| Guidelines
for Authors
Women’s Health Care:
A Practical Journal for Nurse Practitioners,
focuses on clinical topics of interest and importance to nurse
practitioners (NPs) and other advanced practice nurses who
attend to women’s healthcare needs. Women’s
Health Care invites readers to submit manuscripts
for publication in the journal.
Manuscripts on all topics related to the delivery of health
care to women by NPs will be considered. Manuscripts should
have a clinical focus, providing practicing NPs with up-to-date
information that is useful in the diagnosis, management, and
education of patients. Information should be presented in
a clear, easy-to-understand format, using charts, tables,
and algorithms when appropriate.
Manuscripts submitted to WHC must
not have been previously published or be under consideration
for publication in another journal. Those that are selected
for possible publication will be subject to peer review. Authors
may wish to have their manuscripts reviewed by experts in
the field before submitting them, and should inform WHC
in writing of such review. All manuscripts will be copyedited
and forwarded to the author for approval. The author assumes
responsibility for all content. Once a manuscript is accepted
for publication in WHC, it becomes
the property of NP Communications, LLC.
Text
Format
•
The
title sheet of the manuscript must include the title and the
author’s name, credentials, mailing address, email address,
telephone number, and fax number. The corresponding author
should be designated if there is more than one author. The
author’s name will be removed during the peer review
process.
•
Manuscripts
are to be double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman font,
using 1-inch margins. They should include an abstract, and
should be 8 to 12 pages long, including artwork. The maximum
recommended length is 16 pages, although some topics may merit
an even lengthier discussion. Manuscripts (Microsoft Word
only) are to be submitted electronically via email (PC-compatible
diskette optional) to Dawn Citron (see below).
•
References
(no older than 5 years if possible) should be cited using
a superscript1 in the text, and then listed in the reference
section in the order presented. If cited, Internet websites
must be reliable resources (original articles are preferred).
References should be styled in AMA format. See recent issues
of WHC for guidance.
•
Authors
are responsible for the accuracy of all information, including
citations and references.
Artwork:
Should Be Camera Ready
•
Photos
and Slides
–Physical photos
and slides, preferably in color, are acceptable. Glossy black
and white photographs should be submitted unmounted. Authors
must obtain written permission from photographers and from
all persons identifiable in photographs. NP Communications
and Karen Spencer Design take no responsibility for the quality
of images submitted by authors.
–Digital Photos: Images must
be prepared so that they may be printed at 4 x 6 with a resolution
of 300 dpi. File sizes >1MB must be submitted on a CD (they
cannot be emailed).
•
PowerPoint
Images:
All logos and images must be embedded in the PowerPoint file,
and photographic images must be saved at 300 dpi at 4 x 6.
PowerPoint charts cannot be reproduced; they will be redrawn
by our art director.
•
Tables,
Figures, Graphs, and Illustrations
–Tables: Up to six tables
(containing actual tabular material; simple lists should be
incorporated into the text) are welcome. Tables should be
cited in the text in numerical order, but they should be physically
placed in numerical order after the reference section. Authors
must obtain permission to reproduce a previously published
table, which must also include a credit line stating the original
source.
–Figures,
Graphs, and Illustrations: These should be professionally
prepared in black ink or produced on a high-quality laser
printer. They should be cited in the text in numerical order,
but they should be physically placed in numerical order after
the reference section. All explanatory material and legends
should be placed in captions beneath the figure, graph, or
illustration to which they pertain.
Student
Authors
WHC encourages NP
faculty members to submit manuscripts of excellence on behalf
of student authors. It is expected that faculty members will
have reviewed the manuscript for content, format, and accuracy
before submission, and that the manuscript will adhere to
the format described above. Student papers must meet
WHC criteria for publication, and will be peer
reviewed if considered for publication. Names of the student
author and faculty advisor should appear on the title sheet.
Case Studies
These should exemplify the clinical decision-making
process in NP practice, and should be written in such a fashion
as to challenge readers to “solve” the cases.
Case studies should present background information and the
patient’s chief complaint, associated problems, and
personal and family history. They should discuss the differential
diagnosis, diagnostic tests performed (if any), the management
plan, and the outcome. Risk factors, cost/benefit ratios,
and pertinent legal and ethical issues should be discussed
if relevant. Decision-point questions should be posed throughout
the case study to provide a rationale for each step in the
clinical decision-making process. Decisions should be supported
by the literature and by case-specific data. In fact, authors
are encouraged to present a case-specific decision-making
algorithm, chart, or table that reflects the process required
to “solve” the problem.
Additional Topics
WHC welcomes short
reports on late-breaking news, notices about upcoming continuing
education events or professional update meetings, easy-to-follow
tips for patients, and other information of interest to NPs.
In addition to manuscripts, WHC
welcomes suggestions for article topics and authors; short
reports on late-breaking news; notices about upcoming continuing
education or professional update meetings; easy-to-follow
information and tips for patients; and other information of
interest to NPs.
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