We are happy to present the first issue of our journal “HAP Journal of Public Health and Clinical Medicine.”

There is no dearth of journals in Medicine and Public Health, and more are coming out every year. However, all those who would like to publish do not get published. Of course, part of the reason may be that not everything written has the quality expected of a research publication. However, in many cases, with appropriate efforts, the drawbacks can be overcome.

This journal is a reflection of our conviction that young researchers in Medicine and Public Health need to be encouraged to communicate the results of their research to a wider audience. In the highly competitive field of academic publishing, many new entrants are discouraged after their initial attempts at publication, and soon stop trying. We believe that this need not be so; with some expert inputs, their work can be brought up to the level of publication.

Our editorial policy will be based on the presumption that young researchers need a lot of hand-holding, and that people respond to the right incentives. So our editorial team will try to help submissions reach the level of quality that we expect, and to publish as many submissions as possible. Of course, our independent reviewers will have the final say.

The journal welcomes submissions from a wide range of disciplines related to clinical medicine, epidemiology, health policy, and the wider public health, and with a wide spectrum of approaches. These include results of primary surveys, observational studies, and clinical trials, as well as studies based on qualitative and anthropological approaches. Articles discussing policy and economics, as well as those based on published secondary data, are also welcome. We encourage submission of high-quality systematic reviews on selected topics as well. We may also invite editorials on themes of current interest from recognized experts in respective fields.

Every submission including the invited ones will undergo anonymous, independent peer review once the submission passes the editorial scrutiny. Our expert editors will first screen the article for quality and, once it meets their expectations, would send it for peer review to at least two reviewers. We may opt for a third reviewer in case of a strong disagreement between the recommendations of the initial reviewers. Peer review shall be completely anonymous and the reviewers will be blind to the identity of the authors.

When we started out, we were beset by many setbacks, but we have managed to overcome all of them. Our core team has the experience of working together for several years in research and teaching in Medicine and Public Health, and that gives us tremendous confidence. There are not too many journals coming out of this part of South India; our aim is to be the first choice among young researchers in Medicine and Public Health who want to publish their work, especially in India, and we intend to achieve this goal in the shortest possible time. However, this cannot be achieved without the support of the research community.

We dedicate this venture to the late Professor C. R. Soman, teacher and mentor to most of us, who would have been happiest to see this happen.

Dr V. Raman Kutty

Chairman, Health Action by People

Email: kuttyr@gmail.com