Publication Ethics Policy

The standards we follow

Our policy draws on the COPE Core Practices, the ICMJE Recommendations and study-specific guidance listed by the EQUATOR Network. These sources guide our work; MedPub Assist is not a regulator, journal or certifying body. Policy reviewed 21 August 2026.

What we do

• Edit and restructure manuscripts written by the authors, for language, clarity, logic and journal style.
• Analyse data the authors collected, using appropriate, fully disclosed statistical methods.
• Verify journal indexing in the source databases and recommend only genuine, peer-reviewed journals.
• Review research reporting against the guideline appropriate to the study design and identify missing information for the authors.
• Coach authors on responding to peer review professionally and honestly.

What we never do

• No ghostwriting. We do not write papers for research that was not done, and we do not create manuscripts authors merely sign.
• No data fabrication or falsification. We never invent, alter or "improve" data, images or results. If we find serious problems in a dataset, we tell you honestly.
• No authorship for sale. We do not add, remove or reorder authors except to reflect genuine ICMJE-qualifying contributions, and we never broker authorship positions.
• No predatory journals. We do not submit to, recommend or negotiate with predatory, hijacked or fake-indexed journals, whatever the deadline pressure.
• No guaranteed acceptance. Acceptance is a peer-review decision. Any service guaranteeing it is either lying or bypassing peer review; we do neither.
• No plagiarism laundering. Our similarity-reduction work rewrites and cites properly; we never use tricks designed to defeat detection software.

Authorship

We follow the ICMJE criteria: every listed author should have contributed substantially to the work, participated in drafting or revising it, approved the final version and agreed to be accountable for it. Professional editing assistance does not qualify for authorship, and we do not accept it; where journals require it, our assistance can be noted in the acknowledgements.

Use of AI tools

AI tools are not listed as authors and cannot take responsibility for a manuscript. When an approved tool assists an editorial task, a human reviewer remains responsible for checking the output, authors are advised to follow the target journal's disclosure policy, and confidential material is not entered into a service that retains it for model training. AI is not used to invent data, citations, methods or results.

Confidentiality

Unpublished manuscripts, datasets and ideas are strictly confidential, as set out in our Privacy Policy. Copyright remains with the authors at all times.

Concerns and complaints

If you believe any work we delivered falls short of this policy, write to support@sumathipublications.com with the project details. Complaints are reviewed by senior editorial staff and answered within seven working days.