Information for Authors

Family Practice is an international journal aimed at clinicians and researchers in the fields of primary care, family medicine and general practice. The journal’s range and content covers such areas as primary care epidemiology, health care delivery, health services research, clinical care, health promotion and disease prevention, systematic reviews and primary care research methods. Articles should have broad applicability to other settings and countries. We would particularly like to encourage the reporting of randomised controlled trials from primary care. Family Practice generally does not publish articles on medical education.

We encourage authors to submit manuscripts that are of interest to a broad primary care audience. To help you decide if your submission is right for Family Practice, below are three questions for you to consider. A "yes" response to all three questions simply means your paper is more likely to be reviewed favorably and accepted for publication.

1. Does your paper address a clinical problem commonly encountered in primary care? (e.g. chronic illnesses such as diabetes, acute problems such as community acquired pneumonia, delivery of preventive services). We believe the perspectives of primary care clinicians are extremely valuable in the conduct and dissemination of research. We strongly encourage you to include one or more primary care clinicians in your research teams.
2. Is your work applicable to primary care in more than one region of the world? (e.g. A study of an expanded role for nurses in primary care is broadly applicable; A study of the impact of changes to GP incentives in the UK is much less broadly applicable.)
3. If not related to a specific clinical problem does your paper address a common problem in health care delivery, research or quality improvement methodology such as cost, workforce shortages, physician burnout, staffing in rural/urban areas etc. (e.g. Studies of incentives to attract primary care physicians to underserved areas with lessons for health care systems and organizations in more than one region of the world.)

Format-Free Submission

Manuscripts must focus on issues important to primary care, general practice or family medicine. Family Practice now differentiates between the requirements for new and revised submissions. You may submit your manuscript as a single Word or PDF file to be used in the refereeing process. Submissions for refereeing should include a title page, abstract with Background, Methods, Results and Conclusions. The manuscript should be organized by the following sections: Introduction, Methods, Results and Conclusions. Only when your paper is at the revision stage, will you be requested to put your paper in to journal style (see below) for acceptance and provide the items required for the publication of your article.

Peer review policy

All papers published in Family Practice are subject to peer review. Papers that are outside the scope of the journal, that do not comply with the guidelines below or are otherwise judged to be unsuitable by the editor will be rejected without peer review. We aim to send appropriate papers to at least two independent referees for evaluation. Authors are encouraged to suggest reviewers of international standing. Referees advise on the originality and scientific merit of the paper; the Associate Editor, with advice from the Editor in Chief and editorial board, decides on publication.

Electronic submission

All material to be considered for publication in Family Practice should be submitted in electronic form via the journal's online submission system. Once you have prepared your manuscript according to the instructions below please visit the online submission web site . Instructions on submitting your manuscript online are available via this site with instructions here. In case of query please contact [email protected].

Manuscript requirements

All submissions to Family Practice should conform to the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals drawn up by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. See further details below in the section 'Manuscript Document Components'.

In order to be processed by our production team, all files should be editable, prepared in an appropriate word processing package and saved as .doc or .rtf. Please note: PDF (.pdf) is not a .doc or .rtf file format and is therefore not an appropriate file type. Manuscripts should be double line spaced with generous margins. Headings: main (section) headings [A] in bold sentence case; sub-headings [B] in italic sentence case; sub-sub-headings [C] in italic sentence case with the text continued on the same line.

Important: Please do not use abbreviations and acronyms in article titles, headings and subheadings, table headings and figure legends.

Please spell out any country names to avoid ambiguity (NB: US and UK are acceptable acronyms).

Please ensure your abstract conforms to the journal style and includes the following headed sections: background, objective(s), methods, results and conclusion. Note: All manuscript types require an abstract EXCEPT for Letters, Editorials and CASFM briefs.

Please ensure your discussion includes the following section headings: limitations, and conclusion.

Manuscript types

Original research. Maximum words: 3000; Maximum figures and tables: 5; Maximum references: 40.

