Conflict of Interest

1. Introduction

JUBIDA – Jurnal Kebidanan is committed to ensuring transparency, objectivity, and integrity throughout the research, peer-review, and publication processes. All authors, reviewers, editors, and other parties involved in the publication process must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that could influence, or be reasonably perceived to influence, their professional judgment.

A conflict of interest does not necessarily indicate misconduct. However, failure to disclose relevant conflicts may compromise the credibility of research and the integrity of the publication process.

2. Definition of Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest occurs when financial, personal, professional, institutional, or other relationships may influence the design, conduct, analysis, interpretation, review, or publication of research.

Conflicts of interest may include, but are not limited to:

Financial Interests: Research funding, grants, employment, consultancy fees, honoraria, financial investments, or other financial benefits related to the research.
Personal Relationships: Family relationships, close friendships, personal disputes, or other relationships that may affect impartial judgment.
Professional and Academic Relationships: Current or recent collaboration, supervision, mentorship, co-authorship, or professional competition involving the authors, reviewers, or editors.
Institutional Interests: Relationships with institutions, healthcare facilities, universities, organizations, or companies that may benefit from or be adversely affected by the publication.
Commercial Interests: Relationships with pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, healthcare product providers, or other commercial entities relevant to the manuscript.
Research and Clinical Interests: Involvement in the development, promotion, or evaluation of clinical interventions, healthcare products, instruments, or programs discussed in the manuscript.

3. Responsibilities of Authors

All authors submitting manuscripts to JUBIDA – Jurnal Kebidanan must disclose any financial or non-financial interests that could influence the research or its interpretation.

Authors are required to:

Declare relevant conflicts of interest in the manuscript.
Disclose all sources of funding and explain the role of the funder in the research, where applicable.
Declare relevant relationships with pharmaceutical companies, healthcare facilities, medical device manufacturers, or other organizations associated with the research.
Disclose professional or institutional relationships that may influence the collection, analysis, or interpretation of research data.
Ensure that all co-authors have been informed of the disclosure and agree with the information provided.

If no conflicts of interest exist, authors should include the following statement:

“The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.”

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all authors provide accurate and complete disclosures. Any new conflict that arises during the review process or after publication must be reported promptly to the editorial office.

4. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Reviewers must disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest before accepting a manuscript review assignment.

Reviewers should decline the invitation or notify the editor if they have relationships or interests that may compromise their impartiality, including:

Recent collaboration or co-authorship with any of the authors.
Employment at the same institution as an author when this may compromise impartiality.
Close personal, family, supervisory, or professional relationships with an author.
Financial or commercial interests related to the manuscript.
Direct academic competition or other circumstances that could affect objective judgment.

Reviewers must treat manuscripts as confidential documents and must not use unpublished information for personal, professional, or financial advantage.

If a conflict of interest becomes apparent during the review process, the reviewer must inform the editor immediately. The editor will determine whether the review assignment should be reassigned.

5. Responsibilities of Editors

Editors and editorial board members must disclose any conflicts of interest that could affect their editorial judgment.

An editor must not manage or make publication decisions on a manuscript if the editor:

Is an author or co-author of the manuscript.
Has a significant personal, professional, or financial relationship with one or more authors.
Has a direct financial or institutional interest in the research outcome.
Has another relationship that could reasonably compromise editorial independence.

In such cases, the manuscript must be assigned to an independent editor who has no relevant conflict of interest. The conflicted editor must not participate in the editorial decision or improperly access confidential review discussions.

Manuscripts submitted by the Editor-in-Chief, editors, or editorial board members must undergo the same editorial standards and peer-review procedures as other submissions.

6. Funding Disclosure

Authors must identify all sources of financial support received for the research and manuscript preparation, including grants, institutional funding, sponsorships, or commercial support, where applicable.

Authors should also explain whether the funding organization had any role in:

Research design and methodology.
Data collection and analysis.
Interpretation of findings.
Manuscript preparation or revision.
The decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

If the funder had no involvement in these activities, this should be stated clearly in the manuscript.

7. Management of Undisclosed Conflicts of Interest

If an undisclosed conflict of interest is identified before or after publication, the editorial team will assess the circumstances and determine the appropriate action.

Depending on the seriousness of the case, the journal may:

Request an explanation or additional disclosure from the relevant individual.
Require the manuscript to be revised to include the appropriate disclosure statement.
Assign a new independent reviewer or editor.
Suspend the editorial process while the concern is assessed.
Reject the manuscript if the conflict compromises the integrity of the work or the editorial process.
Publish a correction or expression of concern for an affected published article.
Retract a published article if the undisclosed conflict has seriously compromised the reliability or integrity of the publication.

All cases will be handled fairly and confidentially, taking into account the available evidence and relevant publication ethics guidance.

8. Editorial Independence

JUBIDA – Jurnal Kebidanan maintains editorial independence in all publication decisions. Decisions are based on the scientific quality, originality, relevance, ethical compliance, and peer-review outcomes of submitted manuscripts.

Financial, commercial, institutional, or personal interests must not improperly influence editorial decisions. The disclosure of a conflict of interest does not automatically result in manuscript rejection; the editorial team will assess whether the conflict can be appropriately managed.

9. Final Statement

By submitting a manuscript to JUBIDA – Jurnal Kebidanan, authors confirm their commitment to transparent disclosure of relevant conflicts of interest. Reviewers and editors are likewise expected to disclose and appropriately manage conflicts that may affect their responsibilities.

This policy is intended to protect the integrity of published research, maintain public trust, and uphold ethical standards in midwifery and related healthcare research.