Submission guidelines

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Please read the guidelines in full before submitting your manuscript.
Manuscripts not conforming to these guidelines may be returned.

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The Journal recommends that authors follow the Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals formulated by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).

Sage is committed to upholding the integrity of the academic record. We encourage authors to refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics’ International Standards for Authors and view the author responsibilities section on the Sage Journal Author Gateway.

We also encourage you to familiarize yourself with our Editorial Policies and our Publication Ethics Policies.

Sage Publishing disseminates high-quality research and engaged scholarship globally, and we are committed to diversity and inclusion in publishing. We encourage submissions and peer review from a diverse range of authors and reviewers from across all countries and backgrounds. Read our diversity, equity, and inclusion pledge.

There are no fees payable to submit or publish in this journal. Open access options are available – see below.

Please read the guidelines below then submit your manuscript here.

Access: Subscription
Accepts preprints? Yes
Identity transparency: Single anonymized

Please note that this journal is online-only and does not offer print copies.

There are no fees payable to submit or publish in this journal.

Figures submitted in color will be published in color in the online version of the journal at no cost.

Optional open access publishing is available for a fee via the Sage Choice program, and Open Access agreements, where authors can publish open access either discounted or free of charge depending on the agreement with Sage. Find out if your institution is participating by visiting Open Access Agreements at Sage. Open Access agreement eligibility is determined by the corresponding author’s affiliation matching an agreement at acceptance. For more information on Open Access publishing options at Sage please visit Sage Open Access.

For information on funding body compliance, and depositing your article in repositories, please visit Sage’s Author Archiving and Re-Use Guidelines and Publishing Policies.

Your article must be within the scope of the journal and be of sufficient quality. If not, it will not be reviewed. Please read the journal’s Aims and Scope to see if your article is appropriate.

The manuscript must be your original work, you must have the rights to the work, and you must have obtained and be able to supply all necessary permissions for the reproduction of any copyright works not owned by you, including figures, illustrations, tables, lengthy quotations, or other material previously published elsewhere.

Article types

Original Research 

Original Research reports an original investigation. Randomized clinical trials must follow CONSORT guidelines and include a flow chart. Clinical trials must be registered (https://clinicaltrials.gov or equivalent). Observational studies, surveys, bench studies, qualitative research, and quality improvement projects must have generalizable interest among the readers of the Journal and follow the scientific method.

  •    5,000-word limit (must include: Title Page, Structured Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusions, References, Quick        Look. It may also include Tables, Figures, and Supplementary Material.
  •     Structured abstract of no more than 300 words (Background, Methods, Results, Conclusions)
  •     Maximum of 8 figures and/or tables
  •      Maximum of 50 references

Narrative Review

A comprehensive review of the literature that does not follow the rigor of a systematic review. Usually written by persons with established expertise in the subject area. 

Scoping reviews should be submitted in the Narrative Review category.

  •     7,500-word limit (must include: Title Page, Outline, Unstructured Narrative Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Review of the Literature, Summary,           and References. It may also include Tables, Figures, and Supplementary Material.
  •     Unstructured abstract of no more than 300 words
  •     Maximum of 15 figures and/or tables
  •     Maximum of 150 references

Systematic Review

A methodologically rigorous review that organizes relevant evidence fitting pre-specified eligibility criteria in order to address a specific research question. It uses explicit, systematic methods to minimize bias in the identification, selection, synthesis, and summary of studies. May contain a meta-analysis. Must follow the PRISMA guidelines and be registered with PROSPERO

  •      5,000-word limit (must include: Title Page, Structured Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusions, and References. It may also include Tables, Figures, and Supplementary Material.
  •       Structured abstract of no more than 300 words (Background, Methods, Results, and Conclusions)
  •       Maximum of 10 figures and/or tables (one of the figures must be a PRISMA flow chart)
  •      Maximum of 100 references

 Short Report

A Short Report describes novel findings that have potential clinical impact but are not developed enough to warrant publication as Original Research. Short Reports should not be interim analyses of ongoing projects. Case reports will not be considered.

  •          1,500-word limit (must include: Title Page, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, and References)
  •          No abstract and no supplementary material
  •          Maximum of 2 figures and/or tables
  •          Maximum of 15 references

Editorials (Invited Only)

Commentary that is related to another paper published in the same issue of the Journal. 

  •         Word limit: 1,500
  •          No abstract
  •          Maximum of 3 figures and/or tables
  •          Maximum of 30 references
  •          No supplemetary material

Correspondence

A brief communication responding to previously published material in the Journal.

