International Journal of Urological Nursing

The official Journal of the British Association of Urological Nurses

Edited by:
Oliver Slevin (Editor-in-Chief), Rachel Busuttil Leaver (Associate Editor) and Jerome Marley (Associate Editor)

Print ISSN: 1749-7701
Online ISSN: 1749-771X
Frequency: Three times a year
Current Volume: 4 / 2010

TopAuthor Guidelines

Content of Author Guidelines: 1. General, 2. Ethical Guidelines, 3. Submission of Manuscripts, 4. Manuscript Types Accepted, 5. Manuscript Format and Structure, 6. After Acceptance.

Relevant Documents: Exclusive Licence Form, Colour Work Agreement Form

Useful Websites: Submission Site, Author Services, Blackwell Publishing's Ethical Guidelines, Guidelines for Figures

1. GENERAL

The Editors welcome papers on practice, research, education or management which contribute to the development and understanding of all aspects of urological nursing. These papers will reflect all areas where urology nurses practice as well as areas which complement or are an extension of the urology nursing role. These will encompass general and specialist hospitals and the community. They will address issues which effect both adult and paediatric patients focusing on current clinical practice, education, care delivery systems and public policies.

Please read the instructions below carefully for details on the submission of manuscripts, the journal's requirements and standards as well as information concerning the procedure after a manuscript has been accepted for publication in the International Journal of Urological Nursing. Authors are encouraged to visit Blackwell Publishing Author Services for further information on the preparation and submission of articles and figures.

2. ETHICAL GUIDELINES

International Journal of Urological Nursing adheres to the below ethical guidelines for publication and research.

2.1. Authorship and Acknowledgements

Authorship: Authors submitting a paper do so on the understanding that the manuscript has been read and approved by all authors and that all authors agree to the submission of the manuscript to the Journal. ALL named authors must have made an active contribution to the conception and design and/or analysis and interpretation of the data and/or the drafting of the paper and ALL must have critically reviewed its content and have approved the final version submitted for publication. Participation solely in the acquisition of funding or the collection of data does not justify authorship.

International Journal of Urological Nursing adheres to the definition of authorship set up by The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). According to the ICMJE authorship criteria should be based on 1) substantial contributions to conception and design of, or acquisition of data or analysis and interpretation of data, 2) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content and 3) final approval of the version to be published. Authors should meet conditions 1, 2 and 3.

It is a requirement that all authors have been accredited as appropriate upon submission of the manuscript. Contributors who do not qualify as authors should be mentioned under Acknowledgements.

Acknowledgements: Under Acknowledgements please specify contributors to the article other than the authors accredited. Please also include specifications of the source of funding for the study and any potential conflict of interests if appropriate. Suppliers of materials should be named and their location (town, state/county, country) included.

Note to NIH Grantees: Pursuant to NIH mandate, Wiley-Blackwell will post the accepted version of contributions authored by NIH grant-holders to PubMed Central upon acceptance. This accepted version will be made publicly available 12 months after publication. For further information, see www.wiley.com/go/nihmandate

2.2. Ethical Approvals

All studies using human or animal subjects should include an explicit statement in the Material and Methods section identifying the review and ethics committee approval for each study, if applicable. Editors reserve the right to reject papers if there is doubt as to whether appropriate procedures have been used.

Ethics of investigation: Papers not in agreement with the guidelines of the Helsinki Declaration as revised in 1975 will not be accepted for publication.

2.3 Clinical Trials

Clinical trials should be reported using the CONSORT guidelines available at http://www.consort-statement.org/newene.htm. A CONSORT checklist should also be included in the submission material (http://www.consort-statement.org/newene.htm#checklist).

International Journal of Urological Nursing encourages authors submitting manuscripts reporting results from a clinical trial to provide the registration number and name of the clinical trial. Clinical trials can be registered in any of the following free, public clinical trials registries: www.clinicaltrials.gov, http://clinicaltrails-dev.ifpma.org/, http://isrctn.org/. The clinical trial registration number and name of the trial register will be published with the paper.

