. Use the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH?) thesaurus (see http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/meshhome.html) or Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL) headings where possible). Give keywords in alphabetical order.

3.3.5. Main manuscript text

You can choose to submit your manuscript as a single file to be used in the refereeing process. It should contain high enough quality figures for refereeing. If you prefer to do so, you may still provide all or some of the source files for tables and figures at the initial submission. Please note that individual figure files larger than 10 MB must be uploaded separately.

Structure: For most papers the basic structure: Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results,

Discussion should be used. Authors should consult the relevant reporting guidelines for their methods and complete the relevant checklist to ensure essential detail is included (see our Author Checklist and the equator Network: http://www.equator- network.org/)

Discussion: As part of the discussion, authors should describe limitations of the work. A sub-heading before the final conclusions is recommended.

Word limits: Full papers up to 7000 words (excluding tables, figures, and references, editorials up to 2000 words and letters up to 1000 words. Shorter papers are preferred

Tables and figures: Up to 5 in total. The corresponding caption should be placed directly below the figure or table. Additional tables / figures (including large tables) can be included as supplementary material.

Ethical approval and informed consent: details must be given in the methods as specified above

Abbreviations: No abbreviations should be used other than as specified below in our general notes on style.

3.3.6. References

There are no strict requirements on reference formatting at submission. References can be in any style or format as long as the style is consistent and references are complete and accurate. Where applicable, author(s) name(s), journal title/book title, chapter title/article title, year of publication, volume number/book chapter and the article number or pagination must be present.

Use of DOI is highly encouraged. The reference style used by the journal will be applied to the accepted article by Elsevier at the proof stage.

Studies in humans and animals

If the work involves the use of human subjects, the author should ensure that the work described has been carried out in accordance with The Code of Ethics of the World Medical Association (Declaration of Helsinki) for experiments involving humans. The manuscript should be in line with the Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals and aim for the inclusion of representative human populations (sex, age and ethnicity) as per those recommendations. The terms sex and gender should be used correctly.

The author should ensure that the manuscript contains a statement that all procedures were performed in compliance with relevant laws and institutional guidelines and have been approved by the appropriate institutional committee(s). This statement should contain the date and reference number of the ethical approval(s) obtained. Authors should also include a statement in the manuscript that informed consent was obtained for experimentation with human subjects. The privacy rights of human subjects must always be observed.

The journal will not accept manuscripts that contain data derived from unethically sourced organs or tissue, including from executed prisoners or prisoners of conscience, consistent with recommendations by Global Rights Compliance on Mitigating Human Rights Risks in Transplantation Medicine. For all studies that use human organs or tissues authors must provide sufficient evidence that they were procured in line with WHO Guiding Principles on Human Cell, Tissue and Organ Transplantation. The source of the organs or tissues used in clinical research must be transparent and traceable. Authors of manuscripts describing organ transplantation must additionally declare within the manuscript:

  1. that autonomous consent free from coercion was obtained from the donor(s) or their next of kin; and
  2. that organs/tissues were not sourced from executed prisoners or prisoners of conscience.

All animal experiments should comply with the ARRIVE guidelines and should be carried out in accordance with the U.K. Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act, 1986 and associated guidelines, EU Directive 2010/63/EU for animal experiments, or the National Research Council's Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals and the authors should clearly indicate in the manuscript that such guidelines have been followed. The sex of animals must be indicated, and where appropriate, the influence (or association) of sex on the results of the study.

3.4 Revised submissions

At revision stage the following documentation is required:
  • a separate "Response to Reviewers" file, which responds point by point to the reviewers' and editors' comments and highlights the changes made.
  • a revised blinded manuscript with changes clearly highlighted. Unless revisions are minor do not simply use your word processor's 'track changes' - your aim is to help reviewers identify revised sections AND to read / review the revised manuscript.

If you provided low-resolution artwork for review, you should also add files suitable for publication at this stage (see below):

4. Style and specific requirements

4.1. Language (usage and editing services)

Please write your text in good English (American or British usage is accepted, but not a mixture of these). Authors who feel their English language manuscript may require editing to eliminate possible grammatical or spelling errors and to conform to correct scientific English may wish to use the English Language Editing service available from Elsevier's WebShop.

