Types of article we publish
NEW: short QI reports: This concise format is specifically targeted at doctors in training and other professionals to help them report their learning and support others to do similar work. Please submit under the category of 'original article' and preface your title 'QI short report'.
Original research: Papers reporting and analysing original data derived from systematised research methods with the aim of testing a hypothesis. Articles should not usually exceed 3,000 words (excluding tables, figure legends and references) and 40 references, with figures and tables as required. Please submit under the category of 'Original article'.
Research letters: Shorter pieces of original research, not of sufficient substance to be published as full papers, but which nonetheless have merit and are of interest and use to the readership. Articles should not usually exceed 1,500 words (excluding tables, figure legends and references) and 15 references, with figures and tables as required. Please submit under the category of 'Original article' with the prefix to your title of 'Research letter'.
Reviews: Papers synthesising the results and conclusions of previously published research. Articles should not usually exceed 3,000 words (excluding tables, figure legends and references) and 80 references, with figures and tables as required.
Opinion: Papers in which a topic of interest is discussed from a particular viewpoint, or in which avenues for future research are suggested. Articles should not usually exceed 2,000 words (excluding tables, figure legends and references) and 10 references, with figures and tables as required.
Case studies: Papers describing examples of innovative practice and their outcomes. Articles should not usually exceed 1,500 words (excluding tables, figure legends and references) and 15 references, with figures and tables as required.
Letters to the editor: Readers who disagree with or would like to expand on published articles are encouraged to submit a letter to the editor. Letters should not usually exceed 350 words in length.
If word count is likely to significantly exceed the guidelines given above, please contact the editorial office (FHJ@rcplondon.ac.uk) for advice prior to submission.
How should I prepare my article?
How to structure your article
- Randomised controlled trials: CONSORT
- Observational studies (cohort/case control): STROBE
- Qualitative research: COREQ
- Quality improvement papers: SQUIRE 2.0
- Economic evaluations: CHEERS
- Systematic reviews and meta-analysis: PRISMA
- Summary/abstract (80 words)
- Introduction (200 words)
- Method (200 words)
- Results (300 words)
- Discussion (150 words)
- Conclusion (50 words)
- References (7-10 Max)
- Introduction (around 200 words): details of the context (eg hospital size and type, type of service, patient demographics) and the specific challenge faced.
- Solution/methodology (around 300 words): a concise summary of the innovation being trialled, including staffing details, funding, partner organisations involved, and study design where relevant.
- Outcome (around 300 words and up to two graphs/tables): where possible, this should include quantitative results.
- Conclusion and next steps (around 300 words): a critical discussion of the success of the trial and next steps (such as further testing or extension).
Patient and carer involvement
Appropropriate patient and carer involvement should be considered both when designing a study/project and when writing your article. You will be asked to outline how you have done this during the submission process.
How to format your article
- Walters L, Greenhill J, Richards J et al. Outcomes of longitudinal integrated clinical placements for students, clinicians and society. Med Educ 2012;46:1028–41.
- Horton R. Second Opinion: Doctors, diseases and decisions in modern medicine. London: Granta Books, 2003.
- Greenaway D (chair). Securing the future of excellent patient care: Final report of the independent review. London: GMC, 2013.
- McDonald J. Shared decision making. In: Wheeler D, Wong H, Shaley T (eds), Future patient care, 2nd edn. London: Springer, 2014:467–81.
Funder compliance
We comply fully with the open access requirements of UKRI, Wellcome, and NIHR. Where required by their funder, authors have the option to publish the Version of Record (VoR - final published version) of their article under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence. Article processing charges for such articles are currently waived. The authors are obliged to state their funding source and publication licence requirements at the submission stage.