2.4 Conflict of Interest and Source of Funding

Conflict of Interest: Authors are required to disclose any possible conflict of interest. These include financial (for example patent, ownership, stock ownership, consultancies, speaker's fee). Author's conflict of interest (or information specifying the absence of conflicts of interest) will be published under a separate heading entitled International Journal of Urological Nursing.

Source of Funding: Authors are required to specify the source of funding for their research when submitting a paper. Suppliers of materials should be named and their location (town, state/county, country) included. The information will be disclosed in the published article.

2.5 Appeal of Decision

The decision on a paper is final and cannot be appealed.

2.6 Permissions

If all or parts of previously published illustrations are used, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder concerned. It is the author's responsibility to obtain these in writing and provide copies to the Publishers.

2.7 Copyright Assignment

Authors submitting a paper do so on the understanding that the work and its essential substance have not been published before and is not being considered for publication elsewhere. The submission of the manuscript by the authors means that the authors automatically agree to assign exclusive licence/copyright to Blackwell Publishing if and when the manuscript is accepted for publication. The work shall not be published elsewhere in any language without the written consent of the publisher. The articles published in this journal are protected by copyright, which covers translation rights and the exclusive right to reproduce and distribute all of the articles printed in the journal. No material published in the journal may be stored on microfilm or videocassettes, in electronic databases and the like, or reproduced photographically without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Correspondence to the journal is accepted on the understanding that the contributing author licences the publisher to publish the letter as part of the journal or separately from it, in the exercise of any subsidiary rights relating to the journal and its contents.

Upon acceptance of a paper, authors are required to assign the exclusive licence to publish their paper to Blackwell Publishing. This form can be found a http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/pdf/IJUN%20ELF.PDF. Assignment of the exclusive licence is a condition of publication and papers will not be passed to the publisher for production unless licence has been assigned. (Papers subject to government or Crown copyright are exempt from this requirement; however, the form still has to be signed). A completed Exclusive Licence Form must be sent to the address specified on the form, before any manuscript can be published. Authors must send the completed original Exclusive Licence Form by regular mail upon receiving notice of manuscript acceptance, i.e., do not send the form at submission. Faxing or e-mailing the form does not meet requirements.

For questions concerning copyright, please visit Blackwell Publishing's Copyright FAQ.

3. SUBMISSION AND ACCEPTANCE OF MANUSCRIPTS

Manuscripts should be submitted electronically via the online submission site ScholarOne Manuscripts. The use of an online submission and peer review site speeds up the decision-making process, enables immediate distribution and allows authors to track the status of their own manuscripts. If assistance is needed (or if for some reason online submission is not possible), the Editorial Office (IJUNOffice@wiley.com) can be contacted and will readily provide any help users need to upload their manuscripts.

3.1 Online Submission

To submit a manuscript, please follow the instructions below.

Getting Started

1. Launch your web browser (Internet Explorer 5 or higher or Netscape 7 or higher) and go to the journal's ScholarOne Manuscripts homepage (http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ijun).
2. Log-in or click the 'Create Account' option if you are a first-time user of ScholarOne Manuscripts.
3. If you are creating a new account.
- After clicking on 'Create Account', enter your name and e-mail information and click 'Next'. Your e-mail information is very important.
- Enter your institution and address information as appropriate, and then click 'Next.'
- Enter a user ID and password of your choice (we recommend using your e-mail address as your user ID), and then select your area of expertise. Click 'Finish'.
4. Log-in and select 'Author Center.'

3.2 Submitting Your Manuscript

5. After you have logged in, click the 'Submit a Manuscript' link in the menu bar.
6. Enter data and answer questions as appropriate. You may copy and paste directly from your manuscript and you may upload your pre-prepared covering letter.
7. Click the 'Next' button on each screen to save your work and advance to the next screen.
8. You are required to upload your files.
- Click on the 'Browse' button and locate the file on your computer.
- Select the designation of each file in the drop down next to the Browse button.
- When you have selected all files you wish to upload, click the 'Upload Files' button.
9. Review your submission (in PDF format) before sending to the Journal. Click the 'Submit' button when you are finished reviewing.