4.2. Use of inclusive language

Articles should make no assumptions about the beliefs or commitments of any reader, should contain nothing that might imply that one individual is superior to another on the grounds of ethnic background, sex, culture or any other characteristic, and should use inclusive language throughout. We ask authors to consider that the term 'race' is closely associated with ideologies of scientific racism and has no clearly defined scientific meaning.

We recognise that the recipients of healthcare are firstly people. In many cases, it is not appropriate to refer to them as "patients". For example, "people with diabetes" is preferable to "diabetes patients" although recipients of health care in general might be referred to as patients in some circumstances. Never refer to people as 'sufferers' or 'victims' of a condition.

Authors should ensure that writing is free from gender bias, for instance by using 'he or she', 'his/her' instead of 'she' or 'her', and by making use of job titles that are gender neutral (e.g. 'chairperson' instead of 'chairman' and 'flight attendant' instead of 'stewardess'). Nurse is a gender-neutral term.

4.3. Abbreviations, acronyms and initialisms

The International Journal of Nursing Studies Advances does not permit the use of abbreviations, acronyms and initialisms (abbreviations for brevity). We make a limited number of exceptions but we do not allow the use of any abbreviations that are not widely recognised

The limited exceptions include systeme international units (SI), cases where the abbreviated form has near universal recognition (e.g. USA), statistical terms and tests (e.g. df, t, ANOVA) and instruments and products that are generally identified by their initials or an abbreviation (e.g. SF36, SPSS).

As a rule, any abbreviations which the authors intend to use should be written out in full and followed by the letters in brackets the first time they appear , thereafter only the letters without brackets should be used. For additional guidance, see the editorial policy/style on abbreviations, initialisms and acronyms. Please note that SPSS is the full name of the product, not an abbreviation.

4.4 Tables

Please submit tables as editable text and not as images. Tables can be placed next to the relevant text in the article. Number tables consecutively in accordance with their appearance in the text and place any table notes below the table body. Be sparing in the use of tables and ensure that the data presented in them do not duplicate results described elsewhere in the article. Please avoid using vertical rules.

4.5 Footnotes

Do not use footnotes other than where abbreviations or other symbols have been used in a table, in which case the notes should be below the table, not the foot of the page.

4.6 Statistics

Standard methods of presenting statistical material should be used. Where methods used are not widely recognised explanation and full reference to widely accessible sources must be given. Identify the statistical package used (including version).

Wherever possible give both point estimates and 95% confidence intervals for all parameters estimated by the study (e.g. group differences, frequency of characteristics). Exact p values should be given to no more than three decimal places. Do not interpret non-significant results as evidence that there is no difference / relationship.

4.7 Citations and references

In text citations and reference lists will be reformatted to journal style if the article is accepted. The journal uses an author (date) citation style. Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list (and vice versa). When copying references, please be careful as they may already contain errors. Use of the DOI is highly encouraged.

Unpublished results and personal communications are not to be included the reference list but may be mentioned in the text. Citation of a reference as 'in press' implies that the item has been accepted for publication.

Web references. As a minimum, the full URL should be given and the date when the reference was last accessed. Any further information, if known (DOI, author names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc.), should also be given. Web references can be listed separately (e.g., after the reference list) under a different heading if desired, or can be included in the reference list.

Data references. This journal encourages you to cite underlying or relevant datasets in your manuscript by citing them in your text and including a data reference in your Reference List. Data references should include the following elements: author name(s), dataset title, data repository, version (where available), year, and global persistent identifier. Add [dataset] immediately before the reference so we can properly identify it as a data reference. The [dataset] identifier will not appear in your published article.

4.8 Use of reference management software

This journal has standard templates available in key reference management packages like Mendeley and EndNote. Using plug-ins to word processing packages, authors only need to select the appropriate journal template when preparing their article. The list of references and citations to these will be formatted according to the journal style.

