All Clinical Inquiries, to be published in the Journal of Family Practice (JFP), American Family Physician (AFP) and at www.fpin.org, are answered with the best available evidence. The editors cannot accept unsolicited manuscripts.
CI Template
Author Checklist
Submitting your completed manuscript
Word Count
References
Examples
Appendix
Writing Tips for each section
Production Timeline
The production timeline for a Clinical Inquiry is approximately 6-9 months.
1. Search and Manuscript Preparation
- 2 months for librarian co-author to complete search
- 2 months for the clinician author to write manuscript and submit it to the managing editor and assistant editor
All authors will work with a librarian co-author, who conducts the standardized FPIN search protocol and contacts you for collaboration in refining the search strategy. If the CI question undergoes a change before or during the process of writing the CI, it is critical that the librarian co-author is aware of this change. This could require a new or modified search. The search is generally due to the author 2 months before the manuscript deadline. If print copies of materials from the search are required, the author should use his or her institutional library. The following are instructions for downloading your librarian search.
-
Download the librarian co-author search summary and search results
- Under the Latest Submission column select:
- Search Summary
- Search Results
- Save the search summary and search results in a place on your hard drive that you will be able to access when you are ready to write your manuscript.
- Communicate with your librarian co-author regarding the search
- Please feel free to request additional searches or discuss directly with the librarian co-author what you are looking for if you feel that the initial search did not capture everything that you need.
When you are finished with your first draft of the manuscript, send it to the librarian co-author to allow the librarian to
1) verify the references,
2) add their affiliation, and
3) review the entire document.
The librarian will return the document to you for final review and submission to FPIN.
The managing editor is available to assist with questions you may have during manuscript preparation. Please report any possible conflict of interest to the managing editor.
2. Submission of Manuscript and Editorial Review
- 2 months for the assistant editor and clinician author to revise the manuscript
Each author will be assigned to work with an assistant editor. The role of the assistant editor is to ensure:
1) the quality of the manuscript with respect to the critical appraisal of the original research;
2) the integration of the evidence into a clinically useful answer for point of care use;
3) adherence to author instructions regarding content, format, and word count; and
4) use of a clear, concise writing style.
The managing editor is available to assist with questions you may have during manuscript preparation. Please report any possible conflict of interest to the managing editor.
3. Peer Review Process - Peer Reviewer Instructions
- 2 weeks for the peer reviewer (PR) and clinical commentator to complete their reviews and submit them to assistant editor
- 2 weeks for the author to make suggested revisions from the PR as suggested by the assistant editor
4. Publication Review
- 1 month for revisions by the associate editor
- Submitted to the Journal of Family Practice or American Family Physician
Style
Clinical Inquiries generally follow the American Medical Association Manual of Style, 9th edition.
Format and Content
Please use the template at the end of the instructions to organize your Clinical Inquiry. Appropriate content for each section is indicated below. We will ask you to revise and resubmit any work that significantly differs from the template that follows.
Submission of Manuscripts
Please submit the text in Times New Roman 12 pt, double-spaced and with the headings in bold.
Authors must complete and submit their author checklist as part of the manuscript. Contact the managingeditor@fpin.org if you need to know how to copy and paste the checklist into the manuscript.
Upload your manuscripts to the FPIN Editorial Management System (EMS). Authors will receive an email when it is time to begin writing their manuscript. Instructions on how to download, upload and submit your manuscript are included in the email.
If possible, use Microsoft Word to create your manuscript. If other word processing software is used, please save your file in rich text format, or RTF. To save a file in RTF format, select "Save as" from the "File" menu, and change the "File type" or "Save as type" to rich text format. You will receive an email with the following instructions on how to submit your manuscript through the (EMS ).
Log into www.fpin.org and click on My Questions (located on the upper left corner of the screen)
Select Question #
- Upload the most up-to-date version of your manuscript by selecting Upload Manuscript
Submit by selecting Submit
- You will receive a confirmation page.
Word Count and Tables/Figures
A total word count of 750 words, including the references, is a desirable goal. However, additional words may be allowed if the subject requires it. The key is very concise and tight writing as Clinical Inquiries are intended for reading at the point of patient care on hand held computers or web based sites (PEPID PCP; see www.pepidonline.com).
A small table or figure should be included (unless it is not appropriate given the topic). Including a table or figure allows readers to quickly scan information, such as the results in the Evidence Summary. Examples of tables and figures, illustrating both size and content, are included in Appendix 1. Tables should be self-explanatory, clearly organized, and supplemental to the text of the manuscript. Avoid duplicating material in the text and the table. Each table should include a title and be included on a separate page.
Permissions
Clinical Inquiries contributors should obtain permission from authors and publishers for the use of quotes, tables, and other materials taken from previously published works not in the public domain. Electronic or paper letters of permission should accompany the manuscript as separate attachments. Please mention the original source in the figure legend or table footnote.
References
In general, reference citations should be mainly in the evidence summary section. There should be a maximum of 10 references, cited in numerical order in the text. Each reference should have a Level of Evidence notation after it in parentheses.
In general, avoid reference citations in the Evidence Based Answer section – the citations can be put in the Evidence Summary section, which is designed to support the EBA. References used in a table should also appear in the order they would appear in the Clinical Inquiry (e.g., citations in a table should be lower numbered than those that appear in subsequent text). In the Reference section, number references consecutively in the order in which they are cited, not alphabetically. Identify references in text, tables, and legends by Arabic numerals, using a superscript. Don’t use embedded footnotes. The style for references should generally follow the format set forth in Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals.
