Submissions

Author Guidelines

^{1. General Submission Guidelines; 2. Categories of Articles Accepted for Publication; 3. Languages; 4. Manuscript Structure; 5. Manuscript Formatting; 6. Cover Letter; 7. General Information on Authorship / CRediT Taxonomy; 8. Considerations Regarding the Use of Chatbots in Submitted Manuscripts; 9. Editorial Process; 9.1. Stages of the Editorial Process; 9.2. Quality Control of the Editorial Process; 10. Guidelines for Reviewers and Article Evaluation Criteria; 11. Clinical Trials; 12. Reporting Guidelines; 13. Research Ethics; 13.1. Research Ethics Committee; 13.2. Protection of Participants and Vulnerable Populations; 13.3. Editorial Code of Conduct: Statement on Publication Misconduct; 13.4. Editorial Policies; 14. Open Science; 14.1. Preprints; 14.2. Availability of Research Data and Other Materials; 14.3. Open Peer Review and Identification of the Associate Editor; 15. Publication; 15.1. Time to Publication; 15.2. Publication in English; 15.3. Open Access Statement; 15.4. Copyright and Intellectual Property; 15.5. E-location; 15.6. Publication Fees.}

 

ARTICLE COVER LETTER

OPEN SCIENCE COMPLIANCE FORM

CREDIT TAXONOMY (Contributor Roles Taxonomy)

 

Notice: The journal’s guidelines are currently being updated and revised. An updated version will be available soon. Thank you for your understanding.

 

1. General Submission Guidelines

To submit a manuscript, the corresponding author must register with the Contexto & Saúde journal system. If already registered, the author may simply log in using their username. If you experience any difficulties accessing the system, please contact us by email at revistaeletronicas@unijui.edu.br 

Submitted manuscripts must not have been previously submitted to other publications, whether electronic or print. The contribution must be original and unpublished, must not be under consideration for publication by another journal, and must not have been published in conference proceedings.

At the beginning of the submission process, the corresponding author must indicate the language in which the article is written, provide the article title, select the manuscript type (Original Article or Review Article), and agree to the Privacy Consent. The author must also carefully read the Submission Checklist before completing the process.

(1) Details:

In this tab, the article title, keywords (tags), and abstract must be provided. This information must be entered in both the submission language and English.

(2) Upload Files:

The following documents must be submitted in this tab:

Article, prepared in accordance with the journal's guidelines (in Word format and without author identification).

Article cover letter (see attached template).

Open Science Compliance Form (see attached template).

For research involving human participants, the approval document issued by the Research Ethics Committee (CEP).

For research involving animal experiments, the approval document issued by the Ethics Committee on Animal Use (CEUA).

(3) Contributors

In this tab, the corresponding author must add all the article's authors. For each author, the following information must be provided: first name, last name, email address, country, conflicts of interest, biographical statement, and institutional affiliation.

The corresponding author must also click “ORCID ID (Request Verification).” Once this option is selected, the added author will receive an email inviting them to link their ORCID iD to the submission. Upon receiving the email, the author must access the link provided and authorize the connection. Once authorization is complete, the ORCID iD will be verified and linked to the author's profile in the journal system.

(4) For Editors

In the Subject Area field, enter tags that help identify the article's subject matter. This information is important for editors to identify potential ad hoc reviewers with expertise in the submission's thematic area.

(5) Review

In this tab, the author can review and make any necessary changes to the information and files submitted. Before completing the submission, the author must also agree to the copyright terms.

Finally, the author will receive a submission confirmation email at the registered email address.

 

2. Categories of Articles Accepted for Publication

Original Articles: Articles aimed at disseminating the results of original and unpublished research that can be replicated and/or generalized.

Review Articles: Studies designed to be evaluative, critical, and systematic, presenting findings from original and recent research. Their purpose is to stimulate discussion and foster debate on relevant and innovative topics. To this end, authors must describe the review method used, provide a detailed account of the search process, and explain the criteria applied to select and classify the included primary studies. These articles must adhere to high standards of scientific excellence and address relevant questions in the health sciences. The review methods eligible for publication include systematic reviews with meta-analysis or meta-synthesis, integrative reviews, and scoping reviews.

 

3. Languages

Contexto & Saúde accepts manuscripts written in Portuguese, English, or Spanish. Authors must ensure that the manuscript is properly written in the chosen language to ensure clarity, grammatical accuracy, and effective scientific communication.

 

4. Manuscript Structure 

Title: The title must accurately reflect the content of the manuscript and contain no more than 15 words. It must be provided in the language of the manuscript and in English.

Highlights: Key points conveying the main findings of the study. They consist of a brief set of statements indicating the principal contributions of the submitted manuscript. Include 3 to 5 highlights, each containing no more than 85 characters, including spaces. They must be provided in the language of the article and in English.