4.9 Funding sources

List funding sources in this standard way to facilitate compliance to funder's requirements for example:

Funding: This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [grant numbers xxxx, yyyy]; the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, WA [grant number zzzz]; and the United States Institutes of Peace [grant number aaaa]. It is not necessary to include detailed descriptions on the program or type of grants and awards. When funding is from a block grant or other resources available to a university, college, or other research institution, submit the name of the institute or organization that provided the funding. If no funding has been provided for the research, please include the following sentence: "This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors."

4.10 Supplementary material

Supplementary material such as applications, images and sound clips, can be published with your article to enhance it. Please submit your material together with the article and supply a concise, descriptive caption for each supplementary file. Submitted supplementary items are published exactly as they are received (Excel or PowerPoint files will appear as such online). If you wish to make changes to supplementary material during any stage of the process, please make sure to provide an updated file. Do not annotate any corrections on a previous version. Please switch off the 'Track Changes' option in Microsoft Office files.

For papers reporting the development of scales, measures, questionnaires or other instruments we will only publish if authors are willing and able to provide a copy of the scale in the original language and (where relevant) in English. Authors may retain copyright and if they wish to do so should include a copyright line. They can also give details on permissions and restrictions for use and / or add a creative commons license (see https://creativecommons.org/).

Where authors do not own the copyright, they are responsible for gaining permission from the copyright holder and giving full acknowledgement. This includes permission to translate scales where a third party holds the copyright.

If accepted for publication, the any additional material to be made available online should include a reference to the International Journal of Nursing Studies Advances paper and we ask that you add a preliminary reference to your article with "to be published in the International Journal of Nursing Studies Advances" at the point of submission, updating later if needed.

5.1. Appendices

Normally there should be no appendices although in the case of papers reporting tool development or the use of novel questionnaires authors may include a copy of the tool as an appendix as an alternative to providing it as supplementary material if it is short.

5.2. Figure captions

Ensure that each illustration has a caption. A caption should comprise a brief title (not on the figure itself) and a description of the illustration. Keep text in the illustrations themselves to a minimum but explain all symbols and abbreviations used.

5.3. Electronic artwork

General points
  • Make sure you use uniform lettering and sizing of your original artwork.
  • Preferred fonts: Arial (or Helvetica), Times New Roman (or Times), Symbol, Courier.
  • Number the illustrations according to their sequence in the text.
  • Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files.
  • Indicate per figure if it is a single, 1.5 or 2-column fitting image.
  • For Word submissions only, you may still provide figures and their captions, and tables within a single file at the revision stage.
  • Please note that individual figure files larger than 10 MB must be provided in separate source files.

Regardless of the application used, when your electronic artwork is finalized, please 'save as' or convert the images to one of the following formats (note the resolution requirements for line drawings, halftones, and line/halftone combinations given below): EPS (or PDF): Vector drawings. Embed the font or save the text as 'graphics'. TIFF (or JPG): Color or grayscale photographs (halftones): always use a minimum of 300 dpi. TIFF (or JPG): Bitmapped line drawings: use a minimum of 1000 dpi. TIFF (or JPG): Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (color or grayscale): a minimum of 500 dpi is required. A detailed guide on electronic artwork is available.

5.4. Colour artwork

Please make sure that artwork files are in an acceptable format (TIFF (or JPEG), EPS (or PDF), or MS Office files) and with the correct resolution. If, together with your accepted article, you submit usable colour figures then Elsevier will ensure, at no additional charge, that these figures will appear in colour online (e.g., ScienceDirect and other sites) regardless of whether or not these illustrations are reproduced in colour in the printed version.

For colour reproduction in print, you will receive information regarding the costs from Elsevier after receipt of your accepted article. Please indicate your preference for colour: in print or online only. Because of technical complications that can arise by converting colour figures to 'gray scale' (for the printed version should you not opt for colour in print) please submit in addition usable black and white versions of all the colour illustrations.

For further information on the preparation of electronic artwork, please see https://www.elsevier.com/artworkinstructions.

5.6. Data visualization

Include interactive data visualizations in your publication and let your readers interact and engage more closely with your research. Follow the instructions here to find out about available data visualization options and how to include them with your article.

