To uphold the highest standards of publication ethics, FJHS strictly follows the guidelines provided by national and international bodies, including:

• Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PMDC)
• Higher Education Commission, Pakistan (HEC)
• The Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
• The World Association of Medical Editors (WAME)
• The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)

Misconduct in research, publication, or professional behavior are treated with the highest priority. Editors, reviewers, authors, and readers are encouraged to submit any such concerns to the journal, which will be addressed by the publisher following the formal guidelines.

FJHS follows the ICMJE guidelines for authorship that can be retrieved from link: http://www.icmje.org/.

The journal follows the guidelines of HEC, Pakistan on plagiarism as available on its website. (https://www.hec.gov.pk/english/policies/Pages/Plagiarism.aspx).

Authorship Responsibility

The Journal upholds the principle of collective responsibility for the intellectual integrity of all published work. Accordingly, all individuals listed and signed as authors share equal responsibility for the entire content of the manuscript.

Similarity Index and Screening

All submitted manuscripts are screened for plagiarism using Turnitin software (Courtesy HEC). To comply with HEC standards, the overall Similarity Index (SI) ≤ 19% will be acceptable. (https://www.hec.gov.pk/english/policies/Pages/Plagiarism.aspx).

Authors must explicitly declare if they have used any Artificial Intelligence tool in the preparation of their manuscript. Any content generated or assisted by AI must be clearly identified in the text to ensure full transparency. Failure to disclose the use of such tools may constitute a breach of academic integrity. FJHS allows the usage of AI-produced content as per HEC plagiarism standards.

• ∅ If the SI is more than 19%, the corresponding author will be notified and is required to provide a written explanation within 15 days.
• ∅ If plagiarism is detected in an under process manuscript, the corresponding author will be asked to provide a justification. The manuscript will be withheld from further processing until rectified or a satisfactory response is received.

Plagiarism in Published Article

If plagiarism is detected in already published articles, it raises concerns about the originality of the work. The suspected manuscripts submitted to the journal can be referred to HEC, editorial boards of other medical journals, or relevant international bodies to verify its originality. The manuscript will be temporarily retracted, and an announcement will be made in the journal.

Similarly, individuals alleging intellectual property, idea, or data theft must provide verifiable documentary proof to support their claim. The author will again be required to submit an explanation. If no response is received within the specified period, or if the justification is found insufficient, the article will be **permanently retracted**, and the author will be barred from future submissions to FJHS. Relevant authorities such as HEC, PMDC, and the author's parent institution will be informed.

Policy on Self-Plagiarism

Self-plagiarism is not allowed by FJHS. Authors must transparently cite their prior relevant work. When revisiting an old idea or observation, the previous publication must be referenced, and any verbatim text must be placed in quotation marks with a citation.

Multiple / Duplicate / Simultaneous Submission

In cases of multiple, duplicate or simultaneous submissions, **editors of the other journals involved will also be notified**. If an author claims that a publication has been retracted, they are required to submit official **documentary evidence** of the retraction. Similarly, individuals alleging intellectual property, idea, or data theft must provide **verifiable documentary proof** to support their claim.