Author guidelines

Health Reports, a peer-reviewed journal of population health and health services research

Health Reports scope
Health Reports content
Guidelines for writing articles
Submitting Your Article
The review process
Data verification
Translation
The Daily

Health Reports scope

Health Reports publishes original research on diverse topics related to understanding and improving the health of populations and the delivery of health care. We especially welcome studies that are based on analyses of national/provincial surveys or national/provincial administrative databases, as well as results of international comparative health research. Health Reports furthermore encourages the sharing of methodological information among those engaged in the analysis of health surveys or administrative databases. Use of the most current data available is generally advised for all submissions.

Who publishes Health Reports

Health Reports is published by Canada’s national statistics agency, Statistics Canada.  Health Reports is designed for a broad audience that includes health professionals, researchers, policymakers, and through media coverage, the general public.  Articles are published electronically every four weeks, and in paper format, quarterly.

Health Reports content

Health Reports contains three types of article:  Research Articles, Health Matters, and Methodological Insights. (Please indicate type when you are submitting your manuscript)

Research Articles

Research Articles present an in-depth analysis of a research question or hypothesis.  Authors should think in terms of issues or themes, rather than a description of data.  Research Articles undergo double-blind external peer review. Articles are also read by Statistics Canada staff and subject matter specialists from (typically) Health Canada or the Public Health Agency of Canada (a step known as “institutional review”).

Methodological Insights

Methodological Insights explore issues such as data quality, response bias, and sampling error.  They are intended for the benefit of and discussion among other researchers and data users.  Like Research Articles, Methodological Insights undergo double-blind external peer review and institutional review.

Health Matters

Health Matters are short, descriptive reports.  Profile articles are more appropriate for Health Matters than for Research Articles and consequently often accompany Statistics Canada data releases.  Health Matters undergo institutional review, but not peer review.

Guidelines for writing articles

The style requirements of Health Reports generally follow those of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), entitled “Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals,” which can be found at: International Committee of Medical Journal Editors' web site. Please ensure that your submission conforms to these requirements.

Research Articles and Methodological Insights

• Length: 3,500 words for an english submission or 4,100 for a french submission (maximum) not including abstract, key words, tables/charts, references
• Structured abstract: 250 words (english) or 300 words (french) with the headings Background, Data & Methods, Results, and Interpretation. 
• Key words: 3 to 10 key words that capture the main topics of the article (terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) could be used where applicable).
• Tables and figures: Articles can be accompanied by 5 tables or 5 figures, or some combination of both adding to 5.

Text

The text should be divided into sections headed Introduction, Data and methods, Results, and Discussion. Long articles may need subheadings within some sections to clarify their content. Only one level of subhead beneath these major sections should be used. 

Introduction

The Introduction should provide context and background. Authors should provide a clear statement of the objectives and how they intend to reach them. 

Methods

This section should include a description of the data sources including details of sample size, collection methodology and, in the case of survey data, response rate. Statistical methods should be described with enough detail to enable a knowledgeable reader with access to the original data to reproduce the reported results. Findings should be presented with appropriate indicators of measurement error or uncertainty (such as confidence intervals). Appropriate methods that account for the complexity of survey sampling (for example, the use of resampling techniques like boostrapping) should be used where indicated.

Results

Emphasize or summarize only important observations.  Regardless of the type of article, readers should not be burdened with too many numbers.  Put only key numbers in the text; less important figures can be displayed in accompanying tables.  Do not repeat in the text a lengthy description of material that is presented in tables and/or figures. 

Discussion

We encourage authors to write the discussion sections of research articles in a structured way. For more information, see "The case for structuring the discussion of scientific papers", BMJ 1999; 318:1224-1225 (8 May).

The Discussion addresses the specific issue(s) and the broader context presented in the Introduction.  The Discussion should be written without numbers (or just a few).  A brief summary of the main findings may be helpful, but authors should not repeat in detail the material in the Results section.  Emphasize the new and important aspects of the study and the conclusions that follow from them. Compare and contrast the results with other relevant studies, state the limitations, and explore the implications of findings for future research.  Link the Results with the goals of the study, but avoid unqualified statements and conclusions not supported by the data.

Link the Results with the goals of the study, but avoid unqualified statements and conclusions not supported by the data. To maintain Statistics Canada's position as a neutral and objective information provider, opinions related to current or previous policies or directions for future policies should be avoided.

Health Reports follows journals published by the BMJ Group by asking that authors include a "What this paper adds" box. The box should be divided into two short paragraphs containing bulleted sentences.

