Author Guidelines

Format of articles

The number of words, references, tables/ figures should be adherent to BUMJ standards . Also we highly advise that you write succinctly and adhere to the following rules:

Format the manuscript file as single-column text without justification.

Number the pages using an Arabic numeral in the footer of each page.

Use the default Computer Modern fonts for your text, and the 'symbols' font for any Greek characters.

  • Utilize the Microsoft Word template.
  • A single, scientifically correct sentence summarizing the article's main point should appear in the title, which should also be no more than 20 words and free of puns or idioms.
  • The abstract should be according to BUMJ standards.
  • Use Times New Roman for the text, it should have 1.5 spacing; the body text should have a maximum font size of 12 points; the page size should be 8.5 by 11 inches (A4)
  • Use Times New Roman in tables. Use size 12 where able, but 10 or 11 size may also be used to fit text within the tables. Line spacing within a table should be single –spaced. All tables should be labeled and formatted in Vancouver style (https://guides.library.uq.edu.au/referencing/vancouver/tables) in numbering, title, notes, borders, etc.
  • When an acronym or abbreviation is used for the first time in a document, it should be defined and utilized with caution.
  • It is the authors' responsibility to spell words consistently. It ought to be in line with the Oxford English Dictionary or Webster's Third New International Dictionary.
  • Please visit the submission checklist page for an official list of which limits are required.
  • Supply figures and tables in separate files.
  • Combine and supply any Supplementary Information as a separate file, preferably in PDF format. Include the title of the manuscript and authors list on the first page of the Supplementary Information file.
  • Plagiarism will be dealt with as scientific misconduct. BUMJ will follow the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and take appropriate action if plagiarism is found at any point prior to publication. Please visit http://www.publicationethics.org for more information. The accepted plagiarism rate of the main manuscript is up to 15% (references are not included).

 

Manuscript:

Cover letter:
This page must include: *Title of the article *Correct full name/s of all authors and the two highest academic degrees *Name of the institution at the time authors did the study and to which the work is credited *Current affiliation and address of each author, address, e-mail, telephone and fax numbers of corresponding author with an asterisk- (superscript number next to each author.)

The cover letter should be downloaded, completed, and submitted with the manuscript; it should NOT be included in the main manuscript file.

Title

The main ideas of the work should be included in titles, which should also be clear, precise, and instructive. Add the research type as a subtitle to reports of clinical trials, meta-analyses, and ,systematic reviews (e.g., A Randomized Clinical Trial, A Meta-analysis, A Systematic Review). Don't mention the study type or design in the title or subtitle of publications on other kinds of research. The title should not be  more than 20 words

Abstract

In the manuscript text file, place the abstract after the title page on page 2.
Kindly ensure that your abstract does not contain any references.

Make sure it provides a brief explanation of the goals, methodology, main results, and important conclusion. The  abstract should be structured, and the number of words is according to BUMJ standards. The abstract, includes keywords, but does not include, figures, tables, or acronyms.
 Keywords:

List the keywords following the abstract, for indexing. These ought to sum up the submission's main ideas. the number of the keywords or key phrases should be according to BUMJ standards.

Introduction:

Provide background information, a brief justification for the study, and a list of any current debates or gaps in the field to establish the context.

Give a summary of your research question, predictions, and hypotheses and the aim of the studyat the end of the introduction.

Methods:

Provide enough detailed instructions and a clear explanation of what you did (and how) so that the study can be repeated.
As applicable, list the study's design, study population, sampling procedure, sample size, data collection tool and procedure, materials and equipment used,  thestatistical program used for data analysis, the statistical tests used, and the level of significance (the P-value, which is used to denote the significance level). A paragraph regarding ethical considerations should also be added.

Results

Include the findings that are directly related to the question you asked in your research. For better organization and communication of your findings, use subheadings, tables, and figures (when appropriate). When describing frequencies (i.e., percentages, proportions, ratios), include the absolute value (numbers). Define the provided values (e.g., mean and standard deviation or standard error, median, and interquartile range). If applicable, the value of the inferential statistical test/s used and the P-value should be provided.

Tables and figures:

  • Figures and tables must be numbered consecutively in Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc)  in the order in which they appear within the text, i.e. the first figure is labeled "Figure 1", the second "Figure 2", and so on. 
  • Refer to each figure or table in the text by their number, e.g. Figure 1, Table 4, etc.
  • The titles of the tables should be written above the table and left justified, while titles of the figures should be placed below the figures and left justified.
  • Figure captions should be placed below the figures.
  • To use a reproduced figure or table, you must obtain written permission from the copyright owner to include the figure or table in your work, and state the permission in the source citation as 'Reprinted with permission from ...'
  • All the tables and figures should supplement the article's content rather than repeat findings that are (or could be) succinctly explained in the text.
  • Tables and figures should be comprehensible without reading the entire article. Any symbols or abbreviations should be defined in the Note (for tables) or the caption (for figures)
  • Tables (maximum size of one page)
  • Figures must be of sufficient quality for editorial assessment and peer review.
  • All figures/graphs and tables should be created in Word, and attached as  separate files when submitting the manuscript. Files should be saved in editable format.
  • Pictures and images can be submitted in the one of the following formats; TIFF, BMP, JPG, PNG, GIF or PDF(vector).
  • Figure legends (these are limited to one to two sentences per figure)
  • The number of figures/ tables per article should follow BUMJ standard.