You may suspend a submission at any phase before clicking the 'Submit' button and save it to submit later. After submission, you will receive a confirmation e-mail. You can also access Manuscript Central any time to check the status of your manuscript. The Journal will inform you by e-mail once a decision has been made.

3.3. Manuscript Files Accepted

Manuscripts should be uploaded as Word (.doc) or Rich Text Format (.rft) files (not write-protected) plus separate figure files. GIF, JPEG, PICT or Bitmap files are acceptable for submission, but only high-resolution TIF or EPS files are suitable for printing. The files will be automatically converted to HTML and PDF on upload and will be used for the review process. The text file must contain the entire manuscript including title page, abstract, text, references, tables, and figure legends, but no embedded figures. Figure tags should be included in the file. Manuscripts should be formatted as described in the Author Guidelines below.

Please note that any manuscripts uploaded as Word 2007 (.docx) will be automatically rejected. Please save any .docx file as .doc before uploading.

3.4. Blinded Review

All submissions should be double-spaced and font size 12 with 2.5cm wide margins. Please ensure that the pages are numbered, and that all figures and tables are submitted under separate pages.

Please ensure your paper is anonymous with no identifying details. Your details will be entered onto the system as part of the submission process.

3.5. Suggest a Reviewer

International Journal of Urological Nursing attempts to keep the review process as short as possible to enable rapid publication of new scientific data. In order to facilitate this process, please suggest the names and current e-mail addresses of 1 potential international reviewer whom you consider capable of reviewing your manuscript. In addition to your choice the journal editors will choose one or two reviewers as well.

3.6. Suspension of Submission Mid-way in the Submission Process

You may suspend a submission at any phase before clicking the 'Submit' button and save it to submit later. The manuscript can then be located under 'Unsubmitted Manuscripts' and you can click on 'Continue Submission' to continue your submission when you choose to.

3.7. E-mail Confirmation of Submission

After submission you will receive an e-mail to confirm receipt of your manuscript. If you do not receive the confirmation e-mail after 24 hours, please check your e-mail address carefully in the system. If the e-mail address is correct please contact your IT department. The error may be caused by spam filtering software on your e-mail server. Also, the e-mails should be received if the IT department adds our e-mail server (uranus.scholarone.com) to their whitelist.

3.8. Manuscript Status

You can access Manuscript Central any time to check your 'Author Center' for the status of your manuscript. The Journal will inform you by e-mail once a decision has been made.

3.9. Submission of Revised Manuscripts

Revised manuscripts must be uploaded within 3 months of authors being notified of conditional acceptance pending satisfactory revision. Locate your manuscript under 'Manuscripts with Decisions' and click on 'Submit a Revision' to submit your revised manuscript. Please remember to delete any old files uploaded when you upload your revised manuscript. Please also remember to upload your manuscript document separate from your title page.

4. MANUSCRIPT TYPES ACCEPTED

Manuscripts must be submitted exclusively to the International Journal of Urological Nursing and will normally fall into one of the following categories:

Full Length Papers / Practice Papers

Original clinical research: reports of outcomes of original research which identify specific implications for nursing practice.
Practice development: analysis of innovations and trends in practice development in nursing which will impact on urological nursing.
Literature reviews: comprehensive analysis and evaluation of published material which should include suggestions for practice, policy or research.

Short Papers / Professional Issues

Critical commentary: Well argued personal comments on current issues in urology and other professional issues or societal trends which will impact on urological nurses.
Reflective analysis: Insightful pieces where practitioners reflect on issues encountered in their practice and offering solutions and recommendations for practice.
Case reports: case reviews of nursing care which provides new information on specific conditions or situations.
Audit: reports of audits of clinical practice, education and care delivery systems which will inform practice.

