The Naogaon Medical College Journal (NMC Journal) is dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity and strictly prohibits plagiarism. As a leading medical journal, we prioritize the publication of original research that adheres to global best practices in ethical publishing. Plagiarism, defined as the use of another’s work without proper attribution or misrepresenting someone else's ideas, data, or findings as one's own, is a serious violation of publishing ethics. To uphold these standards, NMC Journal employs Turnitin, a leading plagiarism detection software, to rigorously screen all submitted manuscripts for originality.

What Constitutes Plagiarism?

Plagiarism refers to the use of someone else's words, ideas, or data without giving appropriate credit. At NMC Journal, the following types of plagiarism are strictly prohibited:

• Direct Plagiarism: Copying another's work verbatim without citation.
• Self-Plagiarism: Submitting or reusing significant portions of previously published work without proper citation or content transformation.
• Paraphrasing Plagiarism: Rewriting someone else's ideas or findings without substantial transformation and failing to properly cite the original source.
• Mosaic Plagiarism: Mixing phrases or ideas from different sources without proper acknowledgment.

These forms of plagiarism violate academic ethics and may lead to immediate actions, including manuscript rejection or retraction if discovered after publication.

Plagiarism Detection and Similarity Index

NMC Journal uses Turnitin to detect potential plagiarism. Turnitin compares the submitted manuscript against a vast database of academic content and published papers to generate a similarity index, indicating how much of the manuscript matches content from other sources. A similarity index of less than 15% is considered acceptable, allowing minor overlaps due to common terminology or properly cited sources. Even with a low similarity index, the editorial team will review all flagged sections to ensure correct attribution.

Plagiarism Screening and Evaluation Process

• Initial Screening: Upon submission, all manuscripts undergo screening using Turnitin. A detailed similarity report is generated, identifying any text overlaps with existing literature.
• Review of Similarity Index: Manuscripts with a similarity index below 15% typically progress to the next review stage, but the editorial team will carefully examine the Turnitin report to ensure proper citations. Manuscripts with a similarity index above 15% will undergo further scrutiny.
• Action on High Similarity Index: Manuscripts exceeding 15% similarity or containing significant uncredited sections will be returned to authors for revision. In cases of major plagiarism, where large portions of text are copied without citation, the manuscript will be rejected immediately. Authors may also be required to provide explanations or revisions, depending on the nature of the overlap.

Consequences of Plagiarism

NMC Journal enforces strict consequences for plagiarism at any stage of the publication process:

• Rejection of the Manuscript: Manuscripts containing substantial plagiarism will be rejected.
• Retraction of Published Articles: If plagiarism is detected after publication, NMC Journal will retract the article and issue a formal retraction notice on the website and in future journal issues.
• Notification of Institutions: In severe cases, NMC Journal may notify the author's affiliated institution, funding bodies, or relevant authorities if there is evidence of deliberate misconduct.

Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for ensuring their work is original and properly cited. To avoid plagiarism, authors should:

• Use Proper Citations: Acknowledge all sources of data, ideas, and text, whether paraphrased or quoted directly.
• Check for Self-Plagiarism: Authors must refrain from submitting previously published content unless substantial revisions have been made and proper citations are provided.
• Use Plagiarism Detection Tools: Authors are encouraged to pre-screen their work for potential plagiarism using available tools to ensure compliance with NMC Journal's ethical standards.

NMC Journal is committed to preserving the credibility and integrity of academic publishing. By utilizing Turnitin as a plagiarism detection tool and enforcing a similarity index threshold of 15%, the journal ensures that all published content is original, ethically sound, and properly attributed. This policy protects the intellectual property of authors while maintaining the trust and respect of the global research community.