Submissions

Author Guidelines

Author
GUIDELINES

Title

Author Guidelines

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Authors wishing to submit to RIYAADA Journal of Leadership and Governance in Healthcare System (RJLGHS) are strongly encouraged to read these guidelines carefully before preparing and submitting a manuscript. Adherence to the journal’s requirements facilitates efficient editorial handling, strengthens the quality of scholarly presentation, and supports a fair and timely review process.

RJLGHS publishes original, scholarly, and policy-relevant work in leadership, governance, public health, health systems, healthcare management, health financing, service delivery, quality improvement, institutional reform, and related interdisciplinary domains. The journal welcomes contributions that are analytically rigorous, methodologically sound, ethically conducted, and relevant to research, policy, management, or practice.

3.1 General submission requirements

Submissions must be original and must not have been published previously, in whole or in substantial part, in any journal, edited volume, or other formal publication. Manuscripts must not be under consideration simultaneously by another journal. By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that all listed authors have read and approved the submission and that the work accurately reflects their scholarly contribution.

Manuscripts should be prepared in clear, formal academic English. The journal expects authors to submit polished work that has been carefully reviewed for language, structure, coherence, accuracy, and completeness before submission. Poorly prepared manuscripts may be returned prior to editorial assessment.

3.2 Types of manuscripts considered

The journal accepts several categories of scholarly work, including:

• Original research articles
• Systematic reviews
• Scoping reviews
• Narrative reviews
• Policy analyses
• Implementation studies
• Case studies
• Brief reports
• Commentaries
• Perspectives
• Editorials
• Methodological papers

The editorial office may advise authors where a manuscript appears better suited to a different article category.

3.3 Manuscript structure

Although variation by article type is expected, most manuscripts should normally include the following elements where relevant:

• Title
• Abstract
• Keywords
• Introduction
• Methods
• Results or Findings
• Discussion
• Conclusion
• Declarations
• References

The title should be concise, accurate, and informative. It should clearly reflect the content of the submission and avoid unnecessary abbreviations.

The abstract should summarize the purpose of the study or paper, the methodological approach, the principal findings or arguments, and the key conclusion or implications. Authors should ensure that the abstract is consistent with the full manuscript and suitable for indexing and discoverability.

Authors should provide 3 to 6 keywords that are specific, relevant, and likely to support search retrieval and indexing.

3.4 Formatting and presentation

Manuscripts should be submitted in an editable Word-compatible format. The journal encourages consistent formatting throughout the document, with clear section headings, appropriate paragraph structure, and accurate numbering where needed.

Authors should ensure that:

• terminology is used consistently;
• abbreviations are defined at first mention;
• tables and figures are clearly titled and numbered;
• all tables and figures are cited within the text;
• statistical and analytical expressions are accurate and clearly presented;
• references are complete and consistent;
• the manuscript has been checked carefully for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and style.

Where figures are included, they should be of adequate quality for editorial handling and publication. Tables should be editable where possible rather than embedded as non-editable images.

3.5 Authorship and contributor information

All listed authors must have made substantial scholarly contributions to the work and should be able to take public responsibility for its content. Authorship should reflect meaningful intellectual contribution, not honorary or administrative association. The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that authorship information is accurate and complete at the time of submission.

During submission, authors will be required to provide full names, affiliations, countries, and email addresses for all contributors. ORCID iDs should be included where available. The author order entered into the journal system should match the intended published order.

The journal supports transparency in authorship and may request clarification where authorship disputes, inconsistencies, or concerns arise.

3.6 Declarations and transparency requirements

Authors are expected to provide all relevant declarations necessary for transparent scholarly communication. Depending on the nature of the manuscript, these may include:

• ethics approval statement;
• informed consent statement where applicable;
• funding statement;
• conflict of interest declaration;
• acknowledgements;
• author contribution statement;
• data availability statement;
• information on preprints or related outputs.

Failure to disclose relevant information may delay editorial consideration or result in rejection.

3.7 Ethics approval and research involving human participants

Any manuscript reporting research involving human participants, patient data, interviews, institutional records, personal information, or other ethically sensitive material must include a clear statement describing ethics review and approval, or an explanation where formal approval was not required. Where applicable, the manuscript should also indicate how informed consent was obtained and how confidentiality and privacy were protected.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their work was conducted in accordance with relevant institutional, national, and international ethical standards.

3.8 References and citation style

The journal expects accurate, complete, and consistent referencing. Authors should use a numbered biomedical citation style consistent with Vancouver or NLM conventions unless otherwise specified by the editorial office. Every reference listed must be cited in the text, and every in-text citation must correspond to a complete entry in the reference list.

Authors are responsible for the accuracy of references, including spelling of names, article titles, journal details, year, volume, issue, page range, and identifiers where available.

3.9 Supplementary files

Authors may submit supplementary material where this strengthens the submission and supports editorial or reader understanding. Examples include appendices, additional tables, methodological instruments, reporting checklists, policy documents, datasets, interview guides, or implementation materials. Supplementary files should be clearly labelled and referred to appropriately in the manuscript.

3.10 Editorial screening and peer review

All submissions undergo an initial editorial screening to assess suitability for the journal, completeness of submission, adherence to guidelines, and basic compliance with ethical and scholarly requirements. Manuscripts passing this stage may proceed to peer review.

The editorial office reserves the right to return manuscripts to authors for technical correction, structural improvement, or policy compliance before review. Submission to the journal does not guarantee acceptance or external review.

3.11 Revision process

Where revision is requested, authors should submit a revised manuscript together with a clear and organized response explaining how reviewer and editor comments have been addressed. Changes should be made carefully and transparently. Failure to respond adequately to key concerns may affect the editorial decision.

3.12 Final note to authors

RJLGHS values scholarship that combines intellectual seriousness, methodological quality, contextual relevance, and practical significance. Authors are encouraged to submit work that is not merely descriptive, but analytically meaningful and capable of contributing to policy, institutional learning, management improvement, or theoretical understanding within the journal’s scope.