Abstract: The abstract must contain no more than 250 words and be written as a single paragraph. It must be provided in the language of the manuscript and accompanied by its English version (Abstract). It must include descriptions of the Objective, Method, Results, and Conclusion. The Objective must be clearly stated using an infinitive verb. The Method must describe the study type, sample, variables, research instruments, and type of analysis. The Results must be concise and informative, presenting the main findings in a quantified manner, including participant characteristics and the final data analysis. The Conclusion must directly address the objective, discuss the theoretical or practical implications of the study, and highlight its main contributions to the advancement of scientific knowledge. Author citations, the location and year of data collection, and abbreviations must not be included. Clinical trials must provide the clinical trial registration number at the end of the abstract. This registration number will not count toward the abstract's word limit.

Descriptors: Include 3 to 6 descriptors that identify the subject of the manuscript, in the language of the article and in English (Keywords). Descriptors must follow the Health Sciences Descriptors (DeCS) (http://decs.bvs.br) or Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh).

Introduction: The introduction must present the research problem, rationale, literature review (including the relevance and significance of the topic), and objectives consistent with the study proposal.

Method: This section must identify the study type (study design), the study population or sample, selection criteria, study period and location (where applicable), procedures, statistical methods (when appropriate), and ethical considerations (approval number issued by the Research Ethics Committee or the Ethics Committee on Animal Use, and the Informed Consent Form).

Results: Results must be presented in a logical sequence. When tables and figures are included, the text should complement rather than repeat the information presented in them.

Discussion: The discussion must interpret the results in relation to the literature and present the authors' interpretations. It must clearly explain the study's contribution and address its limitations.

Conclusions (Final Considerations): This section must highlight the most important findings, taking into account how they address the study objective and their implications for the field.

References: A maximum of 50 up-to-date references is recommended, with 75% published within the last five years. Older references are acceptable when they constitute a fundamental theoretical framework for the study; in such cases, the authors must justify their inclusion in the article cover letter.

Figures and Tables: Figures and tables must be inserted into the manuscript in sequential order and numbered according to the order in which they are cited in the text. They must include appropriate numbering and captions. If figures or tables published elsewhere are used, the original source must be cited. A maximum of 5 figures and/or tables combined is permitted.

Ethical Aspects: For articles reporting research involving human participants that has undergone ethical review, authors must state that the study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee (CEP), indicating the corresponding approval or opinion number. A copy of the approval document must be attached as a supplementary file.

For research involving animal experimentation, authors must state that the study was approved by the Ethics Committee on Animal Use (CEUA), indicating the approval number and attaching a copy of the approval document as a supplementary file.

When the nature of the research does not require submission for ethical review by an Ethics Committee, authors must state this and provide the corresponding justification in the manuscript. 

 

5. Manuscript Formatting

Articles must be prepared on A4 paper, with 1.5 line spacing and margins of 3 cm at the top and left, and 2.5 cm at the bottom and right. Articles must be between 15 and 25 pages in length, including references and appendices. Use Times New Roman, 12-point font, except for footnotes, which must be in 10-point font. The titles in Portuguese and English (both mandatory) must be written in uppercase, bold, 12-point font, and centered.

Figures and tables must be inserted into the text in sequential order and numbered according to the order in which they are cited.

 

References:

References must follow the Vancouver style guidelines (https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html). A maximum of 50 references is recommended. At least 75% of the references must have been published within the last five years.

References cited in the body of the text must be numbered consecutively using superscript Arabic numerals, without mentioning the authors' names, except when citing theoretical or methodological references. For consecutive references, indicate the first and last numbers separated by a hyphen (e.g., 1–3). For nonconsecutive references, separate the numbers with commas (e.g., 1–2,4).

There must be no space between the numerical citation and the preceding word. Example: Coronavírus³⁻⁶,¹⁶,²¹.

Page numbers for cited references must not be indicated in the article.

All references must be listed at the end of the article in the order in which they appear in the text.

 

Reference Examples:

BOOK: ⁶ Rios TA. Compreender e ensinar: por uma docência da melhor qualidade. 2nd ed. São Paulo: Cortez; 2001.

JOURNAL ARTICLE: ⁵ Pai SD, Langendorf TF, Rodrigues MCS, Romero MP, Loro MM, Kolankiewicz ACB. Validação psicométrica de instrumento que avalia a cultura de segurança na Atenção Primária. Acta paul enferm. 2019;32(6):642–650. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-0194201900089

DISSERTATIONS AND THESES: Their use is discouraged, as they are considered grey literature. Example: ⁸ Vaz SMCV. Análise da incidência de sepse tardia em neonatos assistidos em uma Unidade de Terapia Intensiva [master's dissertation]. Ijuí, RS: Universidade Regional do Noroeste do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, Unijuí; 2022. 105 p.

Footnotes: Footnotes must be numbered consecutively throughout the text and used only when strictly necessary. In tables and figures, footnotes must be indicated using symbols (*, †, ‡, §, etc.).

Tables: Tables must be created using the table functionality in Microsoft Word, with Times New Roman, 10-point font, and single line spacing. Each data item must occupy a separate cell, organized into rows and columns, with no empty cells. The table title must appear above the table, and the source must appear below it (e.g., Source: The authors).