5.7. Research data

This journal encourages and enables you to share data that supports your research publication where appropriate, and enables you to interlink the data with your published articles. Research data refers to the results of observations or experimentation that validate research findings. To facilitate reproducibility and data reuse, this journal also encourages you to share your software, code, models, algorithms, protocols, methods and other useful materials related to the project. Below are a number of ways in which you can associate data with your article or make a statement about the availability of your data when submitting your manuscript. If you are sharing data in one of these ways, you are encouraged to cite the data in your manuscript and reference list. Please refer to the "References" section for more information about data citation. For more information on depositing, sharing and using research data and other relevant research materials, visit the research data page.

5.7.1 Mendeley Data

This journal supports Mendeley Data, enabling you to deposit any research data (including raw and processed data, video, code, software, algorithms, protocols, and methods) associated with your manuscript in a free-to-use, open access repository. During the submission process, after uploading your manuscript, you will have the opportunity to upload your relevant datasets directly to Mendeley Data. The datasets will be listed and directly accessible to readers next to your published article online. For more information, visit the Mendeley Data for journals page.

5.7.2 Data linking

If you have made your research data available in a data repository, you can link your article directly to the dataset. Elsevier collaborates with a number of repositories to link articles on ScienceDirect with relevant repositories, giving readers access to underlying data that gives them a better understanding of the research described.

There are different ways to link your datasets to your article. When available, you can directly link your dataset to your article by providing the relevant information in the submission system. For more information, visit the database linking page.

For supported data repositories a repository banner will automatically appear next to your published article on ScienceDirect.

In addition, you can link to relevant data or entities through identifiers within the text of your manuscript, using the following format: Database: xxxx (e.g., TAIR: AT1G01020; CCDC: 734053; PDB: 1XFN).

5.7.3 Data statement

To foster transparency, we encourage you to state the availability of your data in your submission. This may be a requirement of your funding body or institution. If your data is unavailable to access or unsuitable to post, you will have the opportunity to indicate why during the submission process, for example by stating that the research data is confidential. The statement will appear with your published article on ScienceDirect. For more information, visit the Data Statement page.

6 Submission

Our online submission system guides you stepwise through the process of entering your article details and uploading your files. All correspondence, including notification of the Editor's decision and requests for revision, is sent by e- mail.

6.1. Submit your article

Please submit your article via https://www.editorialmanager.com/ijnsa

6.2. Review process

The decision to publish a paper is based on an editorial assessment and peer review. Initially all papers are assessed by an editorial committee consisting of members of the editorial team. The prime purpose is to decide whether to send a paper for peer review and to give a rapid decision on those that are not.

Editorials and Letters may be accepted at this stage but in all other cases the decision is to reject the paper or to send it for peer review. Papers which do not meet basic standards or are unlikely to be published irrespective of a positive peer review, for example because their novel contribution is insufficient or the relevance to the discipline is unclear, may be rejected at this point in order to avoid delays to authors who may wish to seek publication elsewhere.

Occasionally a paper will be returned to the author with requests for revisions in order to assist the editors in deciding whether or not send it out for review. Authors can expect a decision from this stage of the review process within 2-3 weeks of submission.

Manuscripts going forward to the review process are reviewed by members of an international expert panel. This journal uses double-blind review, which means that both the reviewer and author name(s) are not allowed to be revealed to one another for a manuscript under review. The identities of the authors are concealed from the reviewers, and vice versa. For more information please refer to https://www.elsevier.com/reviewers/peer -review.

We take every reasonable step to ensure author identity is concealed during the review process but it is up to authors to ensure that their details of prior publications etc. do not reveal their identity.

The decision to publish is made by the senior editor with advice from one of more associate editors and the reviewers. The Editor-in-Chief reserves the right to the final decision regarding acceptance and, on occasion, we may choose not to published despite recommendations from reviewers (or vice versa).

6.3. Referees

During submission, authors may suggest the names and institutional e-mail addresses of three potential referees. This can be helpful in facilitating timely and high quality peer review.

Note that the Editor retains the sole right to decide whether or not the suggested reviewers are used. Suggested reviewers should not be from the same institution as any of the authors and authors should avoid suggesting reviewers who might be seen to have a conflict of interest, for example because of ongoing close collaboration with the author.