Regular Sections

Conference reports: Brief reports which outline national or international events such as a conference, symposium or other relevant meeting.
Letters to the editor: Well argued response or comments to articles published in the journal or on points of current interest.
Guest editorials: These are usually commissioned by the editors. They will provide expert opinion or critical review on a topical issue
Book reviews: These are also usually commissioned by the editors and will evaluate newly published books in urology and related subjects such as continence or uro gynaecology as well as professional development and education.
For full length papers, the preferred length is 3000-5000 words, excluding abstract and references. Shorter papers should be between 1000-1500 words and contributions to regular sections should be around 500 words.

Please see the guidelines about how to prepare and present full length papers. If you have any queries about shorter papers or contributions to regular sections, please email the editorial office at IJUNOffice@wiley.com.

5. MANUSCRIPT FORMAT AND STRUCTURE

5.1. Format

Covering Letter: A covering letter must be submitted when submitting a manuscript, stating on behalf of all the authors that the work has not been published and is not being considered for publication elsewhere. The Editors will decide on the time of publication and retain the right to modify the style of a contribution; major changes will be agreed with the author(s) before production of proofs.

Title Page: This should include the article title and manuscript type (but no author details). Please note the chosen article title should be no more than 12 words. The number of words used, excluding abstract and references, should be specified when submitting a manuscript.

Abstract and Keywords: For full length papers, a short abstract (maximum 250 words) summarising key content and recommendations from the article should be included after the Title Page. For research papers, the abstract should be structured to include: Background, Aims, Methods, Results and Conclusion. The abstract should accurately reflect the content of the paper and should not include references or abbreviations. The abstract should be followed by up to 6 keywords which accurately identify the paper's subject, purpose and focus, in alphabetical order, in order to facilitate cross referencing.

Body of Text: Headings should be used to guide and structure your paper. Suggested headings include:

(1) Rationale/Background for the study
(2) Research questions or aims of project
(3) Sample
(4) Data collection methods
(5) Data analysis
(6) Findings/results
(7) Conclusions or position statement, implications for practice

These headings will need to be adapted to report practice developments. Please remember that data are historic and should be reported in the past tense. Please refrain from naming individuals, Trusts and Hospitals to preserve anonymity.

The methodology and methods used for a piece of research or for a literature search need to be outlined briefly in the report.

At the end of the paper, a box should be inserted that identifies what is known about the subject and what this paper contributes (maximum 150 words). Contributions to the manuscript should be indicated, by initials, at the end including study design, data collection and analysis and manuscript preparation.

Headings within the text should conform to the following convention: upper case for main headings, lower case for major sub-headings, italics for subsidiary sub-headings.

Abbreviations should be used sparingly and only if a lengthy name or expression is repeated throughout the manuscript. When used, the abbreviated name or expression should be cited in full at first usage, followed by the accepted abbreviation in parentheses. Quotations included appropriately within the body of the text should be marked by single inverted commas. Longer, or self-contained quotations should be preceded and followed by a double space; neither single inverted commas nor italics should then be used. Statistical methods used should be defined and, where appropriate, supported by references.

Reflections on Practice: It is recommended that a tool to guide and structure the reflection is used, for example: Johns (1994) Model for Structured Reflection (10th Edition).

Ethical Principles: Researchers are asked to ensure that they have obtained suitable approval from a research ethics committee for their studies; all contributors will be expected to have followed sound ethical principles generally and to have preserved anonymity and confidentiality of patients, clients and staff and, where appropriate, NHS Trusts and other organisations.

Optimizing Your Abstract for Search Engines: Many students and researchers looking for information online will use search engines such as Google, Yahoo or similar. By optimizing your article for search engines, you will increase the chance of someone finding it. This in turn will make it more likely to be viewed and/or cited in another work. We have compiled some guidelines at http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/bauthor/seo.asp to enable you to maximize the web-friendliness of the most public part of your article.