The Journal of Family Practice prefers italicized journal and book titles and the use of inclusive page numbers, i.e., 54-59, not 54-9.
Additional references, not cited in the text, can be added at the end of the reference list for online publication.
Authors are responsible for the accuracy of all references. Personal communications and unpublished data should not be referenced. If essential, such material should be incorporated into the appropriate place in the text.
Citation Reference examples
Clinical Commentary
A practicing clinician, recruited by FPIN, will write a clinical commentary on the author’s Clinical Inquiry. The commentary is not included in your word count but will be published along with your manuscript in JFP and AFP.
Copyright
Any intellectual property created for a Clinical Inquiry by the author, shall become the intellectual property of FPIN, Inc. and author shall execute any documents necessary to secure such rights within 30 days of the transmission of such documents to author by FPIN, Inc. or its agents.
Template for a Clinical Inquiry
Beging of Template
Clinical Inquiries from the Family Physicians Inquiries Network
Please submit the text in Times New Roman 12 pt, double-spaced and with the headings in bold.
Include the author checklist at the beginning of the manuscript. Contact the managingeditor@fpin.org if you need to know how to copy and paste the checklist into the manuscript.
Evidence Based Answer
Evidence Summary
Prevalence and Incidence
Common Etiologies
Serious Etiologies
Complete List of Etiologies
(consider using a table listing the etiologies with subcategories Serious, Common and Uncommon)
Impact (possible outcomes)
Recommendations from Others
References
Clinical Commentary
Search Summary
Question
The question you are answering should go here. Because a question sometimes turns out to be too broad in scope or too narrow, the exact wording can be negotiated with the assistant editor with final approval by the associate editor.
Evidence-Based Answer
50-100 words
Give the bottom-line conclusion based on the best available evidence. State the strength of recommendation SORT worksheet The SOR should be based on the level of evidence of the study or studies most central to the bottom-line conclusions.
Evidence Summary
300-350 words
This section should explain the evidence-based answer, and support this answer with available and pertinent evidence. Specifically, outcomes data should be presented, especially patient-oriented outcome data such as pain, functional status, quality of life, morbidity and mortality. Reporting effect sizes with confidence intervals, number needed to treat, likelihood ratios, predictive values, relative and absolute risk reductions and other informative measures is encouraged. P values by themselves are rarely informative for clinical decision making at the point of care. A table or figure to summarize pertinent information is highly desirable. A larger table or figure will result in shorter text for the Journal of Family Practice print edition article. You should report the evidence in standard and consistent ways depending on the type of question. Excerpts of good Evidence Summaries can be found in Appendix II.
Recommendations from Others
75-125 words
Give recommendations from guidelines, consensus statements, or textbooks, in order of preference.
Authors
Limit to three lines.
Include names & degrees
Affiliation
City, State (unless included in affiliation, such as University of Missouri-Columbia ).
Remember to include your Librarian Co-author.
References
10-12 cited
Please limit references to the most important ones, citing a maximum of 10. Cite the key original research articles from which the evidence is summarized, including meta-analyses. If more original research articles are summarized than can be cited, a review article citing those research articles may be cited; otherwise do not cite review articles. Also cite the key references for “Recommendations from Others.” Each reference should have a Level of Evidence notation after it in parentheses.
Citation Reference Examples
Word Count
Indicate the total number of words here.
Search Summary
No word limit
This section will be published online only. FPIN librarians will perform the standard Clinical Inquiry search. We encourage you to work closely with the assigned FPIN librarian co-author. If you conduct your own search, you will be asked to review the FPIN librarian’s search as well. Your librarian co-author will append the completed search summary with search strategies to the manuscript, verify references, and read the manuscript for clarity. This section will not be published in print, but it may used by the peer reviewer and editor to assess the literature reviewed.
Optional:
Detailed Evidence Summary for the Web
This section is provided for additional analyses. An evidence table would be appropriate here, and would be useful for the author when the Clinical Inquiry is updated (or for a subsequent author if the original author does not do the updating). There is no word limit. You can also include background information, more detailed explanations, additional tables and figures, or reviews of evidence not included in the Evidence Summary. This section will be included in the web-based version of the document, not in the more concise print version.
Additional References
No word limit.
Additional Tables, Figures or Charts
End of Template
Examples of Clinical Inquiries
Online examples of Clinical Inquiries can be found at the
Journal of Family Practice . Please use the most recently published Clinical Inquiries as models, because formatting and other policies change periodically.
Appendix I
Table Examples
Appendix II
Excerpts of Good Evidence Summaries
Risks of screening include discomfort from endoscopic examinations and complications relating to the many false-positive results of FOBT (98% in Minnesota study) (5). A meta-analysis found that patients experience 1 perforation or hemorrhage for every 2.5 to 4.7 lives saved.1 The risk of death is only about 1 in 50,000 for colonoscopy at the Mayo Clinic.
The pooled analyses of 2 studies of rotator cuff tendonitis suggested that NSAIDs may be superior to placebo in improving the range of abduction, but there was no significant weighted difference between pain scores (2,3). Another randomized controlled trial (4) found 14-day treatment with oral NSAIDs superior to placebo for relieving acute shoulder pain (86% vs 56%; absolute risk reduction 30%; 95% confidence interval, 10%-50%).
Updated 5.07