7.1. Queries

We aim to complete the review process within 8 weeks of the decision to review although occasionally delays do happen, and authors should allow at least 12 weeks from submissions before contacting the journal.

For questions about the editorial process (including the status of manuscripts under review) please contact the editorial office [email protected]. For technical support on submissions please contact https://service.elsevier.com/app/home/supporthub/publishing/

8. After Acceptance

8.1. Publishing agreement

Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' (for more information on this and copyright, see https://www.elsevier.com/copyright). An e-mail will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript together with a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' form or a link to the online version of this agreement.

For open access articles: Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete an 'Exclusive License Agreement' (for more information see https://www.elsevier.com/OAauthoragreement).

Permitted third party reuse of open access articles is determined by the author's choice of user license (see https://www.elsevier.com/openaccesslicenses).

8.2. Author rights

As an author you (or your employer or institution) have certain rights to reuse your work. For more information see https://www.elsevier.com/copyright.

Elsevier supports responsible sharing

Find out how you can share your research published in Elsevier journals.

Funding body agreements and policies

Elsevier has established a number of agreements with funding bodies which allow authors to comply with their funder's open access policies. Some funding bodies will reimburse the author for the gold open access publication fee. Details of existing agreements are available online.

8.3. Open Access

Please visit our Open Access page for more information about open access publishing in this journal.

8.4. Online proof correction

Corresponding authors will receive an e-mail with a link to our online proofing system, allowing annotation and correction of proofs online. The environment is similar to MS Word: in addition to editing text, you can also comment on figures/tables and answer questions from the Copy Editor. Web-based proofing provides a faster and less error-prone process by allowing you to directly type your corrections, eliminating the potential introduction of errors.

If preferred, you can still choose to annotate and upload your edits on the PDF version. All instructions for proofing will be given in the e-mail we send to authors, including alternative methods to the online version and PDF.

We will do everything possible to get your article published quickly and accurately. Please use this proof only for checking the typesetting, editing, completeness and correctness of the text, tables and figures. Significant changes to the article as accepted for publication will only be considered at this stage with permission from the Editor. It is important to ensure that all corrections are sent back to us in one communication. Please check carefully before replying, as inclusion of any subsequent corrections cannot be guaranteed. Proofreading is solely your responsibility.

8.5. Author inquiries

Visit the Elsevier Support Center to find the answers you need. Here you will find everything from Frequently Asked Questions to ways to get in touch. You can also check the status of your submitted article or find out when your accepted article will be published.

Use of word processing software

Regardless of the file format of the original submission, at revision you must provide us with an editable file of the entire article. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible. Most formatting codes will be removed and replaced on processing the article. The electronic text should be prepared in a way very similar to that of conventional manuscripts (see also the Guide to Publishing with Elsevier). See also the section on Electronic artwork.

To avoid unnecessary errors, you are strongly advised to use the 'spell-check' and 'grammar-check' functions of your word processor.

Declaration of generative AI in scientific writing

The below guidance only refers to the writing process, and not to the use of AI tools to analyse and draw insights from data as part of the research process.

Where authors use generative artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process, authors should only use these technologies to improve readability and language. Applying the technology should be done with human oversight and control, and authors should carefully review and edit the result, as AI can generate authoritative-sounding output that can be incorrect, incomplete or biased. AI and AI-assisted technologies should not be listed as an author or co-author, or be cited as an author. Authorship implies responsibilities and tasks that can only be attributed to and performed by humans, as outlined in Elsevier’s AI policy for authors.

Authors should disclose in their manuscript the use of AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process by following the instructions below. A statement will appear in the published work. Please note that authors are ultimately responsible and accountable for the contents of the work.

Disclosure instructions
Authors must disclose the use of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process by adding a statement at the end of their manuscript in the core manuscript file, before the References list. The statement should be placed in a new section entitled ‘Declaration of Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process’.

Statement: During the preparation of this work the author(s) used [NAME TOOL / SERVICE] in order to [REASON]. After using this tool/service, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed and take(s) full responsibility for the content of the publication.

