For authors

The French Academic Journal of Primary Care (FAJPC) primarily publishes original scientific articles in the fields of primary care (family medicine, clinical pharmacy, nursing, physical therapy, midwifery, dentistry, etc.).

Manuscripts must comply with the journal’s ethical charter and the formatting recommendations, as outlined in these author guidelines.

Submissions should be made through the journal online manuscript submission platform. Upon submission, authors will receive an automatic acknowledgment of receipt. For inquiries not addressed through the submission platform, the editorial office may be contacted at FAJPC@cnge.fr if needed. The journal appreciates the author’s interests in publishing with FAJPC and is committed to respecting the ethical charter and supporting authors in the dissemination of high-quality scientific work within a constructive and supportive publishing environment.

Publication Policy

Manuscripts submitted to FAJPC must comply with the rules of the International Committee for Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE): http://www.icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf. The French version is available for download: http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/translations/french2017.pdf. In particular, all authors must have approved the final version of the manuscript at the time of submission. The cover letter accompanying the manuscript must indicate whether the work has been previously published, submitted elsewhere, or accepted for publication in another journal. In such cases, authors must obtain written permission from the original journal and provide this documentation to FAJPC along with the manuscript at the time of submission.

Research work must comply with the ethical recommendations of the Declaration of Helsinki ("WMA Declaration of Helsinki - Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects"). It must comply with an appropriate Research Ethics Committee (REC), Institutional Review Board (IRB), Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC), or, in France, a “Comité de Protection des Personnes” (CPP), in accordance with applicable national regulations. In France, this requirement applies to studies classified under the Jardé Law, and to research involving the use of individual health data. The article by Astruc et al., published in issue 172 of the journal exercer, facilitates understanding of the Jardé Law. The article by Jouannin et al. provides a didactic tool for the Jardé Law of November 17, 2016, in issue 155 of exercer. Other research involving the use of individual data must have been approved by an ethics committee. Research must also comply with data protection legislation, in accordance with the French Data Protection Authority (CNIL), where relevant. Details of ethical approval and data protection authorization must be reported in both the cover letter and the "Methods" section of the manuscript.

Authors are required to comply with international standards regarding the disclosure of potential conflicts of interest. The ICMJE provides a standardized disclosure form for reporting potential conflicts of interest. FAJPC provides a French translation of this form, but the official version remains the English-language version (the ICMJE has not certified the French version). The corresponding author must obtain the completed forms from each co-author, retain them, and provide them to the journal upon request. All authors must include any relationships, activities or interests that could be perceived as influencing the submitted work. A conflict-of-interest statement must be included at the beginning of the manuscript. Additionally, FAJPC includes the following statement at the beginning of each published article: "The potential conflicts of interest of each of the authors of this article are available on the website: www.transparence.sante.gouv.fr"

Any sources of funding for the submitted work must also be declared in the cover letter and at the end of the article.

The intellectual property of the articles belongs to the authors, who grant FAJPC (and the Episcience platform) a non-exclusive right to publish in their name. Commercial use of the article is prohibited. Information regarding copyright is available on the journal’s website: https://fajpc.episciences.org.

The cover letter should briefly describe the submitted work and its relevance to the journal’s readership. It should include any information relevant to the ethical approval of the study by competent authorities or institutions, including but not limited to ethics committees; and any sources of funding. The corresponding author is responsible for collecting conflict-of-interest declarations from all co-authors and must include the following statement: "All authors have declared on the ICMJE form all their links or potential conflicts of interest (financial activities, connections with companies or institutions) related to the current study."

The entire text must be typed using a word processing software and submitted in Microsoft Word® format (.doc or .docx). Use Arial font, size 10, 1.5 line spacing, justified paragraphs, no indentation, and no numbering. Section titles and subheadings must be in bold, lowercase, and not underlined. Italics should be used for Latin words, foreign terms, and the p-value (if applicable).

