About the Journal of Family Medicine

The Journal of Family Medicine (JFM) is the open access home for evidence that transforms primary care practice, strengthens community health, and advances collaborative care models across the lifespan.

Family medicine is a discipline built on continuity, trust, and context. JFM exists to document and disseminate the evidence, innovations, and reflective analyses that equip practitioners to deliver whole-person care in ever-changing health systems. We focus on scholarship that bridges primary care clinics, home-based care, community organizations, and policy frameworks because authors deserve a venue that understands how intertwined these settings truly are. JFM articles regularly explore intersections such as behavioral health integration in rural clinics, telehealth adoption among aging populations, and community partnerships that reduce chronic disease disparities, ensuring every piece resonates with the realities of frontline practice.

Our editorial team evaluates each manuscript through three guiding questions: Does the work elevate clinical reasoning for diverse family structures? Does it advance the science of prevention, early intervention, or continuity of care? Does it demonstrate ethical stewardship and translational clarity? When a submission answers yes, we mobilize reviewers who bring deep disciplinary insights as well as geographic and cultural perspectives. This approach ensures that the journal delivers global relevance while respecting local nuance, mirroring the everyday balancing act performed by family medicine professionals worldwide.

JFM readers and authors represent the breadth of contemporary family medicine: urban and rural clinicians navigating resource constraints, academic researchers advancing implementation science, public health strategists working to close equity gaps, and educators redesigning curricula for team-based care. We design our content to serve them all. Each issue knits together clinical trials, pragmatic evaluations, health policy analyses, qualitative narratives, and methodological notes that illuminate how care can be reorganized around the lives of families. The journal’s open access model removes barriers to readership, extending insights to health ministries, community advocates, and interdisciplinary scholars in low- and middle-income contexts where access to timely evidence is often limited.

Because family medicine operates at the intersection of biological, psychological, and social determinants, we encourage manuscripts that cross traditional disciplinary boundaries. We welcome studies on maternal mental health interventions co-developed with social workers, school-based wellness programs crafted alongside educators, and digital tools piloted with information scientists. The journal's aim is to cultivate a pipeline of research that is not only publishable but also implementable. To support this, our editorial correspondence emphasizes practical implications, encouraging authors to translate findings into actionable recommendations that can inform practice guidelines, program adjustments, and professional education.

This commitment is reflected in the breadth of our archive, which spans lifestyle medicine trials, community health worker models, vaccine uptake campaigns, family violence screening protocols, and qualitative inquiries into caregiver experiences. As current readers navigate our Archive, they encounter studies dating from 2018 through 2024 that testify to the journal’s continuity and responsiveness to emergent health challenges.

JFM curates a mix of article types designed to capture the complexity of family medicine practice and policy. We look for manuscripts that articulate clear clinical or community benefit, position the work within current evidence, and disclose limitations with transparency. Authors can explore a full description of structural expectations on our Instructions for Author page; below is a sampling of formats we routinely feature.

• Original Research examining clinical interventions, health services, or implementation strategies that reshape patient journeys.
• Review Articles synthesizing literature across preventive medicine, chronic disease, or behavioral health to inform future investigations.
• Case Reports & Clinical Images spotlighting complex diagnostic puzzles, culturally responsive care, or interdisciplinary teamwork.
• Short Communications offering early signals from pilot projects, quality improvement initiatives, or novel educational approaches.
• Health Policy Analyses translating legislative shifts, reimbursement changes, or policy experiments into practical implications for family physicians.
• Qualitative & Mixed Methods narratives centering patient, caregiver, or clinician voices to illuminate lived experiences and co-designed solutions.
• Practice Guidelines & Protocols developed by expert panels seeking to align family medicine with best evidence and community needs.
• Conference Proceedings & Commentaries summarizing consensus dialogues, symposia outcomes, or reflective essays on emergent trends in family care.
• Data Reports & Methodology Notes sharing reusable datasets, analytic frameworks, or decision-support tools for practice transformation.
• Special Issue Collections curated around urgent themes such as antibiotic stewardship, telehealth integration, climate-resilient health systems, or rural workforce development.