  •         1,500-word limit (must include: Title Page, Text, and References)
  •          No abstract
  •          May include one figure OR table
  •          Maximum of 15 references
  •          No supplementary material

Word limits do NOT pertain to the abstract, disclosure statements, author contribution statements, funding information, acknowledgments, tables, figure legends, or references. 

Quick Look

The concise take-home message of the study. Only Original Research articles have Quick Look boxes. Quick Look boxes have 2 headings, Current Knowledge and What This Paper Contributes To Our Knowledge.

Include the Quick Look text in the main manuscript file.

Current Knowledge 

  • 2-4 declarative sentences summarizing current understanding of the topic being studied. Avoid stating what isn't known.

What This Paper Contributes To Our Knowledge 

  • 2-4 declarative sentences summarizing the take-home message of the study. Use past tense. Provide only information supported by the data. Do not overstate the importance of your results and do not suggest further research; this section is about the paper at hand. 

The Editors reserve the right to edit Quick Look boxes for accuracy, style, and length. 

Example Quick Look 

Current knowledge 

The endotracheal tube cuff allows positive pressure ventilation and protects the airway from aspiration. Standard cuff pressures of 20–30 cm H2O are typically used to prevent leakage of fluid around the cuff and to prevent mucosal injury. In recent years, laboratory evaluations of cuffs in glass models have demonstrated reduced fluid leakage, but clinical studies have not confirmed these findings in vitro. 

What this paper contributes to our knowledge 

In a realistic viscoelastic model of the trachea, endotracheal tube cuffs of different designs provided an adequate seal at a pressure of 12 cm H2O. With increased PEEP, higher cuff pressures were required. Tubes with a subglottic suction channel performed best in the lateral position.

Equations

Write equations as normal text. Do not use the equation function in Microsoft Word or other mathematics software. 

Statistical Analysis

For Original Research papers, the Editor recommends working with a biostatistician to assure appropriate analysis. The Editor may request a letter from your biostatistician assuring that the analysis is correct. 

In the Methods section, identify the statistical tests used to analyze the data. Indicate the P-value that was taken to indicate significance. State whether tests were one-tailed or two-tailed; justify the use of one-tailed tests. Identify post-hoc analyses. Identify any statistical analysis software used. Indicate how the power analysis was conducted to determine appropriate sample size. 

Report measurements with an appropriate degree of precision. Report both numerators and denominators for percentages. 

For continuous data, description statistics should be expressed as mean and standard deviation (not standard error). For ordinal data, median and interquartile range should be reported.  

For ratios, (eg, odds ration, relative risk), provide 95% confidence interval. 

Report exact P values rather than thresholds. Example: write “P = .18”, not “P > .05” or “P = NS.” Note that P cannot equal 0 or 1. If the statistical software reports P = 0, report in your manuscript as P < .001. If the statistical software reports P = 1, report in your manuscript as P > .99. 

P values ≥ .01 should be expressed to 2 digits. 

P values between .03 and .07 should be expressed to 3 digits. This is to preserve potential meaning of values near .05. 

P values between < .001 and .01 should be expressed to 3 digits. All P values < .001 should be reported as P < .001. 

Units of Measurement 

Report units of measurement according to current scientific usage. Standard units of measurement and scientific terms may be abbreviated without explanation (eg, L/min, mm Hg, pH, O2). The Journal uses most values in Systeme Internationale (SI) units. For blood gas values, we prefer mm Hg to kPa. For airway pressure, we prefer cm H2O rather than mbars.

Pulmonary Terms and Symbols

Use the Preferred Pulmonary Terms and Symbols. Use abbreviations sparingly and do not invent new abbreviations. Use an abbreviation only if the term occurs > 10 times in the manuscript.  

The following commonly used abbreviations do not need to be defined: ARDS, CI, COPD, COVID-19, CPAP, DNA, FDA, FEV1, FIO2, FVC, ICU, PaO2, PaCO2, PO2, PCO2, PEEP, SD, SpO2.

Drugs and Commercial Products 

Precisely identify all drugs and chemicals, doses, and methods of administration. 

Use generic names instead of trade (proprietary) names for both drugs and equipment. 

At first mention, trade names may be given parenthetically after generic names, including the name and location of the manufacturer. For equipment, provide model numbers if available. 

Subjects versus Patients 

Individuals enrolled in research are referred to as subjects, not patients. This applies to both retrospective and prospective studies.  

