Second self-appraisal on the Publication Process of Articles published in the Journal of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences (J RUMS); 2006-2011

Continuous appraisal of the publication process of articles is warranted for developing future research activities. The aim of the present study was the determination of the publication process of articles published in the Journal of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences (JRUMS). In this descriptive study, all published papers in the JRUMS through the years 2006-2011 were examined. Data collecting tool was a pre-designed checklist for the first self-appraisal which was based on the new strategies of editorial boards. A number of items were added to this checklist including: funding, conflict of interest, and ethical approval. Data were then analyzed by Chi- Square and independent t-tests. Out of 948 submitted articles, 208 articles (%22) had been published. The most frequent types of study was related to the descriptive ones (30.2%). Twenty seven (22.5%) of authors had received the acceptance letters six months after the submission of their articles. Although the results indicated improvements in some areas, more cooperation among authors with referees and editorial staff is needed to reduce the acceptance time.