Brief Reports. Maximum words: 1,500. Maximum figures and tables: 2; Maximum references: 20.  Brief reports should not be used to report pilot studies.  They must be timely and highly novel reports on significant topics in primary care research.

Letters to the Editor. Maximum words: 1500; Maximum references: 20. Please use section headers in the letter to describe key concepts. Letters to the editor are of two types: 1) commentary are a recent paper published in Family Practice or 2) Commentary on significant and timely issues facing primary care practice and research. Family Practice does not accept research letters.  

Clinical Research. Maximum words: 3000; Maximum figures and tables: 5; Maximum references: 40. 

Guidelines on specific paper types:

The EQUATOR Network provides essential resources for writing and publishing health research by Enhancing the Quality and Transparency Of health Research. See the EQUATOR site for reporting guidelines for main study types. Authors should follow current reporting standards that apply to their study design, including:

1. Randomised trials must conform to the CONSORT (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials) statement  on the reporting of RCTs. Include a flow diagram of subjects in the paper and a numbered checklist must be provided as supplementary material. See also the updated guidelines for reporting parallel group randomised trials.
2. Observational studies in epidemiology (cohort, case-control studies, cross-sectional studies): see STROBE.
3. Systematic reviews : see the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses: The PRISMA Statement. Maximum words: 4000
4. Case reports : see the CARE Guidelines: Consensus-based Clinical Case Reporting Guideline Development.
5. Qualitative research : see Standards for reporting qualitative research: A synthesis of recommendations (SRQR). Also see the “Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ): a 32-item checklist for interviews and focus groups”. Maximum words: 4000
6. Diagnostic studies : see the Standards for Reporting of Diagnostic Accuracy (STARD) statement. See also Transparent reporting of a multivariable prediction model for individual prognosis or diagnosis (TRIPOD): The TRIPOD statement.
7. Quality improvement studies : See the Standards for Quality Improvement Reporting Excellence (SQUIRE).
8. Economic evaluations : see Consolidated health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) Statement.
9. Study Protocols : See the SPIRIT 2013 Statement: Defining standard protocol items for clinical trials. See also the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) 2015 statement.
10. CASFM Methods Briefs - submission of CASFM Methods Briefs are limited to members of the Committe on Advancing the Science of Family Medicine (CASFM).  Authors must obtain approval from appropriate CASFM leadership to submit a CASFM Methods Brief.  Questions may be directed to the Editor-in-Chief. 
11. In addition to these specific tools to improve reporting of specific study and manuscript types, we strongly recommend authors review the CRISP checklist, a consensus-based set of recommendations for reporting primary care research, and follow the CRISP recommendations whenever applicable.

Manuscript Document Components (for revised submissions)

1. Title and running head (short title)
2. Article category – choose from: Qualitative Research/ Health Service Research/ Systematic Review/ Epidemiology/ Research Methods
3. First name, middle initial (if any) and family name of all authors – no degree/ titles/ positions of responsibility. All those listed as authors must fulfil the ICMJE criteria – please see the ‘Authorship’ section of the Ethics Policy for further guidance.;
4. Affiliations should be written after the authors list as follows and linked to authors with corresponding superscript Arabic numeral: Department/Division/Unit name, if any; affiliation name/City (without state)/Country.
5. Correspondence should be written after the affiliations list as follows: write only the title of one corresponding author (Mr/Mrs/Ms/Dr/Prof), first name(s) written with initials only, and followed by the last name – e.g. Dr. J. E. Smith; add Department/Division/Unit name, if any/ affiliation name/Street address/ City/ postal code /Country/ Email address.
6. Before the abstract, under the heading "Key messages," please list 3 - 6 main take home messages from your research. Present this information as a bullet list. This section will be published in the online table of contents so each bullet point must be under 83 characters, including spaces (not required for Letters or Editorials).
7. A structured abstract (summary for review papers)
8. Six MeSH compliant keywords.
9. Main body containing sections on background, methods, results and conclusions, with the appropriate heading.
10. Declarations/ Acknowledgements: indicate at the end of the text before references: 1. Any necessary ethical approval(s); 2. The source of funding for the study (please see separate notes below, under Author Self-Archiving/Public Access policy, for information regarding funding from the National Institutes of Health); and 3. Any conflict of interest. This includes ownership of shares, consultancy, speaker's honoraria or research grants from commercial companies or professional or governmental organisations with an interest in the topic of the paper. If in doubt, disclose.
11. A reference list in AMA style (see examples in the “Uniform Requirements”) in the order made in the text. For books, names and initials of all authors, the full title, place of publication, publisher, year of publication and page number should be given. Except for systematic reviews, a maximum of 40 references are allowed.