Ventilator Modes 

Use the Preferred Ventilator Mode Nomenclature. 

Inclusivity

Manuscripts should make no assumptions about the beliefs of any reader, should contain nothing which might imply that one individual is superior to another on the grounds of race, sex, culture, or any other characteristic, and should use inclusive language throughout. Authors should ensure that writing is free from bias, for example, by using gender neutral descriptions when possible.  

The Journal prefers Black (capitalized) to African American. 

Clinical trial registration

The journal conforms to the ICMJE requirement that clinical trials are registered in a WHO-approved public trials registry at or before the time of first participant enrollment as a condition of consideration for publication. The trial registry name and URL, and registration number must be included at the end of the abstract.

Reporting guidelines

Your manuscript must follow the relevant EQUATOR Network reporting guidelines, depending on the type of study. The EQUATOR wizard can help identify the appropriate guideline. You will need to upload the appropriate checklist with your submission.

Other resources can be found at NLM’s Research Reporting Guidelines and Initiatives.

If your research involves animals, you will be asked to confirm that you have carefully read and adhered to the ARRIVE guidelines.

Formatting your manuscript

Accepted file types

The preferred format for your manuscript is Word. You do not need to follow a template, but please ensure your heading levels are clear, and the sections clearly defined.

Your article title, keywords, and abstract all contribute to its position in search engine results, directly affecting the number of people who see your work. For details of what you can do to influence this, visit How to help readers find your article online.

Double-space all text (including Tables and References). Flush-left and bold 1st level headings; flush-left and bold 2nd level headings; indent and bold 3rd level headings. For original research, the use of subheadings is discouraged; the major headings are usually sufficient. Subheadings are usually necessary and appropriate for review papers.

Title

Your manuscript’s title should be concise, descriptive, unambiguous, accurate, and reflect the precise contents of the manuscript. A descriptive title that includes the topic of the manuscript makes an article more findable in the major indexing services.

Abstract

Please include a structured abstract of 300 words between the title and main body of your manuscript that concisely states the purpose of the research, major findings, and conclusions. If your research includes clinical trials, the trial registry name and URL, and registration number must be included at the end of the abstract. Submissions that do not meet this requirement will not be considered.

For clinical trials, the trial registry name and URL, and registration number must be included at the end of the abstract.

Keywords

Please include a minimum of 6-10 keywords, listed after the abstract. Keywords should be as specific as possible to the research topic.

Artwork, figures, and other graphics

For guidance on the preparation of illustrations, pictures, and graphs in electronic format, please read Sage’s artwork guidelines.

Figures supplied in color will appear in color online.

Please ensure that you have obtained any necessary permission from copyright holders for reproducing any illustrations, tables, figures, or lengthy quotations previously published elsewhere. For further information including guidance on fair dealing for criticism and review, please see the Frequently Asked Questions page on the Sage Journal Author Gateway.

Title page
The Title Page should include:
  • Article title
  • The full list of authors including names and affiliations of each
    • The listed affiliation should be the institution where the research was conducted. If an author has moved to a new institution since completing the research, the new affiliation can be included in a note at the end of the manuscript – please indicate this on the title page.
    • All persons eligible for authorship must be included at the time of submission (please see the authorship section for more information).
  • Contact information for the corresponding author: name, institutional address, phone, email
  • Acknowledgments section
  • Declaration of conflicting interest
  • Funding statement
  • Ethical approval and informed consent statements
  • Data availability statement
  • Any other identifying information related to the authors and/or their institutions, funders, approval committees, etc, that might compromise anonymity.

General Instructions

  • Figures should complement the text; they should not be redundant of text. Use figures only if they have a purpose.
  • Figures should be standalone without the need to refer to the body of the manuscript.
  • Each figure should be submitted as a separate file and not embedded in the manuscript.
  • The first figure in a clinical trial must be a flow chart.

Formatting

  • Use subscripts appropriately: H2O, CO2, etc.
  • Use a sans serif font sized appropriately for legibility. Axis titles may be larger than labels.
  • Use lines that are heavy enough to be easily visualized.
  • Do not place a title over the figure. This information should be included in the legend.
  • Labels are usually a whole number, unless the range is small, in which case a single decimal place is provided. For example, a receiver operating characteristic curve, where the labels range from 0 to 1 (0, 0.1, 0.2 … 0.8, 0.9, 1).
  • Use color, if necessary, to show differences such as to separate series within a group.
  • Do not use background gridlines or shading in graphs.
  • Figures as output from statistical analysis software are often not publication ready and will need to be
  • Identify stains and magnifications for all photomicrographs. 
  • Consult a graphic artist as needed for help preparing publication ready figures.