Each table column must be clearly labeled to ensure that the data can be understood in a clear and organized manner. Internal horizontal lines should appear only above and below the header and at the bottom of the table, highlighting the main information and visually separating the data.

These instructions must be followed carefully to ensure the correct presentation of information and to facilitate the efficient and accurate interpretation of table data.

Figures: Figures include visual representations such as charts, graphs, drawings, diagrams, flowcharts, and photographs. They must be identified and cited in the text using the term “Figure” followed by the corresponding number (e.g., Figure 1, Figure 2). The title of each figure, including charts, graphs, drawings, diagrams, flowcharts, and photographs, must appear below the figure, along with the source (e.g., Source: The authors).

Boxes: Boxes must present textual rather than numerical information and must be enclosed by vertical lines on the sides, with internal lines to improve organization. If a box is reproduced from another publication, the appropriate reference must be provided. If created by the authors, the source must be stated as: Source: Prepared by the authors.

Charts and Graphs: Charts and graphs must be clear and legible. If a chart or graph is reproduced from another publication, the original source must be cited. If created by the authors, the source must be stated as: Source: Prepared by the authors.

Diagrams, Drawings, and Flowcharts: These must be created using appropriate tools and presented clearly and legibly. If reproduced from another publication, the original source must be cited. If created by the authors, the source must be stated as: Source: Prepared by the authors.

Photographs: Photographs must be clear and submitted in high resolution.

Study Participant Quotations: In qualitative research that includes excerpts from interviewees' statements, quotations must be indented 1.25 cm from the left margin, without italics or quotation marks. The participant's identification must appear after the final period, in parentheses. Example:

Qualitative research presents participants' statements. (Part1).

 

 6. Article Cover Letter

At the time of submission, the corresponding author must submit an Article Cover Letter. A template is provided in the journal's guidelines. The letter must contain the following information:

CORRESPONDING AUTHOR INFORMATION: Name of the corresponding author; corresponding author's institutional affiliation; full institutional address.

GENERAL ARTICLE INFORMATION: Manuscript title; manuscript category (original article or review article); whether the article is derived from a dissertation/thesis or research project; funding sources; contribution of the study.

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Names, institutional affiliations, city/state, country, Lattes CV (for Brazilian authors), and ORCID iDs of all authors; detailed description of each author's specific contributions, according to the CRediT taxonomy.

CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING THE USE OF CHATBOTS: Authors must declare whether or not they used generative artificial intelligence (AI) or AI-assisted technologies in writing or preparing the manuscript. The cover letter template provides both possible declarations. Authors must complete the requested information, retain only the statement that corresponds to the circumstances of their manuscript, and delete the statement that does not apply. This information is mandatory for all submissions.

SUGGESTED AD HOC REVIEWER: The corresponding author must suggest an ad hoc reviewer for the article. The suggested reviewer must hold a doctoral degree and must not be affiliated with any of the authors' institutions.

By submitting the cover letter, the authors confirm that:

- The manuscript is original and unpublished and has not been submitted to another journal, nor will it be submitted elsewhere while under review by Contexto & Saúde.

- The manuscript has not been published, in whole or in part, through any other medium and does not substantially resemble any other work authored by the submitting authors or third parties.

- All data presented in the article are legitimate and authentic.

- The authors have actively contributed to the conception of the work and assume full responsibility for its content. They have not omitted any financial relationships or funding agreements between the authors and companies that may have an interest in the publication of this article. All individuals who contributed to the study but did not qualify for authorship have been duly acknowledged in the acknowledgments section, with the written permission of the individuals named.

- Any conflicts of interest have been disclosed, and all financial support received for the research has been properly declared and acknowledged.

- The authors agree to serve as peer reviewers for manuscripts when requested by the journal.

- All ethical principles governing research involving human participants and/or animals have been strictly followed, in accordance with Resolution No. 466/12 of the Brazilian National Health Council (CNS) and the 2023 guidelines of the National Council for the Control of Animal Experimentation (Concea). All relevant documents demonstrating compliance with these principles are being submitted alongside the manuscript, and compliance with these requirements is clearly described in the Methodology/Methods section.

- The data presented in the article are not the result of scientific misconduct, including fabrication of data, improper use of third-party materials (such as tables, graphs, boxes, figures, scales, drawings, instruments, questionnaires, methodological validation, and other illustrations), plagiarism, self-plagiarism, or duplicate publication. The authors declare that they are the sole authors and copyright holders of their work. If the article contains third-party material, the authors confirm that they have obtained prior permission for its reproduction, thereby avoiding any infringement of third-party copyright or intellectual property rights, in accordance with Brazilian Law No. 9,610/98.

- The authors fully agree with the Open Access and Copyright Policy adopted by Contexto & Saúde, which uses the Creative Commons CC BY license. This license allows others to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the work, including for commercial purposes, provided that appropriate credit is given to the original work. Accordingly, the authors grant the journal the right to publish the work for the first time, with proper acknowledgment of authorship.