Units of Measurement

• Clinical and biological data must be reported using the International System of Units (SI) (cm, g/L, mmHg, mg, kg, kg/m²). Abbreviations and symbols should be separated from numerical values by a non-breaking space.
• Abbreviations and acronyms should be defined at first mention in the text, with the full term followed by the abbreviation or acronym in parentheses. Example: Odds Ratio (OR), Absolute Risk (AR), Santé publique France (SpF). When the full term is written all the words should begin with a capital letter (e.g. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence: NICE).
• Medications: Always use the International Nonproprietary Name (INN).

Typographical and Style

When presenting test results:

• p-values must be in italics;
• Spaces surrounding equality or inequality signs must be non-breaking;
• Confidence intervals must be abbreviated as "CI95" (for 95%) and follow the "RR" or "OR", separated by a semicolon;
• Comparisons between two values may use vs. (for versus);
• The "%" sign must always be preceded by a non-breaking space.

Examples**:**

• (p < 0.001)
• (OR = 7.7; CI95 = 1.3–44.2)
• (17.3 vs. 21.8%)

All punctuation marks must be followed by a space. Commas and periods must be attached to the preceding word. Compound punctuation marks must be preceded by a non-breaking space (Ctrl + Shift + Space in Windows®).

Exceptions**:**

• Hyphens connect two words to form one; no space before or after;
• Apostrophes require no space before or after;
• Parentheses (or brackets) require a space before opening and after closing, but not inside;
• Ellipses must always consist of three dots, with no space before;
• Et cætera is abbreviated as "etc."

Separate Title Page : this document must include:

• The title of the manuscript in English and/or French: preferably under 120 characters (including spaces), or approximately 20 words (maximum 150 characters including spaces), optionally with a subtitle, without abbreviations;
• The names of all authors (full first and last names) in the desired order of publication, with their affiliations, indicated by a superscript number after each author’s name;
• The email address (mandatory), postal address, and phone number of the corresponding author, responsible for communication with the journal;
• A declaration of conflicts of interest related to the article’s content for each author, as specified above;
• 3 to 6 MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) keywords in English and/or French (available at https://www.hetop.eu/hetop/);
• The total word count (including spaces) of the main text, including abstracts, references, tables, and figures;
• Authors are requested to propose two reviewers, including their institutional affiliations, email addresses and a brief justification for their suitability.

Authors may acknowledge individuals who have significantly contributed to the study or manuscript. These acknowledgments should appear at the end of the article, following the funding statement and before the references. The corresponding author must obtain written consent from the acknowledged individuals prior to submission, who thereby approve the research conditions and the article’s conclusions.

Manuscript Structure

First Page

• The abstract, one in English and/or French, each limited to 2,000 characters (including spaces), or approximately 300 words. The English abstract must be written in fluent, high-quality English and, where necessary, preferably reviewed by a native speaker.

The recommended article length is a maximum of 30 000 characters (including spaces), references included. The style should be simple and precise. "The absence of style is the best style in medical writing." Sentences should be short (220 characters maximum, or approximately 35 words).

• Bibliographic references at the end of the text formatted according to the journal’s guidelines (see dedicated section below);
• Tables should be placed after the references section, with each table presented on a separate page and preceded by a page break. Tables should be numbered consecutively using Arabic numerals in order of appearance in the text and with legends. Tables must be submitted in their editable format (doc, docx, xls, xlsx, etc.). Special attention should be given to data presentation. The legend should allow the table to be understood without referring to the text;
• Graphs, diagrams, figures, drawings, and photos provided separately, along with their original electronic files (xls, xlsx, jpg, eps, tiff, gif, bmp, png), one per page, with legends numbered consecutively using Arabic numerals in order of appearance in the text. Authors are responsible for ensuring that all figures are original, appropriately licensed, or reproduced with permission from the copyright holder.
• Online Appendices: Large data tables, interview guides or verbatim, videos, or other useful elements for the reader may be included as online appendices. These must be provided separately and referenced in the article text.