Journal Article:
Hu P, Reuben DB. Effects of managed care on the length of time that elderly patients spend with physicians during ambulatory visits. Med Care. 2002;40(7):606-613.

Electronic Journal Article:
Gage BF, Fihn SD, White RH. Management and dosing of warfarin therapy. The American Journal of Medicine. 2000;109(6):481-488. doi:10.1016/S0002-9343(00)00545-3.

Book:
McKenzie BC. Medicine and the Internet: Introducing Online Resources and Terminology. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Oxford University Press; 1997.

Internet Document:
American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts & Figures 2003. Accessed March 3, 2003.

12. Tables : Do not embed tables in the manuscript. Each table must be on its own page following the reference list. Tables should have very specific titles that provide information on the study context, the source and number of participants, year of study, and other details that allow the readers to understand the table without referring to the manuscript text. All table titles and figures should report the context of the study and year(s) of data collection. For example an appropriate title would be: "Health beliefs of 500 German treatment seeking primary care patients with type 2 diabetes (2004-2005)". An inappropriate title would be: "Results from health beliefs survey". All table and figure titles should also state the source of subjects and the year(s) in which the study was conducted. An acceptable example follows: Results of logistic regression models estimating the association between pain and type of medication received in 1,100 primary care patients seeking treatment in the U.S.
13. Figures: Figure captions should be listed at the end of the main document file, following the references/ tables. Figures must be uploaded additionally as individual graphic files. Figures should be prepared in an appropriate graphic package, saved as follows and named according to DOS conventions, e.g. 'figure1.tif'. Figures should be saved in separate files without their captions, which should be included with the text of the article. Files should be named according to DOS conventions, e.g. 'figure1.tif'. For vector graphics, EPS is the preferred format. Lines should not be thinner than 0.25 pts and in-fill patterns and screens should have a density of at least 10%. For bitmapped graphics, TIFF is the preferred format but EPS is also acceptable. Lines should not be thinner than 0.25 pts and in-fill patterns and screens should have a density of at least 10%. The optimal resolution for these images is 600–1200 dpi. Photographs should be saved as high resolution (300dpi) .tif files at 1.5x desired print size. Lower resolutions (<300 dpi) may compromise output quality. 

    Figure accessibility and alt text

    Incorporating alt text (alternative text) when submitting your paper helps to foster inclusivity and accessibility. Good alt text ensures that individuals with visual impairments or those using screen readers can comprehend the content and context of your figures. The aim of alt text is to provide concise and informative descriptions of your figure so that all readers have access to the same level of information and understanding, and that all can engage with and benefit from the visual elements integral to scholarly content. Including alt text demonstrates a commitment to accessibility and enhances the overall impact and reach of your work.  

    Alt text is applicable to all images, figures, illustrations, and photographs. 

    Alt text is only accessible via e-reader and so it won’t appear as part of the typeset article. 

    Detailed guidance on how to draft and submit alt text. 

Presubmission advice and preparation

You may wish to use a language-editing service before submitting to ensure that editors and reviewers understand your manuscript. Our publisher, Oxford University Press, partners with Enago, a leading provider of author services. Through the OUP-Enago partner page, prospective authors are entitled to a discount for language editing, abstract and layperson summary writing, rejected manuscript editing, and creation of graphical abstracts, illustrations, and videos. 