- The authors agree that, if the manuscript is accepted for publication, language editing in the language of submission and, where applicable, translation into English, as well as technical review for compliance with Vancouver style, will be their responsibility. They undertake to complete these steps and submit the revised versions and corresponding statements or certificates to the journal, as required by the journal's guidelines.

 

7. General Information on Authorship / CRediT Taxonomy

Authors' names must not appear in the manuscript document, but must be provided in the submission system metadata and in the Cover Letter.

The submission metadata must include each author's email address, ORCID iD, and institutional affiliation. Up to three levels of institutional affiliation may be included, for example: “University, Faculty, and Department/Program.”

The maximum number of authors is eight. Exceptions may be considered upon submission of an adequate justification for additional authors. Contributions that do not meet the established authorship criteria will not be accepted as justification for including an individual as an author. Such contributors may, however, be acknowledged in the Acknowledgments section, which recognizes institutions or individuals who supported or contributed to the study but did not qualify for authorship.

The participation and contribution of each individual in the development of the work will be carefully assessed to ensure that only those who meet the authorship criteria are listed as authors. This policy aims to promote transparency and the appropriate attribution of credit to those involved in the study while maintaining the integrity and validity of academic work. Authorship criteria are established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE): https://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/.

A detailed description of each author's specific contributions must be provided in the Article Cover Letter.

CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) is a comprehensive classification framework comprising 14 distinct roles, each representing typical functions performed by contributors in the creation of academic and scientific works. These roles describe each author's specific contributions to the research, allowing their individual contributions to be documented in detail.

The primary purpose of this taxonomy is to promote transparency regarding individual contributions to scientific publications, thereby improving attribution, recognition, and accountability systems. A single contributor may perform more than one role in creating a work, and CRediT provides a framework for documenting these multiple contributions clearly and systematically.

- Conceptualization: Ideas; formulation or development of overarching research goals and objectives.

- Data Curation: Management activities to annotate (produce metadata), clean, and maintain research data (including software code where necessary for interpreting the data itself) for initial use and subsequent reuse.

- Formal Analysis: Application of statistical, mathematical, computational, or other formal techniques to analyze or synthesize study data.

- Funding Acquisition: Acquisition of financial support for the project leading to the publication.

- Investigation: Conducting the research and investigation process, specifically performing experiments or collecting data/evidence.

- Methodology: Development or design of methodology; creation of models.

- Project Administration: Responsibility for managing and coordinating the planning and execution of the research.

- Resources: Provision of study materials, reagents, materials, patients, laboratory samples, animals, instrumentation, computing resources, or other analytical tools.

- Software: Programming, software development, creation of computer programs, implementation of code and algorithms, and testing of existing code components.

- Supervision: Responsibility for supervision and leadership in planning and executing research activities, including external mentorship of the core team.

- Validation: Verification, either as part of the research activity or independently, of the replication or reproducibility of results, experiments, and other research outputs.

- Visualization: Preparation, creation, and/or presentation of the published work, specifically the visualization or presentation of data.

- Writing – Original Draft: Preparation, creation, and/or presentation of the published work, specifically writing the initial draft, including substantive translations.

- Writing – Review & Editing: Preparation, creation, and/or presentation of the published work by members of the original research group, particularly critical review, commentary, or revision, including pre-publication or post-publication stages.

Sources:

https://credit.niso.org/   

https://scielo.readthedocs.io/projects/scielo-publishing-schema/pt_BR/master/narr/taxonomia-credit.html.  

 

8. Considerations Regarding the Use of Chatbots in Submitted Manuscripts

To ensure the integrity and reliability of the conclusions and results presented in scientific manuscripts that use chatbots, and to maintain public trust in the advances and findings reported, Contexto & Saúde adopts specific guidelines addressing the ethical aspects associated with the use of these technologies in scientific manuscripts.

Transparency: Authors must be fully transparent about the use of chatbots in the manuscript writing process, providing detailed information (name, version, model, and source) about how the technology was used and the contribution made by chatbots to the creation of the text.

Responsibility: Authors must assume full responsibility for the work produced with chatbots in their manuscripts, ensuring the accuracy of the content and the absence of plagiarism. Furthermore, human authors must ensure that their articles are free from plagiarism, including any text generated by chatbots.

Attribution: Authors must ensure proper attribution of all sources, including material produced by chatbots. They must also identify and cite sources that support statements generated by chatbots.

Limitations: Authors must discuss the limitations and potential biases associated with using chatbots to produce scientific texts, such as their inability to understand linguistic nuances or ambiguities.

Contexto & Saúde requires authors to state in the manuscript cover letter whether generative artificial intelligence (AI) or AI-assisted technologies were used in the writing or preparation of the manuscript.

This information is mandatory for all submissions. Authors must explicitly declare in the cover letter whether or not they used generative AI or AI-assisted technologies in the writing or preparation of the manuscript. For this purpose, authors must use one of the statements provided by the journal in the cover letter template.

This requirement does not apply to the use of basic text-editing tools, such as spelling and grammar checkers, reference management software, and similar resources that do not generate or develop manuscript content.

