Biomedical Research in Developing Countries - UNICRI

EQUATOR Network
Enhancing Quality of Trials and Other Research, 38 established in 2008 and funded by
the UK National Library for Health and the National Institute for Health Research is
a new global initiative that aims to improve the quality of health care by promoting
the transparent and accurate reporting of health research. It acts as an ‘umbrella’
organization, bringing together developers of reporting guidelines, medical journals
editors and peer reviewers, research funding bodies and other collaborators with
mutual interest in improving the quality of research publications and of research itself.
Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
It is a charity, created in 1997 by a group of journal editors, to provide a discussion
forum for editors of peer review journals on issues related to integrity of research
publication. The web site provides for case discussion on breach of ethics on a
variety of issues such as plagiarism, fabrication of data, ghost writing etc.. The
COPE 39 has also issued Guidelines on Good Publication Practices and specific Codes of
Conduct for editors and authors.
World Association of Medical Editors
WAME 40 provides guidance on a series of topics related to research results
publication. Among the topics, there is the definition of peer-reviewed journal, the
responsibilities of medical editors, the registration of clinical trials, and geopolitical
intrusion on editorial decisions, conflict of interest related to funding of research. Its
web site contains a quite rich section that collects the web resources on publication
and research ethics, including the 2004 WAME “Recommendations on publication
ethics policies for medical journals”.
European Association of Science Editors
EASE 41 website provides publications and resource guides from EASE, which is
comprised of editors and publishing professionals.
38 http://www.equator-network.org (accessed in June 2008).
39 http://www.publicationethics.org.uk (accessed in June 2008).
40 http://www.wame.org/ (accessed in June 2008).
41 http://www.ease.org.uk/ (accessed in June 2008).
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