Discussion

Compare your findings to published research from the past and record any parallels or variances. Describe the main contributions and limits of your work. Provide guidelines for further investigation. It is necessary to appropriately label speculation and support it with relevant findings from the paper.

Conclusion

Keep it short, conclusions are typically one paragraph long; however, they may be written in two or three paragraphs. 
The conclusion should clarify how your research advances past research about the topic and describe how a previously identified gap in the literature [described in your introduction section] has been filled by your research.
Don't introduce new information. Instead, your conclusion should answer your main objectives and provide closure.

Recommendation

Clearly state the purpose of the recommendation and its intended impact. Use direct and actionable language to convey the suggested course of action.

References

The number of references per article should follow the BUMJ standards.

It is recommended that at least 85% of all cited works less than ten years old.

It is the authors' responsibility to ensure that their references are accurate, thorough, and properly cited in the text. Referencing should be numbered in the text's order of appearance; do not alphabetize. Referencing in text, tables, and legends should be marked with superscript numerals following a full stop or comma. Listing references should adhere to Vancouver Style( available : https://www.scribbr.co.uk/referencing/vancouver-style/ )

1-Book

Author surname Initial(s). Title: subtitle. Edition (if it is not the first edition). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example:

Cooke A. A guide to finding quality information on the Internet: selection and evaluation strategies. 2nd ed. London: Library Association Publishing; 2001.

2-Edited book

Editor(s) surname Initial(s), editor(s). Title: subtitle. Edition (if it is not the first edition). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example :

F, editor. Infrastructure provision and the negotiating process. Aldershot: Ashgate; 2003.

3- Book chapter from an edited book

Author(s) surname Initial(s). Title of chapter: subtitle. In: Author(s) surname Initial(s). Title of book. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication. p. page numbers.

Example:

Haefner H. Negative symptoms and the assessment of neurocognitive treatment response. In: Keefe RSE, McEvoy JP, editors. Negative symptom and cognitive deficit treatment response in schizophrenia. Washington DC: American Psychiatric Association; 2004. p. 85-110

4-E-book (online)

Author(s) surname Initial(s). Title: subtitle [online]. Edition (if not the first edition). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication [Accessed Date]. Available from: URL of database / location in which the book is held.

Example:

Greenhalgh T. How to read a paper: the basics of evidence based medicine [online]. London: BMJ Publishing Group; 2000 [Accessed 8 September 2008]. Available from: http://www.netlibrary.com/AccessProduct.aspx?ProductId=66703

5-Journal article (print)

Author(s) surname Initial(s). Title of article. Abbreviated title of journal. Year of publication;volume number(issue number):page numbers.

Example:

Meric F, Bernstam EV, Mirza NQ, Hunt KK, Ames FC, Ross M I, et al. Breast cancer on the world wide web: cross sectional survey of quality of information and popularity of websites. BMJ. 2002;324(7337):577-81.

6-Journal article (electronic)

Author(s) surname Initial(s). Title of article. Abbreviated title of journal [online]. Year of publication;volume number(issue number):page numbers. [Accessed date]. Available from: URL.

If there are more than six authors or editors, list the first three and then "et al."

Example :

Ross CTF. A conceptual design of an underwater vehicle. Ocean engineering [online]. 2006;33(16):2087-2104. [Accessed 6 July 2007]. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/

7- Thesis or dissertation (published)

Author's surname Initial(s). Title: subtitle. Award level of thesis, Awarding institution; Year of publication.

Example:

Deb S. Psychopathology of adults with a mental handicap and epilepsy. MA thesis, University of Leicester; 1991

8-Website or webpage (if the author is found)

Author(s)/Editor(s) surname Initial(s). Title. [online]. Publisher: place of publication; Year [Accessed date]. Available from: URL

Example:

SukYin A. Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) gene and breast cancer. [online]. Human Genome Epidemiology Network, National Office of Public Health Genomics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Atlanta GA; 2002 Jun [Accessed 8 September 2008]. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/genomics/hugenet/factsheets/FS_COMT.htm

9- Website or webpage if a specific author cannot be found,

attribute to the organisation or corporation.

Example:

Overseas Development Institute, Humanitarian Policy Group. Welcome to HPG. [online]. ODI: London; 2007 [Accessed 9 July 2007]. Available from: http://odi.org.uk/hpg/index.html

References list

References are presented in numerical order by the order in which they appear in the document.

Acknowledgements (optional)