References

References must follow the Vancouver style and be numbered in superscript in order in which they are first cited in the text. Reference numbers should be placed at the end of sentences, before the punctuation mark. The same reference used multiple times retains the same number.

Journal Articles

Cite the first six authors with their initials followed by a comma, and the last author followed by a full stop. For more than six authors, cite the first three followed by "et al." Then, include the full title of the article in its original language, followed by a period, the journal name (abbreviated according to Index Medicus, without a period; if the journal is not listed in Index Medicus, write its full title with all the words capitalized), the publication year followed by a semicolon (no space), the issue number in the volume, followed by the volume number (if available) in parentheses, followed by a colon (no space), then the first page number in full and the last page number abbreviated (without repeating tens or hundreds if identical), separated by a hyphen. The reference must always end with a full stop.

Examples**:**

• Fleming MF, Barry KL, Manwell LB, et al. Brief physician advice for problem alcohol drinkers. A randomized controlled trial in community-based primary care practices. JAMA 1997;277(13):1031-7.
• Carnelle B, Le Mauff P. Les médecins généralistes connaissent-ils la notion de risque cardiovasculaire absolu? exercer 2006;78:99-102.
• Gaede P, Lund-Andersen H, Parving HH, Pedersen O. Effect of a multifactorial intervention on mortality in type 2 diabetes. N Engl J Med 2008;358(6):581-91.

For systematic reviews or meta-analyses from the Cochrane Database, the Cochrane reference number must appear at the end of the reference.

• Montgomery P, Dennis J. Bright light therapy for sleep problems in adults aged 60+. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2002;2:CD003403.

Books and Book Chapters

References for books or book chapters must include the authors’ names, book title, edition number, city, publisher, and publication year, following the two examples below:

• Danowski RG, Chanussot JC. Traumatologie du sport. 7th ed. Paris: Masson, 2005.
• Meltzer PS, Kallioniemi A, Trend JM, et al. Chromosome alterations in human solid tumors. In: Vogelstein B, Kinzler KW, editors. The genetic basis of human cancer. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2002.

Online Documents

References for online documents must include the authors’ names, document title, website URL (preceded by "Available from:"), and the date of access in square brackets.

• American Cancer Society. Recommendations for the Early Detection of Breast Cancer. Atlanta: ACS, 2017. Available from: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/breast-cancer/screening-tests-and-early-detection/american-cancer-society-recommendations-for-the-early-detection-of-breast-cancer.html [accessed May 30, 2018].

Clinical Practice Guidelines and Consensus Statements

References for clinical practice guidelines, framework documents, or consensus statements must include the name of the issuing agency, guideline title, publisher’s city, and publication year.

• Agence nationale de sécurité du médicament et des produits de santé. Gels de kétoprofène et réactions de photosensibilité. Saint-Denis: ANSM, 2003.
• Haute Autorité de santé. Trouble déficit de l’attention avec ou sans hyperactivité (TDAH): repérer la souffrance, accompagner l’enfant et la famille. Saint-Denis: HAS, 2015.
• World Health Organization. World Health Statistics 2023. Geneva: WHO, 2023. Available from: https://www.who.int/data/gho/publications/world-health-statistics [accessed July 7, 2023].
• Santé publique France. Cas d’encéphalite à tiques (TBE) déclarés en France de mai 2021 à mai 2023. Saint-Maurice: SpF, 2023. Available from: https://www.santepubliquefrance.fr/maladies-et-traumatismes/maladies-a-transmission-vectorielle/encephalite-a-tiques/documents/bulletin-national/encephalites-a-tiques-tbe-en-france.-bilan-des-cas-declares-de-mai-2021-a-mai-2023 [accessed July 7, 2023].

Legal References

References to laws or legal texts must include the law or code article number and, if applicable, its title.

