Appeals Process

Scope

Authors who believe that an editorial decision to reject their manuscript was made in error — for example, due to a misunderstanding of the work's significance, an undisclosed COI by a reviewer, or a procedural irregularity — may submit a formal appeal.

How to Appeal

Appeals must be submitted in writing to the Editor-in-Chief at editor.jpdmhd@gmail.com within 30 days of receiving the rejection decision. The subject line should read: 'Appeal — Manuscript ID [XXXX]'.

The appeal letter must:

• Clearly identify the manuscript (title, manuscript ID, date of decision)
• State the specific grounds for the appeal
• Provide a point-by-point rebuttal of the reviewer comments, supported by evidence or references where possible
• Not contain new data or substantially revised content (revisions are handled through resubmission)

Appeal Review Procedure

The appeal will be reviewed by a member of the editorial board who was not involved in the original decision. The reviewer will assess whether: (i) the original decision was procedurally sound; (ii) the reviewers were suitably qualified; and (iii) the decision was based on scientific merit.

A decision on the appeal will be issued within 30 business days of receipt. The outcome will be one of the following:

• The appeal is upheld: the manuscript is returned to peer review with different reviewers
• The appeal is partially upheld: the authors are invited to revise and resubmit
• The appeal is rejected: the original decision is confirmed

Appeal decisions are final. Authors who remain concerned about the editorial process after exhausting internal appeals may refer their case to COPE (publicationethics.org) for independent guidance.