 

9. Editorial Process

Contexto & Saúde adopts standardized editorial procedures and quality assurance practices at every stage, beginning with manuscript submission.

9.1. Stages of the Editorial Process

Preliminary Assessment: Initially, the manuscript is received by the technical team, which checks its compliance with the journal's guidelines. The manuscript is then assessed by members of the Editorial Committee, who determine whether it meets the journal's general criteria and editorial policy. Manuscripts will be rejected at this stage if they: (a) constitute literature reviews or excerpts from dissertations, theses, projects, or research reports that have not been appropriately adapted; (b) are excessively descriptive and lack analytical depth; (c) do not make a significant contribution to the field of knowledge; or (d) do not comply with the journal's publication guidelines. Manuscripts rejected at this stage will be archived, while those approved will proceed to the next stage.

Peer Review: Manuscripts will be evaluated by at least two specialists in the relevant subject area, selected from the journal's registered ad hoc reviewers who serve as members of its Scientific Committee or pool of reviewers. These reviewers will be affiliated with different institutions in Brazil and other countries. The journal uses a double-blind peer review process, in which the identities of both authors and reviewers are concealed from each other. Review reports may or may not be published alongside the article. Reviewers will assess manuscripts according to the following criteria: clarity of writing and readability; suitability as a scientific document; currency and appropriateness of the theoretical and conceptual framework; clarity and alignment of the research subject with the journal's focus and scope; clearly stated objectives aligned across the abstract, introduction, and conclusion; a well-explained methodological approach appropriate to the article's aims; clear presentation and discussion of results in dialogue with the theoretical and conceptual framework; concise conclusions consistent with the methodology and findings; and originality and contribution to the field of knowledge. After preparing and submitting a written review through the journal's website, reviewers must select one of the following recommendations: Accept, Mandatory Revisions, or Reject.

Transmission of Review Reports: After the ad hoc reviewers have completed their assessments, the editor will forward the reports to the corresponding author, indicating the aspects requiring correction, additional information, or improvement. The author must make the requested changes within the established deadline.

Author Revision: When resubmitting the manuscript, the author must clearly indicate the changes made to the text and attach a detailed response letter explaining how each suggestion has been addressed or, where necessary, justifying any disagreements. This stage is essential to ensuring scientific rigor and editorial quality before the final decision.

Editorial Decision: Based on the review reports and revised manuscript, the journal's editors will inform the authors of the editorial decision regarding acceptance or rejection. If further changes to the content or structure are required, these will be communicated to the authors, who must implement them. Editors may also suggest formatting adjustments to ensure compliance with the journal's editorial guidelines and visual standards.

Language Editing and Translation: After the article has been accepted, language editing in the submission language and, where applicable, translation into English will be the authors' responsibility, as will technical editing to ensure compliance with Vancouver style. Authors must submit the following to the journal: (a) the manuscript in the submission language, following language editing; (b) a language-editing statement or certificate; (c) the complete English version of the article, where required; and (d) a statement or certificate confirming English-language editing or translation.

Articles submitted in Portuguese or Spanish must also be accompanied by a complete English version, which will be published alongside the version in the original submission language. Articles submitted in English will be published in English only.

Language editing and translation must be performed by qualified professionals to ensure linguistic quality and suitability for publication. Completion of these steps and submission of the corresponding documentation are required before the article can proceed to typesetting and publication.

Typesetting: After the revised and translated versions have been received and checked, the article will be typeset according to the journal's final publication format, following its graphic and visual standards.

Proofreading: The typeset version will be sent to the author for final review, allowing minor adjustments and corrections that do not compromise the content or alter the article's structure. Any corrections must be communicated within the deadline established by the publisher.

Final Version: Once the final proof has been approved, the article will be published in its definitive version on the Contexto & Saúde journal website.

 

9.2. Quality Control of the Editorial Process

Editorial Quality: The publisher and the editorial committee are responsible for ensuring the quality of both the published content and the entire editorial process. Both must strictly adhere to the principles of publication ethics, ensuring compliance with all stages of the editorial workflow and the standardization of evaluation criteria. The journal publicly discloses the names of its editors, along with their institutional affiliations and ORCID iDs.

Quality of Ad Hoc Reviewers: The selection of ad hoc reviewers is conducted carefully to ensure the quality and impartiality of the evaluations. Reviewers are selected based on their active involvement and productivity in the subject area of the manuscript, as well as their recent and recognized expertise in the field. Their previous reviewing records are also considered, with preference given to those who have demonstrated a commitment to meeting deadlines and providing high-quality assessments. The journal ensures that reviewers have no conflicts of interest and no recent co-authorship or collaborative relationships with the authors of the manuscript under review. The list of ad hoc reviewers who have submitted reviews for the journal is published annually.

Quality of Editorial Decisions: Editorial decisions must prioritize, above all, the scientific validity of the article and its relevance to the academic community. Editors must follow the guidelines established by the journal's editorial board and comply with legal requirements concerning defamation, copyright infringement, and plagiarism.

