Instructions for Authors

• Original Research Article Guidelines

• Feature Article Guidelines



ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE GUIDELINES

Air Medical Journal contains peer-reviewed clinical and academic material dedicated to advancing the scientific knowledge base of transport medicine. This material includes original research, collective reviews, case studies, editorials, and letters to the editor concerning the clinical practice, laboratory and clinical research, education, planning, and administration of medical care by medical transport professionals. The journal also contains selected academic manuscripts examining the management, flight operations, and safety aspects of medical transport services. Other special material may be published at the editors' discretion. All materials are reviewed by at least one member of the editorial board. Original research, brief reports, and case reports are peer-reviewed by at least two members of the board. To maintain objectivity, such reviews are conducted in a double-blind fashion. Articles may be submitted directly at ees.elsevier.com/amj or through a link on the home page at www.airmedicaljournal.com. Questions before submission can be sent to the managing editor at d.drennan@elsevier.com.

Authorship should be limited to those who have truly participated in the writing of the manuscripts. Manuscripts accepted for publication are edited for style. The authors are responsible for all statements in the published version and are encouraged to proofread accepted material carefully.

General Manuscript Submission Requirements

• Previous Publication—Manuscripts must be unpublished previously and not under consideration for publication elsewhere.
• Copyrights—After acceptance for publication, manuscript copyright rests with the journal. Authors will be sent a copyright transfer form.
• Cover Page—Each manuscript should include a cover page listing the title of the paper and the first names, initials, and last names and highest academic degrees of all authors. Specify the name of the author to whom any correspondence should be directed and include that author's affiliation(s), correspondence street address, telephone and fax numbers, and email address. (Reprints are available from the publisher.) Do not indicate author names or institutions anywhere in the manuscript other than on the cover page. Annotate the institution(s) in which work was performed, sponsoring institution(s), and respective department(s). Indicate granting institution(s) if the work was supported by grants or endowments. If the paper has been or will be presented orally or as a poster, indicate the title of the forum, the sponsoring organization, and the presentation date.
• Generic names—Wherever possible, use generic names of medications, biomedical devices, and aviation equipment. Brand names may be indicated with the name and the location of the manufacturer provided in parentheses after the generic name.
• References—Cite references in the order in which they appear in the text. Cite all references by superscript Arabic numbers in the text and in the tables and legends for illustrations. Include the first six authors' names before using et al. Annotate titles of journals referenced using standard Index Medicus abbreviations. Unpublished data or personal communications should be referenced in the body of the text (parenthetically) and should include dates of such correspondence. Use the following format for references:
  
  

  Journals—Duerner P, Frey RE, Kassuehike MS. Medical attendance in air transportation of patients. J World Assoc Emerg Disaster Med 1985;1:50-4.
  
  Books—Schwartz GR, Safar P, Stone JH, editors. Principles and practice of emergency medicine. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: WB Saunders; 1985. p. 1198-202.
  
  Chapters—Linberg R. Pathology of head injuries. In: Cowley RA, Trump BF, editors. Pathophysiology of shock. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins; 1982. p. 588-92.
  
  Websites—Petty JI. Ultrasound offers insight as diagnostic techniques. 2004 Mar 30. Available at: www.nasa.gov/vision/space/livinginspace/ultrasound.html . Accessed 2004 May 9.

• Abbreviations—Abbreviations may be used only for cumbersome titles or commonly accepted terminology. When such abbreviations are used, annotate them with the initial mention of words within the manuscript followed by the abbreviation in parentheses.
  
  Standard scientific abbreviations should be subscript or superscript. Terms with multiple interpretations may not be abbreviated when they appear together in a paper. Use ml rather than cc for fluid volumes. All hemodynamic pressures should be in mm Hg. Gas tensions should be expressed in torr. Temperature should be expressed in ºC, with the equivalent temperature in ºF expressed in parentheses. All other measurements may be expressed in either the metric or English system, with the appropriate conversion in parentheses, but they should be used consistently throughout the manuscript.
• Tables—Each table should have a title. Cite each table by number in the text.
• Figures—Illustrative materials must be of professional quality. Reference each figure by number in the text. Legends should be accurately numbered. Photographs or other graphics, including x-rays, must be jpeg or tiff files scanned at 300 dpi and must be marked for orientation. Color photographs will be used when absolutely essential to convey the information adequately. The additional cost of color material may be assigned to the author.
• Permissions—Illustrations or tables of materials from other publications must be accompanied by written permission from the copyright holder. The legends for tables and illustrations should acknowledge written permission.

Manuscript Categories

• Original Research: This category includes studies of interventions that potentially affect patient outcome. Also included are other activities that affect patient care and other general topics related to transport medicine. Such material must be submitted in the following format.

Abstract—Abstracts must be concise summaries and be presented in the following structured format: Introduction, which includes a statement regarding the purpose of the study; Methods, which states whether the study is retrospective or prospective, the type of intervention performed, the type and number of subjects, and the method of sample selection; Results, including the statistical significance; and Conclusion. Clinical studies also should include a category Setting, inserted just after the Introduction. Abstracts must be provided on a separate page and be limited to 200 words, exclusive of title, authors, and participating institutions.

Introduction—The introduction section should state clearly the purpose of the article and summarize the rationale for the study. Previously published material used to build the case for the study should be referenced.