Enago is an independent service provider, which will handle all aspects of this service, including any payments outside the free AI tool. As an author you are under no obligation to take up this offer. Language editing and other services from Enago are optional and do not guarantee that your manuscript will be accepted. Edited manuscripts will undergo the regular review process of the Journal. For more details and a list of additional resources, please see OUP’s page on language services. 

Natural language processing tools driven by artificial intelligence (AI) do not qualify as authors, and the Journal will screen for them in author lists. The use of AI (for example, to help generate content or images, write code, process data, or for translation) should be disclosed both in cover letters to editors and in the Methods or Acknowledgements section of manuscripts. Please see the COPE position statement on Authorship and AI for more details.

Informed Consent

Whenever possible, all studies should report approval by a research ethics committee (refer to Draper H, Wilson S. Research ethics approval: comprehensive mechanisms are essential but not available. Family Practice 2007; 24: 527–528). All research published in Family Practice must follow the operational principles of the Declaration of Helsinski and adhere to the Belmont Report principles (respect for persons; beneficence; and justice) when obtaining valid informed consent from participants.

There may be circumstances when reporting authors wish to refer to the BMJ guidelines on patient consent to publication, and also the sample content for a patient consent form.

Conflict of Interest

Corresponding authors are required to confirm whether they or their co-authors have any conflicts of interest to declare, and to provide details of these (see above). If the Corresponding author is unable to confirm this information on behalf of all co-authors, the authors in question will then be required to submit a completed Conflict of Interest form.

Instructions on revised manuscripts

Revisions should be submitted with a response to each reviewer critique. Authors should copy and paste the reviewer comments in full in their point-by-point response letter. Locations of changes should be noted by referring to page and paragraph. Changes in the manuscript file should be underlined, or marked in red font, or yellow highlight (not tracked changes).

Lay summary

Authors of all article types are encouraged to submit a lay summary as part of the article, in addition to the main text abstract. The lay summary should clearly summarize the focus and findings of the article for non-expert readers, and will be published as part of the article online and in PDF. The lay summary should be submitted for peer review as part of the main manuscript file, under the heading ‘Lay summary’, before the article’s main text. The lay summary should be no longer than 200 words. As with a main abstract, avoid citations and define any abbreviations.

Permission to include other’s work

Permission to reproduce material within the manuscript must be obtained in advance by the corresponding author. Refer to the original publisher, who is responsible for managing the rights of the original author. Expect this to take up to six weeks. Once granted, upload a copy of the approval as a supporting file. An acknowledgement to the source must be made in your text.

Third-Party Content in Open Access papers

If you will be publishing your paper under an Open Access licence but it contains material for which you do not have Open Access re-use permissions, please state this clearly by supplying the following credit line alongside the material:

Title of content
Author, Original publication, year of original publication, by permission of [rights holder]

This image/content is not covered by the terms of the Creative Commons licence of this publication. For permission to reuse, please contact the rights holder.

Supplementary data

Supporting material that is too lengthy for inclusion in the full text of the manuscript, but would nevertheless benefit the reader, can be made available by the publisher as online-only content, linked to the online manuscript. The material should not be essential to understanding the conclusions of the paper, but should contain data that is additional or complementary and directly relevant to the article content. Such information might include the study protocols, more detailed methods, extended data sets/data analysis, or additional figures (including colour). All text and figures must be provided in suitable electronic formats (for instructions for the preparation of Supplementary Data please go to the Supplementary Data page ).

All material to be considered as supplementary data must be uploaded as such with the manuscript for peer review. It cannot be altered or replaced after the paper has been accepted for publication. Please indicate clearly the material intended as Supplementary Data upon submission. Also ensure that the Supplementary Data is referred to in the main manuscript.

Author rights and benefits

Copyright

It is a condition of publication in the Journal that authors grant an exclusive licence to Oxford University Press (OUP). This ensures that requests from third parties to reproduce articles are handled efficiently and consistently and will also allow the article to be as widely disseminated as possible. As part of the licence agreement, authors may use their own material in other publications provided that the Journal is acknowledged as the original place of publication, and OUP is notified in writing and in advance. Upon receipt of accepted manuscripts at Oxford Journals authors will be invited to complete an online copyright licence to publish form.