Every author receives individualized feedback referencing reviewer insights, editorial expectations, and relevant policy requirements. Where revisions are invited, the editorial office outlines priorities and timelines, ensuring authors understand how to strengthen their manuscript for acceptance. Our transparent formatting guidelines specify title structure, running titles, author affiliations, structured abstracts (up to 250 words), introductions (up to 500 words), and discussion sections capped at 1,500 words so that submissions arrive production-ready.

JFM constantly monitors emerging topics in primary care and allied health sciences. Recent calls center on antimicrobial stewardship in outpatient settings, family-based responses to the mental health crisis, culturally attuned reproductive health counseling, and integration of artificial intelligence into triage and chronic disease monitoring. We also seek manuscripts that investigate climate-sensitive health planning, refugee and migrant family health, eldercare transitions, indigenous health sovereignty, and health literacy innovations geared toward caregivers.

Authors are encouraged to review our Aims & Scope for the full keyword taxonomy, which spans community health, rural healthcare, occupational health, telemedicine, geriatrics, pediatrics, women’s health, mental health, systems policy, and beyond. Collaborations that bridge disciplines—such as public health modeling aligned with clinical workflow redesign or social work interventions integrated with primary care visits—are particularly valued because they reflect the complexity of real-world family medicine. Manuscripts that include implementation frameworks, economic evaluations, or cross-sector partnerships help our readership move from insight to action.

Speed matters when innovations can change patient outcomes, yet speed should never compromise integrity. JFM balances both imperatives through a highly structured editorial workflow. Upon submission through any channel, authors receive confirmation within 72 hours and initial suitability screening within five days. Eligible manuscripts proceed to double-blind peer review managed by associate editors who align expertise with manuscript focus areas. We target a 12-day median from submission to first decision, supported by engaged reviewers and prompt editorial dialogue.

When revisions are necessary, we provide layered guidance that distinguishes essential methodological adjustments from recommended enhancements. Authors can respond through the Manuscript Zone portal, email, or our submission form, ensuring accessibility regardless of institutional digital infrastructure. Our commitment to rapid yet responsible publication continues beyond acceptance: articles pass through copyediting, typesetting, Crossref DOI registration, CrossMark updates, and similarity checks before appearing online, typically within two days.

1. Editorial Triage – scope alignment, methodological soundness, and ethical compliance review led by subject-specific editors.
2. Expert Peer Review – two or more reviewers evaluate scientific rigor, practical applicability, and clarity for multidisciplinary readers.
3. Decision & Guidance – acceptance, revision, or decline decisions accompanied by structured feedback to guide authors.
4. Production & Quality Control – professional copyediting, layout checks, figure optimization, and final author approval.
5. Indexing & Promotion – automatic deposit to Crossref, discovery platforms, and inclusion in issue collections, newsletters, and targeted announcements.

Throughout the process, our editorial coordinators remain accessible for clarifications about reviewer expectations, data availability statements, or cover letter adjustments. We encourage submission of supplementary files, visual abstracts, and practice tools that extend the usefulness of each article to clinicians and educators.

JFM is led by Editor-in-Chief Dr. Angela Pia Cazzolla of the University of Foggia, supported by an international board including Rajajeyakumar Manivel, Dr. Tung-Wei Kao, John P. Bartkowski, Dr. Alaa Ali Mohamed Elzohry, Francesco Carelli, Guler Kalem, Shiwei Duan, Anthony Achizie, and additional leaders in clinical medicine, sociology, health policy, and community health sciences. Their collective expertise ensures that each manuscript benefits from multi-perspective assessment aligned with contemporary practice realities. Board members actively recruit diverse reviewers, mentor early-career scholars, and curate thematic clusters for special issues.

Transparency in governance underpins our credibility. Editorial policies articulate how conflicts of interest are disclosed, how reviewer anonymity is maintained, and how corrections or retractions are issued when necessary. Prospective authors and reviewers can learn more about these expectations on the Editorial Board and Editorial Policies pages. We welcome nominations for new board members and guest editors who bring fresh insight into emerging aspects of family health.

Protecting patients, families, and communities is central to our mission. Manuscripts must demonstrate Institutional Review Board or ethics committee approvals where applicable, outline informed consent processes, and clarify how confidentiality was safeguarded. We expect full disclosure of funding sources, competing interests, and data ownership. Authors are also encouraged to include statements on cultural humility, community governance, or participatory methods when working with indigenous, migrant, or marginalized groups.

