The initial appraisal of each manuscript is made by the Editors. In case the topic, treatment and geographical focus fit to journal’s aims and objectives, the anonymized manuscript is assigned to peer-reviewers.

Once the reviewers have made a determination, i.e. acceptance, revision, or rejection of your manuscript, the Editor-in-Chief makes the final decision. 

We apply a double-blind peer review, meaning that the author’s name and affiliation are not made public to the referee. The referee’s name and affiliation are also not revealed to the author. 

Review requests are sent to peers that are qualified to assess the works in terms of the relevance of their thematic, theoretical, methodological, and/or geographic expertise. In cases of desk-rejections, the argumentation will be motivated, but cannot unfortunately be extended and detailed. A rejection based on the outcome of a review process will be backed up by the actual reviews, and a motivation by the editor. 

A decision on the manuscript generally may be expected within 5 weeks of submission, although delays in obtaining reviews may prolong this process. Manuscripts are sent out for review electronically, and all correspondence takes place via e-mail. If reviewers recommend revision of the manuscript, authors are requested to resubmit their revisions after receiving the notification. They are asked also to submit a letter (as an attachment to the editor’s e-mail) with a detailed description of how they have responded to the separate issues raised by the reviewers.

Occasionally, Medicus invites guest-editors who wish to organize a special issue. In such cases, the guest-editors are responsible for setting up and carrying out the review process. After completion of the review process, they will issue an editorial advice. Also in this case, the Editor-in-Chief is responsible for the final decision. 

All accepted manuscripts will also be checked for plagiarism using the Turnitin platform. Authors of finally accepted manuscripts will be asked to make the revision of proofs before printing.