Please note that by submitting an article for publication you confirm that you are the corresponding/submitting author and that OUP may retain your email address for the purpose of communicating with you about the article. You agree to notify OUP immediately if your details change. If your article is accepted for publication OUP will contact you using the email address you have used in the registration process. Please note that OUP does not retain copies of rejected articles.

Information about the New Creative Commons licence can be found at the Licences webpage.

Open access option for authors

Family Practice offers the option of publishing under either a standard licence or an open access licence. Please note that some funders require open access publication as a condition of funding. If you are unsure whether you are required to publish open access, please do clarify any such requirements with your funder or institution.

Should you wish to publish your article open access, you should select your choice of open access licence in our online system after your article has been accepted for publication. You will need to pay an open access charge to publish under an open access licence.

Details of the open access licences and open access charges.

OUP has a growing number of Read and Publish agreements with institutions and consortia which provide funding for open access publishing. This means authors from participating institutions can publish open access, and the institution may pay the charge. Find out if your institution is participating.

Author Self-Archiving/Public Access policy

For information about this journal's policy, please visit our Author Self-Archiving policy page . Oxford Journals deposit all NIH-funded articles in PubMed Central. See Depositing articles in repositories – information for authors for details . Authors must ensure that manuscripts are clearly indicated as NIH-funded.

Crossref Funding Data Registry

In order to meet your funding requirements authors are required to name their funding sources, or state if there are none, during the submission process. Further information on this process and the CHORUS initiative.

The corresponding authors will receive electronic access to their paper free of charge.

Commerical opportunities

Advertising

Inquiries about advertising should be sent to Advertising and Special Sales [email protected]

Supplements, Reprints, and Corporate Sales

Requests from industry and companies regarding supplements, bulk article reprints, sponsored subscriptions, translation opportunities for previously published material, and corporate online opportunities. Contact: [email protected], or visit the OUP Journals' Rights and Permissions page. 

Availability of Data and Materials

Where ethically feasible, Family Practice strongly encourages authors to make all data and software code on which the conclusions of the paper rely available to readers. Authors are required to include a Data Availability Statement in their article.

We suggest that data be presented in the main manuscript or additional supporting files, or deposited in a public repository whenever possible. For information on general repositories for all data types, and a list of recommended repositories by subject area, please see Choosing where to archive your data.

Data Availability Statement

The inclusion of a Data Availability Statement is a requirement for articles published in Family Practice. Data Availability Statements provide a standardised format for readers to understand the availability of data underlying the research results described in the article. The statement may refer to original data generated in the course of the study or to third-party data analysed in the article. The statement should describe and provide means of access, where possible, by linking to the data or providing the required unique identifier.

The Data Availability Statement should be included in the endmatter of your article under the heading ‘Data availability’.

More information and examples of Data Availability Statements.

Data Citation

Family Practice supports the Force 11 Data Citation Principles and requires that all publicly available datasets be fully referenced in the reference list with an accession number or unique identifier such as a digital object identifier (DOI). Data citations should include the minimum information recommended by DataCite:

• [dataset]* Authors, Year, Title, Publisher (repository or archive name), Identifier

*The inclusion of the [dataset] tag at the beginning of the citation helps us to correctly identify and tag the citation. This tag will be removed from the citation published in the reference list.

Preprint policy

Authors retain the right to make an Author’s Original Version (preprint) available through various channels, and this does not prevent submission to the journal. For further information see our Online Licensing, Copyright and Permissions policies. If accepted, the authors are required to update the status of any preprint, including your published paper’s DOI, as described on our Author Self-Archiving policy page.

ORCID

Family Practice requires submitting authors to provide an ORCID iD at submission to the journal. More information on ORCID and the benefits of using an ORCID iD is available. If you do not already have an ORCID iD, you can register for free via the ORCID website.