This declaration does not apply to the use of basic tools for checking grammar, spelling, references etc. If there is nothing to disclose, there is no need to add a statement.

Reporting sex- and gender-based analyses

Reporting guidance
For research involving or pertaining to humans, animals or eukaryotic cells, investigators should integrate sex and gender-based analyses (SGBA) into their research design according to funder/sponsor requirements and best practices within a field. Authors should address the sex and/or gender dimensions of their research in their article. In cases where they cannot, they should discuss this as a limitation to their research's generalizability. Importantly, authors should explicitly state what definitions of sex and/or gender they are applying to enhance the precision, rigor and reproducibility of their research and to avoid ambiguity or conflation of terms and the constructs to which they refer (see Definitions section below). Authors can refer to the Sex and Gender Equity in Research (SAGER) guidelines and the SAGER guidelines checklist. These offer systematic approaches to the use and editorial review of sex and gender information in study design, data analysis, outcome reporting and research interpretation - however, please note there is no single, universally agreed-upon set of guidelines for defining sex and gender.

Definitions
Sex generally refers to a set of biological attributes that are associated with physical and physiological features (e.g., chromosomal genotype, hormonal levels, internal and external anatomy). A binary sex categorization (male/female) is usually designated at birth (""sex assigned at birth""), most often based solely on the visible external anatomy of a newborn. Gender generally refers to socially constructed roles, behaviors, and identities of women, men and gender-diverse people that occur in a historical and cultural context and may vary across societies and over time. Gender influences how people view themselves and each other, how they behave and interact and how power is distributed in society. Sex and gender are often incorrectly portrayed as binary (female/male or woman/man) and unchanging whereas these constructs actually exist along a spectrum and include additional sex categorizations and gender identities such as people who are intersex/have differences of sex development (DSD) or identify as non-binary. Moreover, the terms ""sex"" and ""gender"" can be ambiguous—thus it is important for authors to define the manner in which they are used. In addition to this definition guidance and the SAGER guidelines, the resources on this page offer further insight around sex and gender in research studies.

Author contributions

For transparency, we require corresponding authors to provide co-author contributions to the manuscript using the relevant CRediT roles. The CRediT taxonomy includes 14 different roles describing each contributor’s specific contribution to the scholarly output. The roles are: Conceptualization; Data curation; Formal analysis; Funding acquisition; Investigation; Methodology; Project administration; Resources; Software; Supervision; Validation; Visualization; Roles/Writing - original draft; and Writing - review & editing. Note that not all roles may apply to every manuscript, and authors may have contributed through multiple roles. More details and an example.

Article transfer service
This journal uses the Elsevier Article Transfer Service to find the best home for your manuscript. This means that if an editor feels your manuscript is more suitable for an alternative journal, you might be asked to consider transferring the manuscript to such a journal. The recommendation might be provided by a Journal Editor, a dedicated Scientific Managing Editor, a tool assisted recommendation, or a combination. If you agree, your manuscript will be transferred, though you will have the opportunity to make changes to the manuscript before the submission is complete. Please note that your manuscript will be independently reviewed by the new journal. More information.

Open access

Please visit our Open Access page for more information about open access publishing in this journal.

Queries

For questions about the editorial process (including the status of manuscripts under review) or for technical support on submissions, please visit our Support Center.

Preprint references
Where a preprint has subsequently become available as a peer-reviewed publication, the formal publication should be used as the reference. If there are preprints that are central to your work or that cover crucial developments in the topic, but are not yet formally published, these may be referenced. Preprints should be clearly marked as such, for example by including the word preprint, or the name of the preprint server, as part of the reference. The preprint DOI should also be provided.

Research Elements

This journal enables you to publish research objects related to your original research – such as data, methods, protocols, software and hardware – as an additional paper in a Research Elements journal.

Research Elements is a suite of peer-reviewed, open access journals which make your research objects findable, accessible and reusable. Articles place research objects into context by providing detailed descriptions of objects and their application, and linking to the associated original research articles. Research Elements articles can be prepared by you, or by one of your collaborators.

During submission, you will be alerted to the opportunity to prepare and submit a manuscript to one of the Research Elements journals.

More information can be found on the Research Elements page.