Methods—The methods section should describe the authors' work in sufficient detail so that others in the field can reproduce the experiment. This section includes specific descriptions of the setting, the sample characteristics and method of selection, and measurement instruments, including estimates of reliability and precision, if applicable. The type of statistical analyses must be stated. Where appropriate, approval of the authors' institutional review board must be included.

Results—Results may be provided as tables, figures, and written text. The text must explain, in detail, data provided as tables or figures but should not be unnecessarily redundant. All direct results from the study must appear in this section. No discussion of the results should appear in this section.

Discussion—The discussion section should interpret results in terms of meaning and applicability and should present the strengths and weaknesses of the study. Results should not be repeated unnecessarily. Computations or extrapolations that may help to explain the results may be provided. The final paragraph should summarize the paper and the conclusions that may be drawn from the work. In addition, suggestions should be included for future research. References in positive or negative support for explanations must be annotated with such comparisons.

Significant Figures—Numbers expressed with greater significant figures than the accuracy inherent in the measurements should be rounded off to that accuracy.

References—As listed earlier.• Operational Research: Material in this category should deal with the interplay between medicine and transport concerns. In general, it should be presented in the same format as Original Research, although some flexibility will be permitted where appropriate.

• Brief Reports: Work in progress and initial reports with a small sample size may be published as brief reports. The format should be that of Original Research. Authors must have a sample size with a sufficient power to prevent beta error. Brief reports should have approximately 750 to 1000 words.

• Case Reports: Interesting cases illustrating a particular point of clinical care or examples of a specific disease state or pathophysiologic process of concern to air medical professionals may be reported. Abstracts are not necessary. The manuscript should be submitted in the following format:

Introduction—The introduction section should briefly present the general topic area and establish why the case is relevant to medical transport.

Case Report—The actual case should be presented in sufficient detail to allow the readers to adequately understand the interplay of medical transport and pathophysiology. This section generally should be approximately 300 words.

Discussion—The discussion section should review the relevant literature and offer conclusions and suggestions for other medical transport professionals.

References—As listed earlier.

• Subject Reviews: Authors are invited to submit scholarly discussions of topics of relevance and interest to medical transport professionals. Examples of potential topics include altitude physiology and advances in cardiac resuscitation.

• Editorials: Discussions on current topics in air transport medicine or scholarly discussions of papers published in Air Medical Journal may be presented in an editorial. The editors solicit most such discussions. Individuals interested in submitting editorials should contact the editors directly.• Letters to the Editors: Individuals are invited to write to the editors in response to topics discussed in the Journal or to raise other topics of interest to air medical professionals. Letters should have no more than three references and no figures or tables. The editors reserve the right to edit letters for length and content.

Publication of Anonymous Papers

When submitting any material to the editors for consideration of publication in Air Medical Journal, a corresponding author must be included. If the author requests anonymity and the editors agree, the author or authors' names may be withheld. However, if contact information does not accompany the submission, the information will not be published in the journal.

The editors will assign the most appropriate category for all material.



FEATURE ARTICLE GUIDELINES

Air Medical Journal, the magazine dedicated to medical transport professionals, seeks informative articles of interest to transport nurses, transport paramedics, EMS pilots, and EMS physicians, administrators, and communications specialists. How-to articles, safety and operational matters, clinical topics, program profiles, and association news are just some of the topics that come to life on our pages.

ARTICLE COMPONENTS
Articles may be submitted directly at ees.elsevier.com/amj or through a link on the home page at www.airmedicaljournal.com. Manuscripts should be double-spaced with 1-inch margins. A title page is required and must include the manuscript title; authors' full names and affiliations; and the name, address, phone and fax numbers, and E-mail address of one author designated as the editorial contact. A copy of the article without any identifying information (author or program name) also is required.

COPYRIGHT TRANSFER
If an article is accepted for publication, all authors must sign a copyright transfer form assigning all rights to the publisher.

ACCOUNTABILITY
All authors must disclose any relationship—financial or otherwise—with facilities, institutions, organizations, or companies mentioned in their work.

REFERENCES
Always attribute the sources of statistics, studies, and all quoted or paraphrased material. References should be listed sequentially as they appear in the text, with no duplication (assign one number to each reference). List complete references at the end of the manuscript and include the first six authors. Use the following format:

For magazine articles: Author's last name and first-name initial (x 6, if applicable). Article title. Journal title Year;Volume(number):Inclusive page numbers.

For books: Author's last name and first-name initial (x 6, if applicable). Book title. City: Publisher; Year. Inclusive page numbers.

For websites: Petty JI. Ultrasound offers insight as diagnostic techniques. 2004 Mar 30. Available at: www.nasa.gov/vision/space/livinginspace/ultrasound.html. Accessed 2004 May 9.

GRAPHICS
TIFF, EPS, or PDF formats are recommended. Line art should have a minimum resolution of 1000 dpi, halftone art (photos) a minimum of 300 dpi, and combination art (line/tone) a minimum of 500 dpi. Color figures should be submitted actual size.

PUBLICATION OF ANONYMOUS PAPERS
When submitting any material to the editors for consideration of publication in Air Medical Journal, a corresponding author must be included. If the author requests anonymity and the editors agree, the author or authors' names may be withheld. However, if contact information does not accompany the submission, the information will not be published in the journal.

SUBMISSIONS
Articles may be submitted directly at ees.elsevier.com/amj or through a link on the home page at www.airmedicaljournal.com. Questions before submission can be sent to the managing editor at d.drennan@elsevier.com.

Updated Feb 2007