File Types and Resolution

  • Format as TIFF, JPEG, or EPS for images containing no text or graphs. EPS is the preferred format for graphs and line art. 
  • Image resolution must be at least 300 dpi (dots per inch). Line art should have a minimum resolution of 800 dpi. 
  • An artwork preparation service is available for a fee from Sage; this service is optional.

Figure Legends

  • Legends should be detailed enough to help the reader understand the figure. The legend should be more than a short title. Included in the legend are definitions of any abbreviations used in the figure. P-values are usually included in the legend but can be included in the figure if necessary for clarity.
  • Include figure legends in the manuscript text file, not in the figure files.

 

Select the Appropriate Figure Style

Image

  • An image can be a photo or a line drawing. These are commonly used to illustrate an experimental set-up.
  • If using a photo, avoid background distractions. A photo free of background objects is preferred. 
  • Line drawings should be as realistic as possible.
  • Radiographs and other clinical imaging should not be altered in any way and supplied exactly as in the patient record. Any alteration is considered fabrication. Patient identifiers must be removed. Radiographs must clearly identify the relevant details.
  • Images of individuals must be de-identified or must have permission to use from the individual. 

Li J, Respir Care 2024;69(12):1517

Morinishi K, Respir Care 2025;70(10):1285

Flow Chart

  • A flow chart shows how participants move through each stage of the study, from screening and enrollment to allocation, follow-up, and analysis.
  • A CONSORT flow diagram is used for randomized controlled trials. Note that our style is a bit different than that in the CONSORT example.
  • Box borders, arrows, and text should be black.
  • Size the boxes according to the amount of text; the boxes will differ in size but there should be a similar amount of white space for each.
  • Center the text in the main boxes. For exclusion boxes, center the total exclusion number at the top but then the breakdown descriptions and numbers are left-justified.
  • Place the number in each box under the text; do not use “n = ”.
  • Arrows indicating exclusion should extend to the right. 

Ahmed ZS, Respir Care 2025;70(10):1248

Bar Graph

  • Bar graphs can be used for nominal data and continuous data.
  • For continuous data, the size of the bar represents the mean, and standard deviation (not standard error) is indicated by a line extending vertically above the bar.
  • Borders should be placed around the entire graph.
  • Do not use gridlines.
  • Use external tic marks. Do not include minor tic marks.
  • If bar graph includes more than one series of data, there can be a small gap between each series (not required). The gap between bars should be less the width of the bars. The gap between groups should be larger than the gap between series. The series can be differentiated with different colors.
  • Be certain that the y-axis always extends to 0 to avoid the illusion of a large difference between groups.
  • Do not place numbers over bars.
  • For axis labels, units should be in parenthesis.
  • For a figure with several panels, label as A, B, C, etc., in the upper left corner inside the panel.
  • Preferred figure key placement in is upper right corner inside the panel. Do not place a box around the key.
  • Connectors can be used over bars to indicate groups and series that are significantly different. They are usually accompanied by a label (e.g., *, **) and the P-values are included in the legend (e.g., * P = .03, ** P < .001). Note that P is italics and there is no leading 0 for P-values.

Zakrajsek AD, Respir Care 2025;70(4):417.

Clark AR, Respir Care 2025;70(7):801

Box Plot

  • A box plot is used for nonparametric data. It includes the median, 25th percentile, and 75th percentile.
  • The whiskers must end at an observed data point, which can be defined in various ways. In the legend, it is important to specify the meaning of the whiskers.
  • Outliers are shown as data points.
  • The box plot should be drawn without color unless there is more than one series for each group, in which case color can be used to distinguish among series.
  • Do not place numbers in the box plot.
  • Borders should be placed around the entire box plot.
  • Do not use gridlines.
  • Use external tic marks. Do not include minor tic marks.
  • Be certain that the y-axis always extends to 0 to avoid the illusion of a large difference between groups.
  • For a figure with several panels, label as A, B, C, etc., in the upper left corner inside the panel.
  • Preferred figure key placement in is upper right corner inside the panel. Do not place a box around the key.
  • Connectors can be used over bars to indicate groups and series that are significantly different. They are usually accompanied by a label (e.g., *, **) and the P-values are included in the legend (e.g., * P = .03, ** P < .001). Note that P is italics and there is no leading 0 for P-values.