Language: The language of publication is English. Authors for whom English is a second language must have their manuscript professionally edited by an English speaking person before submission to make sure the English is of high quality. It is preferred that manuscripts are professionally edited. A list of independent suppliers of editing services can be found at www.blackwellpublishing.com/bauthor/english_language.asp. All services are paid for and arranged by the author, and use of one of these services does not guarantee acceptance or preference for publication.

5.2. Units, Abbreviations and Nomenclature

Spelling should conform with that used in The Concise Oxford Dictionary and abbreviations with those in Units, Symbols and Abbreviations (1994) published by the Royal Society of Medicine Press, 1 Wimpole Street, London W1M 8AE.

All units of measurement must follow the SI system. Concentrations of solutions should be given as molar concentrations. All other concentrations should be expressed as percentages.

Abbreviations of biological, medical, chemical, and other terms should only be used when such abbreviations are both internationally recognized and unambiguous. The first use of an abbreviation must be explained by also giving the unabbreviated term.

All biological, medical, chemical, and other names should be given in keeping with the latest international nomenclature. If an animal is being mentioned in the text for the first time, the binomial name should be given, e.g. carp (Cyprinus carpio L.). Thereafter, this can be abbreviated to C. carpio.

5.3. Illustrations and Tables

Figures should be saved in a neutral data format such as TIFF or EPS. Powerpoint and Word graphics are unsuitable for reproduction. Please do not use any pixel-oriented programmes. Scanned figures (only in TIFF format) should have a resolution of 300 dpi (halftone) or 600 to 1200 dpi (line drawings) in relation to the reproduction size. Photographic material should be of such quality that high-contrast reproductions can be made; photostats of photographs are unacceptable. Permission to reprint figures, pictures or any other material and to show patients or members of staff in photographs, must be obtained by the author in writing and a copy forwarded to the Editorial Office.

Figures printed in colour are subject to an added charge. Colour print charges are explained on the Colour Work Agreement Form. Colour graphics should be created using the CMYK colour palette (print colours), not RGB (monitor colours). There is a charge for alterations to figures when carried out by the publisher.

Please note that figures will generally be reduced to fit within the column-width or the print area. This means that numbering and lettering must still be readable when reduced (e.g. maps) and that the scale might not correspond with the original (microscopic pictures), thereby invalidating references to scale in the text. If a figure is to be cropped, please mark the lines on a photocopy or tracing paper. Printouts should be made with a laserprinter at the highest resolution (> 600 dpi). If artwork is to be scanned, line drawings should only be contour drawings without halftones (shades of grey). Only reproducible original line drawings (not larger than 30 40 cm) or high-quality photostats (on DIN A4) may be submitted. Please do not use patterns; rough hatching is possible.

Graphs with an x and y axis should not be enclosed in frames; only 2-dimensional representations. Tables should be created using the table function. To ease the setting of the tables in accordance with the style of the journal, they should be clearly arranged with the minimum of rules.

Do not forget the labels and units. Captions for the figures should give a precise description of the content and should not be repeated within the figure. The illustration of a particular point using both figures and tables is to be avoided. If figures or tables are taken from another publication, the source must be mentioned.

Colour Charges It is the policy of the International Journal of Urological Nursing for authors to pay the full cost for the reproduction of their colour artwork. Therefore, please note that if there is colour artwork in your manuscript when it is accepted for publication Blackwell Publishing require you to complete and return a colour work agreement form before your paper can be published. This form can be downloaded as a PDF* from the internet. The web address for the form is http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/pdf/SN_Upw2000_P_Cow.pdf

If you are unable to download the form, please contact the Production Editor at: ijun@wiley.com who can email or fax a form to you. Once completed, please return the form to the address below:

International Journal of Urological Nursing
Blackwell Publishing
101 George Street
Edinburgh EH2 3ES
UK

Any article received with colour artwork will not be published until this form is received.

