Publication Fees and Services Policy

Preventive Care in Nursing and Midwifery Journal is a fully open-access, non-profit journal committed to removing financial barriers to scholarly publishing. The journal does not charge any article processing charges (APCs), submission fees, peer-review fees, or publication fees for any author, regardless of their geographical location or institutional affiliation.
All articles are freely accessible immediately upon publication, ensuring the widest possible dissemination of research findings to the global academic community.
As part of the journal's commitment to maintaining high editorial and production standards, all accepted manuscripts receive comprehensive professional editorial and production services at no cost to the authors. These services are fully covered by the journal's publishing budget and include:

• Advanced language editing and professional proofreading
• Rephrasing for clarity, fluency, and originality
• Typesetting and improved formatting
• Plagiarism and AI-generated content screening
• Reference checking and validation

These services are provided to ensure that all published manuscripts are clear, accurate, and readable, thereby supporting the effective communication of research findings to the international academic community.

Peer-Review and Withdrawal Policy
To maintain the integrity of the peer-review process and prevent misuse of the journal's resources, the following policy applies to manuscript withdrawal:

• Standard Peer-Review is Free: All submitted manuscripts undergo a rigorous peer-review process at no cost to the authors. The journal covers all expenses related to reviewer honorariums and editorial handling.
• Withdrawal After Peer-Review: If an author chooses to withdraw their manuscript after the peer-review process has been initiated or completed, the author will be responsible for reimbursing the journal for the actual review costs already incurred. These costs include the honorariums paid by Zanjan University of Medical Sciences to the reviewers who evaluated the manuscript.
• Purpose of This Policy: This policy is designed to prevent unnecessary burdens on the journal's editorial workflow and to discourage authors from submitting manuscripts without serious intent to publish, which would otherwise waste the valuable time and effort of reviewers and editors.
• Transparency: In the event of withdrawal after review, the author will be clearly informed of the exact costs incurred, based on the number of reviewers consulted and the review rounds completed. The author will be required to reimburse these costs directly to the journal or the relevant institution.
• Withdrawal Before Peer-Review: If a manuscript is withdrawn before the peer-review process begins, no charges will apply.
• No Other Charges: Aside from the withdrawal-after-review provision described above, the journal does not charge authors for any other services, including submission, editing, production, or publication.

Key Notes:

1. Free for All Authors: There are no fees for authors inside or outside Iran for submission, peer-review, publication, or editorial and production services.
2. Quality Assurance: The journal works with qualified editors and service providers to ensure high-quality and consistent preparation of all articles.
3. No Profit Motive: The journal is non-profit and does not profit from any services. All standard publication costs are covered by the journal's supporting institution.
4. Withdrawal Charges Only: Charges are only applicable in the specific case of manuscript withdrawal after peer-review has commenced, and only to reimburse actual review costs already paid to reviewers.

For any questions regarding this policy or the publication process, please contact the editorial office:

• Primary Email: pcnmZums.ac.ir
• Secondary Email: pcnmjournalgmail.com