de Haro C, Respir Care 2025;70(11):1357

Chun P, Respir Care 2025;70(9):1120

 Scatter Plot

  • A scatter plot displays the relationship between 2 numbers using dots to represent individual data points. It is used to visualize patterns and correlations, with the independent variable plotted on the x-axis and the dependent variable on the y-axis. 
  • The y-axis should usually extend to 0.
  • Borders should be placed around the entire graph.
  • Do not use gridlines.
  • Use external tic marks. Do not include minor tic marks.
  • For a figure with several panels, label as A, B, C, etc., in the upper left corner inside the panel.
  • A regression line can be included on a scatter plot to represent the best fit for the data, showing the relationship between variables. 
  • If there is more than one series of data, the series can be differentiated with different colors.
  • Preferred figure key placement in is upper right corner inside the panel. Do not place a box around the key.
  • Statistics such as correlation coefficients and the equation for the regression line can be placed in a bottom corner.

Lellouche F, Respir Care 2025;70(11):1376 

Line Graph

  • A line graph connects a series of data points with a line to show how a continuous variable changes over time. A quantitative variable is shown on the y-axis, and time is shown on the x-axis). It is not appropriate to use a line graph to show discrete values and then connect those values with a line, as there are no data available between the points; in this case a bar graph should be used.
  • Borders should be placed around the entire graph.
  • Do not use gridlines.
  • Use external tic marks. Do not include minor tic marks.
  • Series can be differentiated with different colors or different line types.
  • Be certain that the y-axis always extends to 0 to avoid the illusion of a large difference between groups.
  • For axis labels, units should be in parenthesis.
  • For a figure with several graphs, label as A, B, C, etc., in the upper left corner inside the panel.
  • Preferred figure key placement in is upper right corner inside the panel. Do not place a box around the key.

Nickel AJ, Respir Care 2025;70(2):204 

Jensen H, Respir Care 2025;70(1):38 

Bland-Altman Plot

  • A Bland-Altman plot shows the agreement between 2 different quantitative measurement methods. It plots the difference between 2 measurements on the y-axis against the average of the 2 measurements on the x-axis. A scatter plot should not be used to show the agreement between 2 devices.
  • A line showing the mean difference should be displayed as a solid line and lines showing +2 standard deviations and -2 standard deviations should be displayed as dashed lines.
  • Borders should be placed around the entire graph.
  • Do not use gridlines.
  • Use external tic marks. Do not include minor tic marks.
  • For axis labels, units should be in parenthesis.

Shah NM, Respir Care 2025;70(9):1103 

Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve

  • A Receiver Operating Characteristic curve plots the trade-off between sensitivity (true positive rate) on the y-axis and 1 minus specificity (false positive rate) on the x-axis across all possible classification thresholds. It is used to evaluate the performance of a diagnostic test.
  • The x- and y-axis should extend to 0.
  • Borders should be placed around the entire graph.
  • Do not use gridlines.
  • Use external tic marks. Do not include minor tic marks.
  • For a figure with several panels, label as A, B, C, etc., in the upper left corner inside the panel.

Marabotti A, Respir Care 2025;70(9):1140

Forest Plots

  • The results of a meta-analysis are displayed as a forest plot.
  • It displays individual study results as squares with confidence intervals as horizontal lines.
  • The size of the square represents the weight of the study. 
  • The overall pooled result is a diamond at the bottom. 
  • A vertical line indicates the threshold for a null or no-effect result.

Alves Filho FWP, Respir Care 2025;70(9):1159

Pie Charts

  • Pie charts are not preferred and should be avoided.

 Tables 

Each table must be uploaded as a separate Microsoft Word file, not embedded in the text. Tables must have a title. The title should be self-sufficient and allow readers to understand the table without referring to the text. 

Tables should be numbered and cited consecutively in the text, Table 1, Table 2, etc. Any abbreviations and symbols must be explained in footnotes at the bottom of the table. For footnotes use the following symbols, superscripted, in the following order: *, †, ‡, §, ||, ¶, **, ††.


Acknowledgments

If you are including an Acknowledgements section, this will be published at the end of your article. The Acknowledgments section should include all contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship. Per ICMJE recommendations, it is best practice to obtain consent from non-author contributors who you are acknowledging in your manuscript.

