AUTHOR GUIDELINES
Pediatric Nursing is currently accepting manuscripts for peer review and consideration for publication in all areas impacting pediatric nursing, including clinical practice, case studies, patient education, quality improvement, evidence-based practice, and research. Expert assistance for new writers and support with topic selection are available from the Pediatric Nursing Editor and members of the Editorial Board.
Pediatric Nursing presents information that is both theoretically grounded and clinically relevant to educate the novice, enrich the generalist, and advance the pediatric specialist toward providing professional care of the highest quality.
The journal accepts original articles: case studies, descriptions of clinical care, descriptions of continuous quality improvement projects, descriptions of evidence-based practice initiatives, and research. Query letters are welcome, but not required. Material must be original and never published before. Material is submitted for review with the understanding that it is not being submitted to any other journal simultaneously.
Pediatric Nursing is a refereed journal. All manuscripts submitted undergo review by the editor and blind review by members of the manuscript review panel and/or Editorial Board members. Each manuscript is reviewed on its timeliness, importance, clarity, accuracy, and applicability to adult health/medical-surgical nursing. Upon acceptance of the manuscript, the author will yield copyright to Pediatric Nursing.
Acquiring permission to reprint previously published materials is the responsibility of the author. Authors have the responsibility to verify that they have read all the materials cited in their manuscript and, if necessary, have contacted the relevant authors to verify the accuracy of cited material. Manuscripts are subject to copy editing. The author will receive proofs via email for review prior to publication.
Manuscript Preparation
Manuscripts must be typewritten and double-spaced. References, photographs, tables, and all other details of style must conform to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA, 7th ed., 2020).
Format
All files should be saved as MS Word.
Do not use automatic paragraph style codes. Type in numbers, letters, or bullets for lists manually.
Avoid complex font attributes and use only one font size.
Do not use reference software.
Do not submit your manuscript as separate files (i.e., Title Page, Abstract, Manuscript Body, Tables, Figures, etc.); combine all sections into one document/file where able.
Title Page: Include the manuscript title, authors' names, credentials, and professional affiliation. Also include an address for correspondence, email address, a brief abstract of 40 words or less, and 3-5 key words.
Research Summary: Research manuscripts should contain a brief Research Summary including Background, Objective, Methods, Findings, and Conclusion. This is different from the brief abstract.
Keywords: Include four or five key words within the abstract to facilitate appropriate indexing of the article for literature search purposes.
Biography: Author names should appear only on the title page, since manuscripts are reviewed blind (authors are anonymous to reviewers). Biographic information about the author(s) should appear on the title page of the manuscript. That information should include: first name, middle name or initial, and last name; credentials, with highest degree first (MSN, RN not RN, MSN), and do not list multiple degrees unless there is a compelling reason to do so — for example: PhD, MSN, MBA; and complete information on the primary affiliation of the author(s), but do not include additional background information unless it is necessary to explain the author's interest or expertise in the content area.
Sample: Jane Rowland Doe, MSN, RN, is Vice President of Nursing, Mercy Hospital Corporation, Doeville, MA.
Subheadings: Include subheadings in the manuscript where applicable. Please refer to the journal guidelines for type of manuscript you are submitting.
References: Manuscripts that do not comply with reference and style requirements of the APA Manual (7th ed.) may be returned to the author for revision before peer review. References in the text should be cited by author and date, for example (Evans, 2024), with page numbers cited for direct quotations. The reference list at the end of the manuscript should include only those references cited in the text, and be arranged alphabetically by author.
Important: All references must be current, and from the last 3-5 years. If you are citing a study that is considered "classic," please include a current citation to validate the information.
All citations should reference primary sources. The use of secondary sources (material analyzed or interpreted from the primary source) is discouraged. If necessary, locate a copy of the original work and credit it as such. Sample references are:
Periodical:
Rollins, J.A. (2024). ‘Came from nothing.’ Pediatric Nursing, 50(5), 213. https://doi.org/10.62116/PNJ.2024.50.5.213
Book:
American Psychological Association (APA). (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). Author.