• République Française. Décret n° 2010-904 du 2 août 2010 relatif aux conditions d’autorisation des programmes d’éducation thérapeutique du patient.
• République Française. Code de la santé publique - art. L1161-1 à L1161-6 (V).

Note: Unpublished theses are not validated scientific references by the community.

Manuscripts that do not comply with these minimum recommendations will be returned to the authors prior to editorial assessment.

This section presents an original scientific work (qualitative, quantitative, or interventional) conducted in the field of primary healthcare. The maximum recommended length is 30 000 characters (including spaces), or approximately 5000 words, including abstracts, tables, and references. The number of bibliographic references must not exceed 25, except for literature reviews. Abstracts must be structured into 5 paragraphs: background, objective(s), methods, results, conclusion.

The article must follow the IMRAD format (Introduction, Methods, Results, And Discussion).

Specific Recommendations for Original Articles

• Randomized controlled trials must follow the CONSORT guidelines;
• Observational studies in epidemiology must follow the STROBE guidelines;
• Qualitative research authors may follow the COREQ or SRQR scales;
• Systematic literature reviews must follow the PRISMA guidelines;
• Diagnostic tests must follow the STARD guidelines.

All these checklists are available on the EQUATOR Network website.

Editorials may be submitted spontaneously by authors or commissioned by the Editorial Board. The author or group of authors presents a theme or opinion, explaining their position on a free or assigned topic. Editorials may highlight a current issue or an article in the journal. They may also foster or scientifically contribute to a controversy or professional debate. Topics maybe medical or related to developments of the healthcare system, healthcare organization, or medical practice.

Editorials are brief (4000 characters including spaces, exceptionally 8000) with fewer than 5 references.

Submitted articles are first reviewed by the Editorial Board before being sent for peer review, ensuring author anonymity. Reviewers are required to adhere to following FAJPC’s ethical recommendations. Peer reviewers use an article-specific evaluation form and provide recommendations regarding to the manuscript. Reviewer reports are anonymized and shared with authors help them modify their text according to the provided feedback. The reviewer guidelines are available on the FAJPC website. Authors are encouraged to consult them as well.

Detailed Submission and Evaluation Process

The submission and evaluation process is as follows:

• Administrative screening. The editorial office verifies that the manuscript complies with the minimum formatting and general presentation recommendations (see above);
• Editorial assessment: Manuscripts meeting the minimum requirements are evaluated by the Editorial board for:
• Alignment for the journal’s scope and editorial policy;
• Scientific, methodological and writing quality.

Peer review: Manuscripts that successful pass these initial steps are reviewed by two or three independent blind reviewers for peer review. Reviewers assess the originality, relevance, and scientific quality using specific evaluation forms. The three evaluations are then synthesized by the Editorial Board.

Editorial Decisions: One of the following decisions may be issued:

• Accepted with minor revisions: Authors must submit a revised version of their manuscript addressing all reviewer comments;
• Major revisions required: Authors must submit a revised version of their manuscript addressing all reviewer comments, along with a separate document responding point-by-point to all comments, suggestions, and questions. Both documents are sent to the same reviewers for re-evaluation. The final publication decision is made only after reviewing this new submission;
• Rejected in current form, but a second submission is possible under the same conditions as above. The final publication decision is made only after re-reviewing the new submission;
• Rejected: Authors and reviewers receive the editorial team’s synthesis document (anonymity is preserved);
• Accepted as is.

The final publication decision is made by the Editorial Board.
The peer-review process is based on a mix of factual data and subjective opinions, which do not always lead to the correct decision. Authors may appeal a rejection decision if they believe that the reviewers or Editorial Board have misunderstood important aspects of the manuscript or that substantial factual errors have influenced the decision. To do so, they must respond point-by-point in writing to all scientific criticisms, propose a revised version of their article addressing all comments and clarifying all discussion points. This letter is examined and commented on by the article’s reviewers, and the final decision rests with the editorial team. If justified, the editorial team may decide to send the new version of the article to three additional reviewers.