Peer Review Process

Peer Review Process

All manuscripts submitted to Optimal Journal of Nursing Research and Innovation (OJNRI) undergo an initial evaluation by the Editorial Team to determine their suitability with the journal’s focus and scope, compliance with submission requirements, academic quality, and ethical standards.

Before entering the peer-review process, all submitted manuscripts are screened for plagiarism using appropriate plagiarism detection tools. Manuscripts with indications of plagiarism, excessive similarity, ethical concerns, or significant academic misconduct may be rejected or returned to the authors for correction.

Manuscripts that pass the initial screening process will be reviewed by at least two independent peer reviewers with expertise relevant to the manuscript topic. OJNRI applies a double-blind peer-review method, in which reviewers are unaware of the authors’ identities, and authors are not informed of the reviewers’ identities.

The peer-review process evaluates manuscripts based on the following criteria:

Originality and novelty of the research;
Relevance to nursing research, education, clinical practice, leadership, management, community health nursing, and healthcare innovation;
Scientific rigor and methodological quality;
Ethical considerations, including research involving patients and human participants;
Accuracy of data analysis and interpretation;
Contribution to the advancement of nursing knowledge and evidence-based practice;
Quality, relevance, and adequacy of references;
Clarity and organization of manuscript presentation.

Reviewers provide constructive comments, suggestions, and recommendations to assist authors in improving the quality of their manuscripts. Reviewer comments are then sent to the corresponding author for necessary revisions and responses.

The reviewers’ recommendations are evaluated by the Editorial Team and considered in the editorial decision-making process. The final decision regarding manuscript acceptance, revision, or rejection is made by the Editor-in-Chief based on reviewers’ evaluations and editorial assessment.

The possible editorial decisions include:

Accept Submission – The manuscript is accepted for publication without further substantial changes.
Revision Required – The manuscript requires minor or major revisions before further consideration.
Resubmit for Review – The manuscript requires substantial improvement and may undergo another review process.
Decline Submission – The manuscript does not meet the scientific, ethical, or scope requirements of the journal.

OJNRI is committed to maintaining a fair, transparent, and rigorous peer-review process to ensure the quality, integrity, and credibility of published articles in nursing research and innovation.