Chapter in a Book:
Melnyk, B.M., & Fineout-Overholt, E. (2023). Creating a vision and motivating a change to evidence-based practice in individuals, teams,
and organization. In B.M. Melnyk & E. Fineout-Overholt (Eds.), Evidence-based practice in nursing and healthcare: A guide to best
practice (5th ed., pp. 548-564). Wolters Kluwer.
Website: It is not necessary to include the date a citation was accessed unless the material will change over time.
Figures: These include line drawings, photographs, diagrams, and graphs. Each should be numbered, and the number must correspond to a statement in the manuscript directing the reader (see Figure 1). When using figures adapted or obtained from another source, the author must obtain written permission for both print and electronic use from the original publisher.
Photographs: Photos should be submitted electronically and must be high resolution (at least 300 dpi or a minimum of 1280 x 960 pixels). Please note images found on Google, Bing, or other Internet search engines are not public domain; permission from the original source (not Google) must be provided.
Authorship
Pediatric Nursing endorses and subscribes to the definition of Authorship by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) which states:
The ICMJE recommends that an author should meet all four of the following criteria:
Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work.
Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content.
Final approval of the version to be published.
Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
Conflict of Interest
Pediatric Nursing requires authors, editorial board members, and reviewers to disclose any conflicts of interest related to their submission and involvement with the journal. Pediatric Nursing endorses and subscribes to the definition of Conflict of Interest by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (2006), “Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals,” which states:
Public trust in the peer review process and the credibility of published articles depend in part on how well conflict of interest is handled during writing, peer review, and editorial decision making. Conflict of interest exists when an author (or the author’s institution), reviewer, or editor has financial or personal relationships that inappropriately influence (bias) his or her actions (such relationships are also known as dual commitments, competing interests, or competing loyalties). These relationships vary from those with negligible potential to those with great potential to influence judgment, and not all relationships represent true conflict of interest. The potential for conflict of interest can exist whether or not an individual believes that the relationship affects his or her scientific judgment. Financial relationships (such as employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony) are the most easily identifiable conflicts of interest and the most likely to undermine the credibility of the journal, the authors, and of science itself. However, conflicts can occur for other reasons, such as personal relationships, academic competition, and intellectual passion. Authors should identify individuals who provide writing assistance and disclose the funding source for this assistance.
Informed Consent
Pediatric Nursing requires authors to assure patients’ and subjects’ privacy, if applicable, related to their research and manuscript. Pediatric Nursing endorses and subscribes to the definition of Human and Animal Rights by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (2006), “Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals,” which states:
Patients have a right to privacy that should not be infringed without informed consent. Identifying information, including patients’ names, initials, or hospital numbers, should not be published in written descriptions, photographs, and pedigrees unless the information is essential for scientific purposes and the patient (or parent or guardian) gives written informed consent for publication. Informed consent for this purpose requires that a patient who is identifiable be shown the manuscript to be published. Identifying details should be omitted if they are not essential. Complete anonymity is difficult to achieve, however, and informed consent should be obtained if there is any doubt. For example, masking the eye region in photographs of patients is inadequate protection of anonymity. If identifying characteristics are altered to protect anonymity, such as in genetic pedigrees, authors should provide assurance that alterations do not distort scientific meaning and editors should so note. When informed consent has been obtained it should be indicated in the published article.
Human and Animal Rights
Pediatric Nursing requires authors to disclose Institutional Review Board consent, if applicable, related to their research and manuscript. Pediatric Nursing endorses and subscribes to the definition of Human and Animal Rights by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (2006), “Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals,” which states:
When reporting experiments on human subjects, authors should indicate whether the procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000. If doubt exists whether the research was conducted in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration, the authors must explain the rationale for their approach, and demonstrate that the institutional review body explicitly approved the doubtful aspects of the study. When reporting experiments on animals, authors should be asked to indicate whether the institutional and national guide for the care and use of laboratory animals was followed.
Publication
Authors will be notified of a manuscript's acceptance within 12 weeks of receipt, with publication scheduled to the next available issue. If contact or biographical information changes during time of acceptance to publication, please contact the journal office to update your information.
Please submit manuscripts to:
Editor, Pediatric Nursing