Writing assistance and third party submissions: if you have received any writing or editing assistance from a third-party, for example a specialist communications company, this must be clearly stated in the Acknowledgements section and in the covering letter. Please see the Sage Author Gateway for what information to include in your Acknowledgements section. If your submission is being made on your behalf by someone who is not listed as an author, for example the third-party who provided writing/editing assistance, you must state this in the Acknowledgements and also in your covering letter. Please note that the journal editor reserves the right to not consider submissions made by a third party rather than by the author/s themselves.

Author contributions

You will be asked to list the contribution of each author as part of the submission process. Please include the Author Contributions heading within your submission after the Acknowledgements section. The information you give on submission will then show under the Author Contributions heading later at the proofing stage.

Please be sure to list all author credentials, including FAARC (Fellow of the American Association for Respiratory Care), if applicable. The Journal does not publish any other hononary titles.

Study Sponsorship and Funding

Respiratory Care requires authors to indicate the role of funding organizations or sponsors in the design of the study, data collection, data analysis, and interpretation of the data. Authors must also disclose the role of funding organizations in the preparation, review, and approval of the manuscript. The setting where the study was conducted must be indicated. Full disclosure of the role of funding sources must be included at the beginning of the Methods section. This also includes any devices, medications, or equipment provided by the sponsor or company.

Individuals who provided paid contributions to the paper (including writers, statisticians, epidemiologists, and any others involved with data management and analyses) may meet the criteria for authorship. If they do not, they should be listed in the Acknowledgment section. 

Respiratory Care will not consider submissions that are ghostwritten by industry employees or hired writers. Nor will the Journal consider submissions of industry-sponsored studies in which the data were collected and analyzed solely by employees of the company. Such studies are considered only if there is an independent analysis of the methods and data by someone at an academic institution with research and publishing experience (eg, medical school, academic medical center, or government research institute). A letter providing the qualifications and experience of the person(s) performing the analysis should be uploaded with the manuscript files. Authors should also be prepared to share the underlying data to allow its verification. The Journal will also not consider other types of manuscripts such as narrative reviews, systematic reviews, and correspondence if all of the authors are employees of a company. 

For additional information related to relationships between authors and industry, refer to Fontanarosa PB, Flanagin A, DeAngelis CD. Reporting conflicts of interest, financial aspects of research, and role of sponsors in funded studies. JAMA 2005;294(1):110-111. 

Disclosure Policy

Each author must fully disclose all potential conflicts of interest, whether related to the content of the paper or not. Disclosures should be for the previous 2-year period.

Statements and declarations

Please include a section with the heading ‘Statements and Declarations’ at the end of your submitted article, after the Acknowledgements section [and Author Contributions section if applicable] including each of the sub-headings listed below. If a declaration is not applicable to your submission, you must still include the heading and state ‘Not applicable’ underneath. Please note that you may be asked to justify why a declaration was not applicable to your submission by the Editorial Office.

Ethical considerations

Please include your ethics approval statements under this heading, even if you have already included ethics approval information in your methods section. If ethical approval was not required, you need to explicitly state this. You can find information on what to say in your ethical statements as well as example statements on our Publication ethics and research integrity policies page.

All papers reporting studies involving human participants, human data or human tissue must state that the relevant Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board approved the study, or waived the requirement for approval, providing the full name and institution of the review committee in addition to the approval number. If applicable, please also include this information in the Methods section of your manuscript.

Please include any participant consent information under this heading and state whether informed consent to participate was written or verbal. If the requirement for informed consent to participate has been waived by the relevant Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board (i.e. where it has been deemed that consent would be impossible or impracticable to obtain), please state this. If this is not applicable to your manuscript, please state ‘Not applicable’ in this section. More information and example statements can be found on our Publication ethics and research integrity policies page.

Submissions containing any data from an individual person (including individual details, images or videos) must include a statement confirming that informed consent for publication was provided by the participant(s) or a legally authorized representative. Non-essential identifying details should be omitted. Please do not submit the participant’s actual written informed consent with your article, as this in itself breaches the patient’s confidentiality. The Journal requests that you confirm to us, in writing, that you have obtained written informed consent to publish but the written consent itself should be held by the authors/investigators themselves, for example in a patient’s hospital record. The confirmatory letter may be uploaded with your submission as a separate file in addition to the statement confirming that consent to publish was obtained within the manuscript text. If this is not applicable to your manuscript, please state ‘Not applicable’ in this section.

Declaration of conflicting interest

The journal requires a declaration of conflicting interests from all authors so that a statement can be included in your article. For guidance on conflict of interest statements, see our policy on conflicting interest declarations and the ICMJE recommendations.