Decisions are based on the reports submitted by ad hoc reviewers and take into account the quality and scientific merit of the manuscript. The review process is conducted impartially, without discrimination based on the authors' race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, ethnic origin, nationality, or political views.

The journal adopts a double-blind peer review system, in which reviewers and authors remain mutually anonymous to prevent any form of bias during the evaluation process.

Post-Publication Quality: The journal follows an open access model, meaning that all articles are made immediately and freely available to the public upon online publication. Anyone can freely access, read, and examine the full text of the articles without restrictions, thereby promoting transparency and scientific reproducibility.

The journal welcomes comments, questions, and suggestions regarding published articles. Readers may submit a letter to the Editor to share their comments.

If potential scientific errors or ethical concerns involving a published article are identified, please contact the editorial team. Upon notification, we will initiate the necessary procedures to investigate the matter. If the issues are confirmed, appropriate measures will be taken, such as issuing a correction or formal retraction, in accordance with international ethical guidelines.

 

10. Guidelines for Reviewers and Article Evaluation Criteria

Contexto & Saúde is committed to promoting the dissemination of relevant, high-quality scientific research in the field of health. The following peer review criteria are used to evaluate submitted manuscripts:

Compliance with the Journal's Guidelines: Does the manuscript strictly adhere to the submission and formatting guidelines of Contexto & Saúde, ensuring standardization and consistency across publications?

Clarity of the Research Problem: Is the research problem clearly formulated and presented, allowing for a precise understanding of the study's objectives?

Contribution of the Study: Is the manuscript relevant and innovative, contributing new knowledge to the field of health?

National or International Relevance: Does the article demonstrate relevance beyond the local context, with the potential to contribute to national or international health research?

Analysis of the Scientific Literature: Is the literature review relevant and comprehensive, demonstrating familiarity with previously published scientific studies related to the research topic?

Appropriateness of the Research Method: Is the research method appropriate for addressing the research problem, ensuring the reliability and validity of the results?

Clarity and Replicability of the Method: Is the method described clearly and in sufficient detail to allow other researchers to replicate the study?

Data Analysis: Is the data analysis conducted clearly, appropriately, and accurately, providing a well-founded interpretation of the results?

Adequate Presentation of Results: Are the results presented clearly, objectively, and appropriately, facilitating readers' understanding?

Evidence-Based Discussion and Conclusions: Are the discussion and conclusion(s) supported by the results presented and/or by a current and relevant literature review, providing a consistent line of argument?

Quality of Writing: Is the text clear, coherent, and well organized, contributing to the dissemination of high-quality scientific knowledge?

By adopting these evaluation criteria, Contexto & Saúde aims to maintain a high standard of excellence in its publications, providing readers and researchers with a reliable source of scientific knowledge in the field of health.

 

11. Clinical Trials

For clinical trial studies, Contexto & Saúde follows the recommendations of the Latin American and Caribbean Center on Health Sciences Information (BIREME), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the World Health Organization (WHO) regarding clinical trial registration. The clinical trial registration number must be provided, and registration must be completed before data collection for the study begins. Registration must be obtained from one of the following organizations or registries:

• Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR);

• ClinicalTrials.gov;

• International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN);

• Netherlands Trial Register (NTR);

• UMIN Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN-CTR);

• WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP);

• Brazilian Registry of Clinical Trials (ReBEC).

Alternatively, registration may be obtained from other clinical trial registries that meet the criteria established by the WHO.

Providing the appropriate registration number is essential to ensuring transparency, traceability, and research integrity in clinical trials. These guidelines aim to promote the disclosure of complete and accurate information about clinical studies, prevent selective reporting of results, and help reduce publication bias. Furthermore, clinical trial registration facilitates the monitoring of ongoing studies, allowing the scientific community and the general public to access relevant information about health research.

 

12. Guidelines for Manuscript Reporting

To improve the quality and transparency of health research, manuscripts must follow the guidelines of the EQUATOR Network, according to the type of study. The recommendations for each study type are as follows:

- Quality improvement studies:

• Consult the Revised Standards for Quality Improvement Reporting Excellence (SQUIRE 2.0) guidelines (checklist).

- Randomized controlled trials:

• Use the CONSORT guidelines (checklist and flow diagram).

• It is important to note that clinical trials must be prospectively registered with one of the organizations or registries mentioned in Section 4.5.

- Systematic reviews and meta-analyses:

• Use the PRISMA guidelines (checklist and flow diagram).

• For other types of reviews (meta-synthesis, scoping review, mapping review, overview, integrative review, among others), use the relevant extensions of the PRISMA guidelines, available at https://www.prisma-statement.org/.

- Observational epidemiological studies:

• Consult the STROBE guidelines (checklist).

- Qualitative studies:

• The COREQ guidelines are recommended (checklist).

Note: It is essential to follow the specific recommendations of each guideline to ensure the appropriate structure and presentation of research findings. Applying these guidelines will help improve the quality and transparency of health research.