The Instructions for Author detail formatting of cover letters, running titles, conflict of interest statements, and reference list standards (numeric style). The Data Archiving Permissions page provides guidance on depositing datasets, multimedia, and supplemental materials in trusted repositories. Our Copyright and License policy aligns with open access best practices, ensuring that authors retain ownership while granting broad reuse rights under Creative Commons terms. We participate in Similarity Check to detect plagiarism and uphold research integrity.

Visibility multiplies impact. JFM articles are registered with Crossref for DOI assignment, benefit from CrossMark updates that signal version control, and pass through Similarity Check for integrity verification. Our Indexing page lists discovery partners including Google Scholar, WorldCat, ISSN Portal, Semantic Scholar, OpenAlex, CORE, and BASE, as well as directory listings such as IP Indexing, SJIF, IIJIF, Cosmos, and IFSIJ. We prepare metadata and keywords to enhance search engine optimization, ensuring that clinicians, policymakers, and graduate students can find relevant articles through academic databases and general web search.

• Automatic DOI registration with Crossref for persistent linking and citation tracking.
• Submission to discovery services, abstracting databases, and library catalogs for maximum accessibility.
• Article-level metrics displaying views, downloads, and citation counts to help authors document engagement.
• Searchable archives with HTML, PDF, and XML formats to accommodate different reading preferences and accessibility needs.

We recognize that preparing a manuscript is a significant investment. JFM surrounds authors with resources that streamline the journey from concept to publication. Our Membership program offers tiered benefits for individuals, research groups, and institutions, including APC savings, early access to calls for special issues, and invitations to editorial roundtables. The Language Editing Service powered by Riters supports authors seeking stylistic refinement, ensuring that nuanced ideas are communicated with clarity without altering scientific meaning.

The standard Article Processing Charge is $2,199 USD, as outlined on the Article Processing Charges page. We provide up to 30% waivers for editors and reviewers, partial waivers for authors from eligible countries, and a student rate of $999 when valid identification is supplied. Withdrawal fees apply only after three days of submission, reflecting the editorial resources already invested. Secure payment instructions, invoicing options, and receipt timelines are detailed online for full transparency.

Beyond publication, authors benefit from targeted dissemination. Accepted articles are featured on the Current Issue page (Volume 1, Issue 4, In Press), highlighted in announcements, and shared across thematic newsletters. We also encourage authors to supply practice checklists, patient education materials, or teaching slides alongside their manuscripts so the editorial office can spotlight these assets within supplementary resources and outreach campaigns.

Special issues allow the JFM community to explore pressing topics in depth. We welcome proposals from established scholars and rising leaders who can assemble interdisciplinary teams around themes such as family resilience in humanitarian crises, community health worker integration, or digital therapeutics for chronic disease self-management. Prospective guest editors can outline their vision via the Proposing a Special Issue page, while ongoing thematic calls are listed under Ongoing Special Issue. Authors ready to contribute can submit directly through the Submit to Special Issue portal.

Each special issue is grounded in rigorous peer review and guided by the same ethical standards governing regular submissions. We coordinate timelines closely, offering promotional support, virtual launch events, and integration into our cross-journal recommendation system to broaden readership. Special issue articles frequently attract collaborative partnerships, grant inquiries, and policy attention because they offer consolidated insights ready for implementation.

Publishing with JFM connects authors to a global network invested in lifelong learning. We encourage clinicians, educators, and policymakers to join our reviewer community via the Reviewer Register and consult the Reviewer Guidelines to align feedback with our standards. Editors receive dedicated support through the Editor Register, Editors Guidelines, and Editor Resources pages.

Authors seeking fresh collaboration opportunities can explore the latest calls on the Call for Papers portal, which highlights topical priorities and deadlines. We also recommend visiting For Authors for consolidated guidance on submission logistics, publication ethics, and promotional support. Whether you are submitting your first manuscript or coordinating a multi-institutional study, JFM offers pathways tailored to your experience level.

Navigate the full JFM ecosystem to plan, submit, and amplify your research.

We welcome questions about manuscript fit, special issue proposals, reviewer nominations, or partnership opportunities. Reach our team at [email protected]. Together we can ensure that evidence-based family medicine insights reach the professionals and communities who need them most.