If no conflict exists, your statement should read: ‘The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article’.

Funding statement

All articles need to include a funding statement, under a separate heading, even if you did not receive funding. You’ll find guidance and examples on our Funding page.

Data availability

The Journal is committed to facilitating openness, transparency and reproducibility of research, and has the following research data sharing policy. For more information, including FAQs please visit the Sage Research Data policy pages.

Subject to appropriate ethical and legal considerations, authors are encouraged to:

  • Share your research data in a relevant public data repository
  • Include a data availability statement linking to your data. If it is not possible to share your data, use the statement to confirm why it cannot be shared.
  • Cite this data in your research

Reference style and citations

The journal follows the Sage Vancouver reference style. View the Sage Vancouver guidelines to ensure your manuscript conforms.

Style Examples for Reference List:   Please browse the Style Examples for Reference List here

Authors should update any references to preprints when a peer reviewed version is made available, to cite the published research. Citations to preprints are otherwise discouraged.

EndNote

If you use EndNote to manage references, you can download the Sage Vancouver EndNote output file.

Supplemental material

This Journal can host additional materials online (e.g. datasets, podcasts, videos, images etc.) alongside the full text of the article. Your supplemental material must be one of our accepted file types. For that list and more information please refer to our guidelines on submitting supplemental files.

English language editing services

Authors seeking assistance with English language editing, translation, or figure and manuscript formatting to fit the journal’s specifications should consider using Sage Author Services. Visit Sage Author Services for further information.

As part of the submission process you will need to confirm that this is your original work, that you have the rights in the work, that this is for first publication in this Journal, that it is not being considered for/has not already been published elsewhere, and that you have obtained and can supply all necessary permissions for the reproduction of any copyright works not owned by you.

Please see our guidelines on prior publication and note that the journal may accept submissions of manuscripts that have been posted on preprint servers.

Preprints

The journal will consider submissions of manuscripts that have been posted on preprint servers.

Please enter the preprint DOI in the designated field when submitting your manuscript. We advise that you inform the Journal Editorial office about your posted preprint at submission.

Note that you should not post an updated version of your manuscript on a preprint server while it is being peer reviewed.

Learn more about our preprint policy.

Submission site

Submit your manuscript online via Sage Track.

IMPORTANT: Please check whether you already have an account in Sage Track before trying to create a new one. If you have reviewed or authored for the journal in the past year it is likely that you will have had an account created. For further guidance on submitting your manuscript online please visit ScholarOne Online Help.

Manuscripts should only be submitted with the consent of all contributing authors. The individual responsible for submitting the manuscript should carefully check that all those whose work contributed to the manuscript are listed as authors.

Ensure you upload all relevant manuscript files, including any additional supplemental files (including reporting guidelines where relevant).

Authorship

Please view our authorship policies, which includes information on criteria for authorship, who should be the corresponding author and more.

Please note that AI chatbots, for example ChatGPT, should not be listed as authors. For more information see the policy on Use of ChatGPT and generative AI tools.

Files

  • Cover letter. To help the Editor in their preliminary evaluation, please indicate why you think the manuscript suitable for publication.
  • Title Page with all required identifying information as laid out in Preparing your manuscript for submission (above). This will not be sent to the peer reviewers.
  • Your manuscript, properly formatted according to all stipulations above, and within the scope of the journal.
  • Figures and images.
  • Supplemental material. This journal can host additional materials online (e.g. datasets, podcasts, videos, images, etc) alongside the full-text of the article. Your supplemental material must be one of our accepted file types. For that list and more information please refer to our guidelines on submitting supplemental files.