 

13. Research Ethics 

13.1. Ethics Committees and Commissions

In articles involving research with human participants, authors must declare that the procedures adopted complied with the ethical principles established in the Declaration of Helsinki, as well as with the applicable legislation and ethical standards of the country where the research was conducted.

All research involving human participants is subject to ethical review.

For research conducted in Brazil, authors must indicate compliance with the following regulations:

• Law No. 14,874 of May 28, 2024 and Decree No. 12,651 of October 7, 2025, which regulate the research process involving human participants and establish the National System for Research Ethics Involving Human Participants (Sinep).

• Resolution No. 466 of December 12, 2012 and, where applicable, Resolution No. 510 of April 7, 2016, both issued by the National Health Council.

For articles resulting from research involving human participants that has undergone ethical review, authors must report approval by the Research Ethics Committee (CEP), providing the corresponding opinion or approval number. A copy of the approval document must be attached as a supplementary file.

For research involving animal experimentation, authors must report approval by the Animal Use Ethics Committee (CEUA), providing the approval number and attaching a copy of the approval document as a supplementary file.

When the nature of the research does not require submission to an Ethics Committee for review, authors must state this and provide the corresponding justification in the manuscript.

 

13. 2. Protection of Participants and Vulnerable Populations

Research involving individuals, groups, or communities in vulnerable situations must adopt specific measures to ensure the protection of their rights, dignity, safety, well-being, privacy, and autonomy. Authors must consider the characteristics and circumstances of the participants and describe the protective procedures adopted in the manuscript.

In Brazil, in addition to the ethical standards applicable to research involving human participants, Law No. 14,874 of May 28, 2024 and Decree No. 12,651 of October 7, 2025 must be observed where applicable. These regulations address research involving human participants and establish specific measures for groups requiring additional protection.

Groups that may require additional protection include children and adolescents, pregnant and breastfeeding women, Indigenous peoples, Quilombola communities and other traditional populations, incarcerated individuals, and people with disabilities that impair their capacity to provide consent. The inclusion of these participants in research must follow appropriate protective procedures and, where applicable, procedures for obtaining free and informed consent and assent.

Contexto & Saúde also recognizes as international references the principles of the World Medical Association's Declaration of Helsinki, in its current version, and the International Ethical Guidelines for Health-related Research Involving Humans, issued by the Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS) in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO).

 

13. 3. Editorial Code of Conduct: Statement on Publication Misconduct

Contexto & Saúde is committed to ethics in scientific research and publication and adopts ethical conduct standards for all parties involved in the editorial process.

Plagiarism, data fabrication or falsification, redundant or duplicate publication, misappropriation of ideas or results, and other practices that compromise scientific integrity are not accepted. Articles derived from research reports, undergraduate final papers, master's dissertations, or doctoral theses authored by the submitting authors must be appropriately adapted and rewritten in the format of a scientific article, with proper acknowledgment of their origin where applicable.

Contexto & Saúde uses plagiarism detection software (Plagius) to identify textual similarities, with the aim of helping detect potential cases of plagiarism and other forms of inappropriate content overlap. The software results are reviewed by the editorial team and do not, in themselves, constitute proof of misconduct.

When plagiarism or other publication misconduct is suspected, the editorial team will examine the evidence and may request clarification from the authors. Evidence of the suspected plagiarism or identified misconduct will be presented to the author(s), who will be given an opportunity to respond. If the response is unsatisfactory or the necessary corrections are not made, the manuscript may be rejected or, in the case of already published works, appropriate editorial measures may be taken.

Contexto & Saúde follows the recommendations and principles of good practice established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), including its guidance on ethics and integrity in scientific publishing.

Issues concerning research ethics approval and the protection of participants and vulnerable populations are addressed specifically in the sections on Ethics Committees and Protection of Participants and Vulnerable Populations in this editorial policy.

 

13. 4. Editorial Policies

The policies listed below are available under “About the Journal.”

Policies on Authorship and Contributions; Conflict of Interest Policies; Post-Publication Correction Policies; Addendum Publication Policies; Retraction Publication Policies; Erratum Publication Policies; Copyright and Intellectual Property Policy; Complaints Management Policy; Archiving Policy; Disclosure Policy – Websites and Social Media; and Privacy Policy.

 

14. Open Science

Open science is emerging as a new way of conducting and communicating research, emphasizing transparency in research processes and the sharing of content to promote methodological rigor and cooperation among researchers. At the time of submission, the corresponding author must submit the Open Science Compliance Form along with the manuscript. The form is available in the journal's guidelines.

Contexto & Saúde adheres to open science through the following practices:

14. 1. Preprints

Preprints are an option for authors to initiate the formal communication of their research.

A preprint is a scientific manuscript deposited by its authors on a public server. It contains complete data and methodologies and is often the same manuscript submitted to a journal.

Preprints accelerate the dissemination of research findings and allow authors to receive feedback from readers about their studies and make any modifications they consider appropriate.