5.4. References

All work referred to in the manuscript should be fully cited and the modified Harvard system is requested. Examples:

Lewis T, Hall J. (1992). Rhabdomyolysis and Myoglobinuria, In: Hall J, Schmidt G, Wood L, (eds), Principles of Critical Care, Volume 2. New York: McGraw Hill
Williams N. (2001). Patient resuscitation following major thermal trauma. Nursing in Critical Care; 6: 115-121
Muller D, Harns P, Watley L. (1986). Nursing children: psychology research and practice. London: Harper Row.
Please reference websites in the following style:
National Institute for Clinical Excellence (2002). Final appraisal determination: Drugs for early thrombolysis in the treatment of acute myocardial infarction, NICE, www.nice.org.uk/article.asp?a=36672 Accessed 7 October 2002.

The reference list should be prepared on a separate sheet and be in alphabetical order and chronological order by the first authors' names.

Unpublished works must have already been accepted for publication and marked as 'in press'. The citation of personal communications and unpublished data must be confined to the body of the text.

Within the text, citations should be made by putting the surname of the author and the year of publication in parentheses, e.g. (Kienzle 1998). With two authors, the surnames of the authors should be given, e.g. (Kienzle and Maiwald 1998); with more than two authors, the surname of the first author should be given and followed by 'et al.', e.g. (Kirchgessner et al. 1998). If the author(s) name(s) are given within the context of the script, the year of publication should be given in parentheses, e.g. ...as described by Kienzle and Maiwald (1998).

If various publications by the same author(s) and published in the same year are cited, a, b, c etc. must be added to the year of publication, e.g. (Kirchgessner et al. 1998 a, b). This lettering must also correspond to the same lettering within the bibliography.

We recommend the use of a tool such as EndNote or Reference Manager for reference management and formatting.

EndNote reference styles can be searched for here: http://www.endnote.com/support/enstyles.asp
Reference Manager reference styles can be searched for here: http://www.refman.com/support/rmstyles.asp

6. AFTER ACCEPTANCE

Upon acceptance of a paper for publication, the manuscript will be forwarded to the Production Editor who is responsible for the production of the journal.

6.1 Proof Corrections

The corresponding author will receive an e-mail alert containing a link to a website. A working e-mail address must therefore be provided for the corresponding author. The proof can be downloaded as a PDF (portable document format) file from this site.

Acrobat Reader will be required in order to read this file. This software can be downloaded (free of charge) from the following website: www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html . This will enable the file to be opened, read on screen, and printed out in order for any corrections to be added. Further instructions will be sent with the proof. Hard copy proofs will be posted if no e-mail address is available; in your absence, please arrange for a colleague to access your e-mail to retrieve the proofs.

Proofs must be returned to the Production Editor within three days of receipt.

As changes to proofs are costly, we ask that you only correct typesetting errors. Other than in exceptional circumstances, all illustrations are retained by the publisher. Please note that the author is responsible for all statements made in their work, including changes made by the copy editor.

6.2 Author Services

Online production tracking is available for your article through Blackwell's Author Services. Author Services enables authors to track their article - once it has been accepted - through the production process to publication online and in print. Authors can check the status of their articles online and choose to receive automated e-mails at key stages of production. Please ensure that a complete e-mail address is provided when submitting the manuscript. The corresponding author will receive an e-mail with a unique link that enables them to register and have their article automatically added to the system. Visit www.blackwellpublishing.com/bauthor for more details on online production tracking and for a wealth of resources including FAQs and tips on article preparation, submission and more.

6.3 Author Material Archive Policy

Please note that unless specifically requested, Blackwell Publishing will dispose of all hardcopy or electronic material submitted two months after publication. If you require the return of any material submitted, please inform the editorial office or production editor as soon as possible.

6.4 Offprints and Extra Copies

A PDF offprint of the online published article will be provided free of charge to the corresponding author, and may be distributed subject to the Publisher's terms and conditions. Additional paper offprints may be ordered online by clicking here (fill in the necessary details and ensure that you type information in all of the required fields). If you have queries about offprints please e-mail offprint@cosprinters.com.