Paragraph 1: What is already known on this subject?
In two or three bulleted sentences, explain what the state of scientific knowledge was in this area before you did your study and why this study needed to be done.

Paragraph 2: What does this study add?
Give a simple answer to the question, "What do we now know as a result of this study that we did not know before?" Be brief, succinct, specific and accurate. The last sentence should summarise any implications for future research.

References

Health Reports follows the Vancouver style of referencing (using a superscripted number system). A list of sample references for many different types of citations (for example, journal articles, books, book chapters) is available at: United States National Library of Medicine. We strongly urge our authors to consult these requirements when preparing their manuscripts.

Health Matters

• Length: 2,000 words for an english submission or 2,350 for a french submission (maximum) not including key words, tables/figures, references
• Abstract: A 150-word (english) or 175- word (french) (maximum) unstructured abstract
• Keywords: 3 to 10 keywords that capture the main topics of the article (terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) should be used where applicable)
• Tables and figures: Articles can be accompanied by 3 tables or 3 figures, or some combination of both adding to 3

Text

Health Matters are generally profiles and do not adhere to the uniform style. However, the objectives should be presented at the beginning, and the presentation of results should be logical and concise. Methodological information is provided in sidebars called “The data”, which describes the surveys and/or databases from which the information was derived, and explains concepts and terms used in the article.

References

Same as those for Research Articles and Methodological Insights (see above).

Submitting Your Article

All articles should be submitted electronically to: janice.felman@statcan.gc.ca. Submissions should be double-spaced and use 12pt font. Track changes should be removed. The title page containing author information, the abstract, the word count and the number of tables and figures and the body of the text should all be in one MS Word document. Tables and figures may be incorporated into the text or included in the e-mailed submission as separate files (for example, Excel).

Manuscripts rejected at this stage typically are those that fall outside the scope of the journal, are lacking originality or population health/health services research significance, have serious conceptual and/or methodological flaws or do not follow the author guidelines. Authors of manuscripts rejected at this stage will normally be informed within two weeks of receipt.

The review process

Research Article or Methodological Insights

A manuscript submitted to Health Reports is assessed by the Scientific Editor, who, in consultation with Associate Editors, decides whether it is suitable to be sent to peer and/or institutional review. 

Manuscripts rejected at this stage typically are those that fall outside the scope of the journal, are lacking originality or population health/health services research significance, have serious conceptual and/or methodological flaws or do not follow the author guidelines.

If deemed suitable, the article is sent to a minimum of two peer reviewers.  Authors may suggest individuals who specialize in the topic of their paper as reviewers, but Health Reports does not guarantee that the editors will use all or any of the suggested reviewers. Health Canada and, depending on the subject of the paper, other government departments, may also review the articles. At the same time as peer review, the article is reviewed by senior management at Statistics Canada to ensure that no statements might compromise Statistics Canada’s non-partisanship, objectivity and neutrality.  The review process normally takes four to six weeks.  

In light of the peer and institutional reviews, the editors decide on one of four possible outcomes: accept, accept with minor revisions, accept with major revisions or reject. If an article is accepted and revisions are required, the author’s revised version is assessed by the Scientific Editor. The article will be copy edited.

Health Matters

Health Matters do not undergo peer review, but are subject to the same level of institutional review as that for Research Articles and Methodological Insights.

Data verification

If the article is accepted for publication, Health Reports reserves the right to examine data programs and output to ensure the findings can be reproduced.

Translation

Health Reports is published in English and French. Translations of Health Reports articles are verified by a French or English editor, depending on the language of the original manuscript. Authors are offered the opportunity of reviewing the translation of their article.

The Daily

All research articles published in Health Reports will be announced in The Daily, Statistics Canada’s official release bulletin, the Agency’s first line of communication with the media and the public. The Daily is released online at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time each working day. 

A telephone number and e-mail address are given for the corresponding author.  If this person cannot respond to questions in the other official language, a Statistics Canada employee will be assigned to this task. Authors are asked to make themselves available for interviews on the day of release. The contents of Health Reports articles are embargoed until 8:30 a.m. of the day of release.

Since articles featured in The Daily often receive considerable media coverage, authors are requested to participate in a media preparation session before publication in order to prepare for questions. If an article from Health Reports is featured in The Daily, a press release based on the article will be prepared by the staff of The Daily. In that case, authors will have an opportunity to review and verify the contents of the release.