Peer Review Process

All manuscripts submitted to Al-Hayah: Journal of Medical and Health Sciences undergo an initial editorial screening followed by peer review to ensure quality, originality, relevance and ethical integrity.

Upon submission, the manuscript will be assessed by the editorial team to determine whether it fits the journal’s aims and scope, follows the author guidelines and meets basic standards of academic writing and presentation. A similarity or plagiarism check may also be conducted at this stage. Manuscripts that do not meet the journal’s requirements may be returned to the authors for correction or rejected before peer review.

Manuscripts that pass the initial screening will be assigned for peer review. Al-Hayah adopts a double-anonymised peer-review process, in which the identities of both authors and reviewers are concealed. Each manuscript will normally be reviewed by at least two reviewers with relevant expertise in the subject area.

Based on the reviewers’ comments and editorial assessment, the Editor-in-Chief and editorial team will make one of the following decisions:

  1. Accept
    The manuscript is accepted for publication without further revision.
  2. Minor Revision
    The manuscript requires minor corrections or improvements before acceptance.
  3. Major Revision
    The manuscript requires substantial revision. Authors must address the reviewers’ and editors’ comments and resubmit the revised manuscript for further consideration.
  4. Resubmit for Review
    The manuscript requires major improvement and may be reconsidered as a new or revised submission after significant changes have been made.
  5. Reject
    The manuscript is not suitable for publication in the journal.

When revisions are requested, authors are expected to submit a revised manuscript together with a response letter detailing how each comment has been addressed. The revised manuscript may be re-evaluated by the editorial team or returned to the reviewers, depending on the extent of the revisions.

Once accepted, the manuscript will proceed to copyediting, formatting, proofreading and galley proof review before online publication. The journal is committed to ensuring a fair, transparent, timely and constructive review process.