Editorial process

RPMESP uses the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform to manage the editorial process. To start the process and be able to submit a manuscript, authors must register in the OJS platform. The steps to submit a manuscript can be found in the Manuscript Submission section.

Manuscript submission

All requirements must be met and all mandatory documents must be submitted. After submission, we will evaluate whether all requirements have been met. If the requirements are not met or if any of the mandatory documents have not been attached, the corresponding author will be informed by email that the manuscript has not been received. The manuscript may be resubmitted once the requirements have been met.

We recommend reviewing the Manuscript Submission section, in which you will find the description of the submission process, as well as the mandatory documents and other requirements.

Editorial evaluation

Registered articles will be presented to the RPMESP Editorial Board by the assigned associate editor. The RPMESP board is made up of a multidisciplinary team of experts, members of leading research institutions. The RPMESP Editorial Board will evaluate if the manuscript complies with the instructions for authors, if it is within the thematic scope of the journal, if it has any methodological problems that invalidate the results or if it contributes to the generation of new scientific knowledge. Our Editorial Board will then decide if the article is accepted for peer review, if it isn’t accepted, it will be returned to the corresponding author.

Communication during the editorial process will take place only between the assigned editor and the corresponding author of each article.

Peer review

All original articles, brief reports, case reports, review articles, special articles, scientific letters to the editor and history of public health articles that are considered for publication after the initial editorial evaluation, undergo external peer review, during which, national and international experts review the manuscript in order to provide comments as well as their opinion on whether the article should be published or not. In all cases, the participation of the reviewers is anonymous and ad honorem.

Only editorials and letters to the editor that discuss or complement the results of articles published in the last issue of RPMESP are exempt from external peer review, being evaluated by members of the Editorial Board to ensure their consistency and relevance.

During the submission process, authors may suggest up to three possible reviewers for their manuscript. Complete information about each potential reviewer should be included (full name, academic degree, affiliation, email). Reviewers suggested by the authors should not have direct links with the authors. The Committee ultimately decides whether to consider such proposals.

The reviewers’ assessment may conclude by considering the manuscript as: a) publishable without modifications; b) publishable with minor comments, which are recommendations for the improvement of the article; c) publishable with major comments, whose resolution is essential before accepting the article for publication; d) with invalidating comments, which recommend that the article should not be published. The reviewers may suggest changing the type of article.

Taking into account the reviewers’ comments, the Editorial Board will decide whether to approve the article, send the comments to the authors or not approve the article.

Response to comments

The corresponding author must submit the corrected article and a separate file describing in detail the response to each of the comments. The corrected article must have the lines numbered, the changes in red and, must be in track changes mode. The response letter must follow the same format of the file in which the comments are sent; each response, rationale and the number of the line where the change has been made to the text, must be below the comment. Each comment made by the reviewers, the editor and the RPMESP Board must be addressed and each response must be duly supported.

Based on the response to the comments, the Editorial Board will decide whether or not to approve the article. The Board may consider sending the corrected article to a reviewer before considering its publication, likewise the corrected manuscript may go through a new peer review round before a decision can be made.

If the corrected version of the article is not received by RPMESP within five weeks after sending the comments to the authors (this period includes reminders or extensions of the deadline requested by the authors), the article will be withdrawn from the editorial process.

Final decision

Authors will be informed when their manuscript is approved; then, the it will enter the editing process by the assigned editor. Authors whose article has not been approved will be informed via email as well.

The average time of the editorial process, which begins with the reception of the article and ends with the final decision by the RPMESP Editorial Board, is four months, depending on the speed of our reviewers and the response time of the authors.

Editing and typesetting

During the editing stage the length of the article, tables and figures can be modified. The assigned editor and the authors may communicate during this stage to evaluate any modifications deemed necessary. Once the editing process is completed, the manuscript will be typeset in order to correct grammar, syntax, and spelling errors.

Design and layout

After editing and typesetting, the article will enter the design and layout stages. The journals’ design and layout style will be applied to the article, which will result in the proof version. The proof, as a PDF file, will be reviewed by the assigned editor and the scientific editor before being sent to the authors for proofreading.

Proofreading

The assigned editor will send the proof as a PDF file to the corresponding author by email. This is the last instance where changes can be made to the manuscript, therefore it is necessary for authors to thoroughly review the proof. Any corrections should be notified to the assigned editor by replying to the email in which the proof was sent. If there are no corrections, the authors should inform that they approve the proof as the final version.

If the authors do not reply to the mail containing the proof within 48 hours after the mail was sent, RPMESP will consider the proof as the final version.

Translation into English

The associate editor in charge of translations at RPMESP will edit and translate the entire article into English. This includes the title, abstract, key messages, content, tables and figures of the article; except for supplementary material. The translation process will begin once the article is approved by the editorial committee and will be carried out simultaneously with the Spanish editing process.

Closing and publication

The article is published virtually and then sent to the printer. Articles are virtually published in PDF and HTML formats. Processing of the files for submission to the following databases starts simultaneously to publication: SciELO Peru, SciELO Public Health (Brazil), MEDLINE and SCOPUS.

Subsequently, issues of RPMESP are disseminated through mass media and the social networks of the journal.

Article follow-up

Authors are advised to take into account the following aspects regarding the follow-up of their articles submitted to the RPMESP:

Acknowledge receipt of each communication.
Notifications of receipt, acceptance, peer review comments, approval or rejection of the article and the proof will be sent to the corresponding author with a copy to each of the other authors of the article.
The corresponding author may inquire about the status of the manuscript at any time during the process (this information also appears in the OJS platform), considering the approximate time of the process mentioned above.
Response to the peers’ comments should be provided within a maximum of 5 weeks (this period includes reminders or extensions of the deadline requested by the authors), otherwise, the article will be withdrawn from the editorial process.

If you have any doubts, please contact us by e-mail at rpmesp@ins.gob.pe or by phone at (+511) 748-1111, extension 2122.

Updated on June, 2024