Informed Consent Policy
The Journal of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (JMID) is committed to protecting the rights, dignity, privacy, safety, and welfare of individuals who participate in research. Authors are required to conduct research involving human participants in accordance with applicable ethical standards and to obtain appropriate informed consent or an approved waiver of consent.
JMID follows internationally recognized ethical principles, including the Declaration of Helsinki, and expects authors to comply with applicable national and institutional requirements and relevant research-ethics guidelines.
1. Research Involving Human Participants
Manuscripts reporting research involving human participants must state in the Methods section:
whether informed consent was obtained;
how consent was obtained, where relevant;
the name of the approving ethics committee or Institutional Review Board (IRB);
the approval or reference number, where applicable; and
any approved waiver or modification of informed consent.
Where formal ethical approval was not required, authors should provide a clear statement explaining the basis for the exemption or determination, in accordance with the relevant institutional or regulatory requirements.
2. Informed Consent
Informed consent must be obtained voluntarily from participants before their involvement in research, unless an appropriately constituted ethics committee or other authorized body has approved a waiver or modification of consent.
Participants should receive information sufficient to understand, as appropriate:
the purpose and nature of the research;
the procedures involved;
foreseeable risks and potential benefits;
the use and protection of their personal information;
the voluntary nature of participation;
their right to decline participation or withdraw, where applicable; and
any other information required by applicable ethical standards.
Consent information should be presented in language and a format that participants can reasonably understand.
3. Documentation of Consent
Where written informed consent is required, authors must obtain and document consent using an appropriate consent process approved by the relevant ethics committee or IRB.
JMID does not normally require authors to submit signed consent forms with the manuscript. However, the journal may request appropriate evidence that informed consent was obtained or that an ethics committee approved a waiver or alternative consent procedure.
Authors must retain consent documentation in accordance with applicable institutional and legal requirements.
4. Waiver or Modification of Consent
JMID recognizes that, in certain circumstances, an ethics committee or other authorized body may approve a waiver or modification of informed consent.
Examples may include certain retrospective studies, research involving existing records or datasets, or other studies where obtaining individual consent is impracticable and the applicable ethical requirements for a waiver are satisfied.
Where consent has been waived, authors must clearly state this in the manuscript and provide the relevant ethical justification and approval information.
5. Vulnerable Participants
Research involving vulnerable populations requires appropriate additional safeguards.
These may include, where applicable:
children and minors;
individuals with impaired decision-making capacity;
prisoners;
individuals who may be subject to undue influence or coercion; and
other populations requiring additional ethical protections.
For participants who cannot provide legally valid consent themselves, consent should be obtained from an authorized parent, legal guardian, or representative in accordance with applicable law and ethical requirements.
Where appropriate, assent should also be obtained from children or individuals with limited decision-making capacity.
6. Privacy and Confidentiality
Authors must take appropriate measures to protect the privacy and confidentiality of research participants.
Manuscripts should not contain unnecessary personally identifiable information.
Participant names, identification numbers, addresses, telephone numbers, or other unnecessary identifying information must not be published.
Authors should follow applicable data-protection requirements and the conditions established by the relevant ethics committee.
7. Consent for Publication
Informed consent for participation in research is distinct from consent for publication of identifiable information.
When a manuscript contains potentially identifiable information, photographs, clinical images, case details, genetic information, or other material from which an individual could reasonably be identified, authors must obtain appropriate consent for publication where required.
Consent for publication should be obtained from the individual or an authorized representative, as applicable.
Where an individual is deceased, consent should be sought from an appropriate authorized representative where required by applicable ethical or legal standards.
Authors should ensure that identifying details are removed whenever possible without compromising the scientific value of the report.
8. Case Reports and Clinical Images
Case reports, clinical images, videos, or other materials that may permit identification of an individual require particular attention to privacy.
Authors should obtain appropriate consent for publication when an individual could reasonably be identified, even if direct identifiers such as the person's name are removed.
The manuscript should contain an appropriate statement confirming that consent for publication was obtained, where applicable.
9. Clinical Research
Authors reporting clinical research should comply with applicable ethical and regulatory requirements.
Where applicable, authors should provide information concerning:
ethics committee or IRB approval;
informed consent;
clinical trial registration;
study protocols and amendments; and
compliance with relevant clinical research standards, including ICH Good Clinical Practice (ICH-GCP) where applicable.
10. Research Involving Existing Data or Biological Materials
Research using previously collected data, medical records, biological specimens, publicly available datasets, or other existing materials must comply with applicable ethical and legal requirements.
Where individual informed consent was not obtained, authors should provide information regarding the ethical basis for the use of the material, including any approved waiver or exemption where applicable.
11. Editorial Review of Ethical Compliance
JMID may request evidence of ethics approval, informed consent, consent for publication, or an approved waiver when necessary to assess the ethical conduct of reported research.
If ethical concerns arise before or after publication, JMID may request additional information from the authors, ethics committee, institution, or other appropriate authority.
Where serious ethical concerns are identified, JMID may take appropriate editorial action in accordance with its Publication Ethics and Correction, Retraction, and Post-Publication Policy.
12. Participant Confidentiality During Peer Review
Authors should avoid submitting unnecessary identifiable participant information through the manuscript, supplementary files, or correspondence.
Any participant information received during the editorial and peer-review process will be handled confidentially in accordance with JMID's privacy and peer-review policies.
13. Ethical Responsibility of Authors
The responsibility for obtaining appropriate informed consent and complying with applicable ethical requirements rests primarily with the authors and their research institutions.
Publication in JMID does not constitute independent certification that a research project complied with all applicable ethical or legal requirements.
Authors must ensure that all statements concerning ethics approval, informed consent, consent for publication, and participant protection are accurate and supported by appropriate documentation.
14. Commitment to Ethical Research
JMID is committed to protecting human research participants and maintaining high standards of ethical and responsible scientific publishing.
The journal will continue to review and update its informed-consent requirements in accordance with developments in international research ethics, biomedical publishing standards, and applicable regulations.