Other information required for submission

  • ORCID ID of the submitting author.
    • It is strongly encouraged that all co-authors ensure their ORCID IDs are linked to their accounts in the submission system prior to article acceptance, as this is the only way to have their ORCID ID present on the published article. ORCID IDs cannot be added to manuscripts after acceptance/publication. Please note that each co-author must log in to the submission system to add their own ORCID ID to their account. To add an ORCID ID, edit your account, click the link when prompted, and sign into your ORCID account to validate your ID. You will then be redirected back to the submission system and your ORCID ID will become part of your accepted publication’s metadata.
    • Please create an ORCID ID if you do not already have one or visit our ORCID homepage to learn more.
  • Complete list of authors, with their institutional affiliations.
    • The author information you enter at submission must exactly match what is included on your manuscript and/or title page, including full names, academic affiliations, and corresponding author contact details.
    • The listed affiliation should be the institution where the research was conducted. If an author has moved to a new institution since completing the research, the new affiliation can be included in a note at the end of the manuscript.
    • All listed authors must meet the criteria for authorship (above).
    • All persons eligible for authorship must be included at the time of submission.
    • All authors must have given consent for the manuscript to be submitted in its current form.
  • Keywords: During submission, you may be asked to select or enter keywords for your manuscript. These keywords are used to match appropriate reviewers to your manuscript.
  • The number of figures, tables, and words in your manuscript.
  • Funder information: Name, grant/award number.
  • You may be required to enter your declaration of conflicting interest as part of the submission process, in addition to listing it on your manuscript and/or title page. Please have it on hand.
  • If you have posted your manuscript to a preprint server, you will be asked to supply the DOI (this does not prohibit submission, but no changes should be made to the preprint version while your manuscript is under evaluation in this journal). Please see our guidelines on prior publication. If the article is accepted for publication, the author may re-use their work according to the journal's author archiving policy. If your manuscript is accepted, you must include a link in your preprint to the final version of your published article.

The following summary describes the peer review process for this journal:
Identity transparency: Single anonymized
Reviewer interacts with: Editor
Review information published: None

Your manuscript will undergo an initial evaluation. If it does not conform to the requirements laid out in these guidelines, it will be returned to you for amendments prior to peer review. Manuscripts may be desk rejected without peer review at this point if they are out of scope for the journal or otherwise unsuitable.

After passing the initial evaluation, your manuscript will then be peer reviewed. You can log in at any time to check the status of your manuscript. We will notify you when a decision has been reached.

To ensure the integrity of the peer review process we assign reviewers and cannot accept author recommendations.

All manuscripts are reviewed as rapidly as possible, while maintaining rigor. Reviewers make comments to the author and recommendations to the Editor who then makes the final decision on all manuscripts, including those appearing in a special issue or special collection. The Editor or members of the Editorial Board may occasionally submit their own manuscripts for possible publication in the Journal. In these cases, the peer review process will be managed by alternative members of the Board and the submitting Editor/Board member will have no involvement in the decision-making process.

You can view our complaints and appeals policy here.

Read Sage's complete peer review policy.

Plagiarism

The journal and Sage take issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism or other breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. Please read Sage's complete policy on plagiarism and the actions we may take.

Contributor’s Publishing Agreement

Before publication, we require the author as the rights holder to sign a Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement. Sage’s Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement is an exclusive license agreement which means that the author retains copyright in the work but grants Sage the sole and exclusive right and license to publish for the full legal term of copyright. Exceptions may exist where an assignment of copyright is required or preferred by a proprietor other than Sage. In this case copyright in the work will be assigned from the author to the society. For more information please visit the Sage Journal Author Gateway.

Preprints

If your manuscript was posted on a preprint server prior to acceptance, you must include a link in your preprint to the final published version of your published article.

Production

Your Sage Production Editor will keep you informed as to your article’s progress throughout the production process. Proofs will be made available to the corresponding author via our editing portal, Sage Edit, or by email, and should be returned promptly to avoid delaying publication. Authors are reminded to check their proofs carefully to confirm that all author information, including names, affiliations, sequence, and contact details are correct, and that Funding and Conflict of Interest statements, if any, are accurate. This is the final opportunity to make changes to your manuscript. Further corrections will not be possible after publication. Changes to the author list are not permitted at this stage.

Publication

OnlineFirst publication: This enables us to publish final articles online immediately, without waiting for assignment to a future issue of the Journal. This usually significantly reduces publication lead time. Visit the Sage Journals help page for more details, including how to cite OnlineFirst articles.

Access to your published article: We provide you with online access to your published article. The online access link is provided to the corresponding author for sharing with their co-authors.

Promoting your article

Publication is not the end of the process. Between us, we can ensure that your article is found, read, downloaded and cited as widely as possible. Many of the most effective tactics are those you can do quickly and easily to your network of contacts and peers. Visit the Promote Your Article page on the Sage Journal Author Gateway for numerous resources to help you promote your work.

The Sage Journal Author Gateway has some general advice on how to get published, plus links to further resources. Sage Author Services also offers authors a variety of ways to improve and enhance your article including English language editing, plagiarism detection, and video abstract and infographic preparation.

If you have any questions about publishing with Sage, please visit the Sage Journals Solutions Portal.

You can view our complaints and appeals procedure.

Contact us

You can direct any questions to the journal’s editorial office:

rcjournal@aarc.org