Authors who choose to post a preprint and subsequently or simultaneously submit their manuscript to Contexto & Saúde must indicate in the Open Science Compliance Form that the manuscript has been deposited on a preprint server, specifying the server's name and URL.

Contexto & Saúde accepts only original articles, except for manuscripts made available in preprint repositories. Simultaneous submission of a manuscript for evaluation by another journal is not permitted.

14. 3. Open Peer Review and Identification of the Associate Editor

This section addresses transparency in the evaluation of articles submitted to Contexto & Saúde.

Authors may choose whether to make the peer review process open, that is, whether the review reports concerning the manuscript's acceptance are published if the submitted article is accepted for publication. The author's preference must be indicated in the Open Science Compliance Form. Reviewers must also indicate their preferences upon receiving an invitation to review a particular article.

The name of the Associate Editor who managed the review process is also identified in the published article. The process begins with a preliminary assessment of the submitted manuscript, during which the Associate Editor examines the article to determine whether it meets the journal's scope and criteria. Once it passes the preliminary assessment, the manuscript is sent to subject-matter experts for review. Based on the reviewers' reports, the Associate Editor makes a decision on the manuscript. The decision may fall into one of three main categories: acceptance, revision, or rejection.

 

15. Publication

15.1. Time to Publication

The estimated time for the review process is seven months, while the total time from submission to publication is ten months.

15. 2. Publication in English

For articles submitted in Portuguese or Spanish, an English version will be requested after acceptance for publication. The journal will publish articles in Portuguese/English or Spanish/English. Articles submitted in English will be published in English only.

15. 3. Open Access Statement

Contexto & Saúde is an open access publication, meaning that all content is available free of charge to users and their institutions. The journal provides immediate and unrestricted access to its content, in accordance with the principle of disseminating scientific knowledge.

Articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits the use, sharing, adaptation, distribution, and reproduction of the material in any medium or format, including for commercial purposes, provided that appropriate credit is given to the author(s) and the original source.

In accordance with the definition of open access established by the Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI), users are permitted to read, copy, distribute, print, search, link to the full texts of articles, or use them for any lawful purpose without prior permission from the editor or authors.

The opinions and concepts expressed in the articles are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the journal or its editorial board.

 

15. 4. Copyright and Intellectual Property

By publishing in Contexto & Saúde, authors agree to the following terms:

Articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits:

Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format.

Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, including commercial purposes.

These permissions are irrevocable, provided that the following terms are observed:

Attribution — authors must be appropriately credited, a link to the license must be provided, and any changes made must be indicated.

No Additional Restrictions — no legal or technological measures may be applied that restrict uses permitted by the license.

Notices:

The license does not apply to material in the public domain or material covered by legal exceptions.

The license does not guarantee all rights necessary for specific uses, such as image rights, privacy rights, or moral rights.

The journal is not responsible for the opinions expressed in articles, which are the sole responsibility of the authors. The Editor, with the support of the Editorial Committee, reserves the right to suggest or request modifications when necessary.

Only original scientific articles reporting research findings of interest will be accepted. Such articles must not have been previously published or simultaneously submitted to another journal for the same purpose.

References to trademarks or specific products are intended solely for identification purposes and do not imply any promotional endorsement by the authors or the journal.

License Agreement: Authors retain the copyright to their articles and grant Contexto & Saúde the right of first publication.

 

15. 5. E-location

Contexto & Saúde uses an e-location system for each published article. Articles no longer use continuous, sequential page numbering (e.g., 1–15; 16–25) and instead display an electronic identifier called an e-location (e.g., e13264; e13965), which appears in the PDF under “How to Cite.” The page count is still included in the PDF files solely to facilitate page-count tracking.

 

15. 6. Publication Fees

Contexto & Saúde does not charge any submission or evaluation fees.

To ensure the journal's publication schedule, regularity, quality, and open access to published manuscripts, an editorial processing fee of BRL 600.00 is charged for manuscripts accepted for publication. This fee covers editing, typesetting, DOI registration, and journal maintenance costs.

Payment is made via PayPal after the article has been accepted or by bank deposit:

^{BANCO DO BRASIL — Branch: 0371-9 — Account: 7458-6 - The identifying code is the depositor's CPF (Brazilian individual taxpayer registration number) or CNPJ (Brazilian corporate taxpayer registration number): FIDENE — 90.738.014/0001-08.}

^{BANRISUL — Branch: 0220 — Account: 2400159201}

^{CAIXA ECONÔMICA FEDERAL — Branch: 4311 — Operation: 003 — Account: 122-4}

^{SICREDI — Branch: 0361 — Account: 8001-2}

^{PIX (CNPJ) — 90.738.014/0001-08}

If payment is made by bank deposit or PIX, the corresponding author must email revistaseletronicas@unijui.edu.br the following information required for issuing the invoice:

• ^{Full name}

• ^CPF

• ^{Full address}

• ^{Email address}

• ^{Article title}

• ^{Any additional information the authors need to appear on the invoice}

For questions, please contact the journal at revistaseletronicas@unijui.edu.br 

 

Last updated on October 20, 2026.