Crossmark policy

Crossmark Policy of Archivos de Medicina (Manizales) DOI: 10.30554/archmed_crossmark
Archivos de Medicina adopts the Crossmark initiative by Crossref in order to preserve the integrity, transparency, and traceability of the scientific record. Readers can verify whether the document they are consulting corresponds to the current version of the article, as well as whether it has been subject to correction, retraction, expression of editorial concern, update, or any other post-publication change. Crossmark enables the standardized identification of the current status of academic content and its linkage to editorial notices.

The journal is governed by the principle that the original version of a published article must not be silently modified. If, following publication, errors are detected, well-founded doubts arise regarding the reliability of the content, or issues emerge involving ethical concerns, authorship disputes, duplicate publication, plagiarism, data manipulation, or any other situation that compromises scientific validity or editorial integrity, the journal will issue the corresponding notice and formally link it to the article. This approach is consistent with the recommendations of Crossref, COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics), and ICMJE (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors), as well as with standardized editorial practices for biomedical journals. The journal commits to registering all post-publication updates in the metadata deposited with Crossref, ensuring full traceability of the article's editorial history.

1. Scope

This policy applies to all content published by Archivos de Medicina that carries a DOI (Digital Object Identifier), published in both PDF and HTML versions, in accordance with Crossref's technical guidelines. This encompasses original articles, systematic reviews, editorials, case reports, letters to the editor, and other academic documents included in the journal's editorial platform. Each published item will incorporate the Crossmark identifier.

2. Types of Post-Publication Updates

a) Correction (Erratum or Corrigendum)

A correction will be issued when an article contains significant errors originating from the journal or the authors that, while not affecting the main findings, require amendment to ensure the accuracy, clarity, or integrity of the scientific record. This includes errors in author names, affiliations, tables, figures, legends, specific data points, references, or textual elements that may cause confusion. The ICMJE establishes that errors are part of the scientific process and must be corrected when they affect the published article.

b) Addendum or Editorial Update

An addendum will be published when relevant information needs to be added to ensure adequate understanding of the article, without necessarily implying the existence of an error. The addendum will be linked to the original article and will carry its own identifier.

c) Expression of Editorial Concern

The journal may publish an expression of concern when there are serious indications of methodological, ethical, or data integrity issues, or authorship disputes, but the editorial or institutional investigation has not yet been concluded. This measure serves as a transitional mechanism for editorial transparency.

d) Retraction

An article will be retracted when its findings, results, or conclusions are deemed unreliable due to serious error or misconduct; when there is evidence of falsification, fabrication, or improper manipulation of data; when plagiarism in any of its forms or duplicate publication is confirmed; when the study was conducted without ethics committee approval, where such approval was required; or when other circumstances make it inappropriate to maintain the article as a reliable part of the scientific record. Retraction seeks to correct the literature and alert readers, rather than to penalize authors. In such cases, the journal will follow COPE guidelines and the best practices established in the publishing world.

e) Withdrawal or Exceptional Removal

Complete removal of the full text will only be considered under extraordinary circumstances, such as a court order, serious privacy violation, defamatory content, a clear risk to public health, or the unlawful dissemination of information. In such cases, the journal will maintain a visible bibliographic record explaining the editorial reason for the removal.

4. Editorial Principles for Managing Changes

All post-publication updates will adhere to the following principles:

Transparency: No change affecting scientific content will be made without leaving a formal, visible record in Crossmark.
Traceability: The original article and the corresponding notice will be bidirectionally linked.
Persistence of the Record: Except in exceptional cases, the originally published article will remain accessible to readers.
Proportionality: The editorial response will depend on the severity of the issue detected.
Due Process: Authors will be informed and, where appropriate, explanations, documentation, or an institutional response will be requested.
Timely Correction of the Record: The journal will act as soon as sufficient evidence is obtained.
Procedure

When the journal receives notification of a potential issue with a published article, the editorial team will conduct a preliminary assessment. If the matter is deemed to warrant further action, additional information will be requested from the authors, reviewers, the affiliated institution, or any other relevant party. For decision-making purposes, the journal will follow COPE guidelines. Following analysis, the editorial committee will determine whether a correction, addendum, expression of concern, retraction, or other editorial measure is necessary.

Editorial notices will be published as independent documents, with an explicit title, date, identification of the affected article, and a clear justification of the decision. Such notices will carry their own DOI and will be indexed and linked to the original article.

Presentation of Updates

Once an article has been corrected, retracted, or subjected to an expression of concern, the Crossmark badge will allow readers to consult the current status of the content and access any related notices.

Minor corrections that do not affect the comprehension, interpretation, or citation of the work may be addressed by the journal without issuing a formal notice, provided they do not alter the scientific meaning of the document.

Responsibilities

Authors are obligated to notify the journal if they identify relevant errors or ethical issues in their article after publication. Editors will assess all notifications received, protect the integrity of the academic record, and act impartially, diligently, and transparently.

Relationship with Other Journal Policies

This policy is to be interpreted in a complementary manner alongside the editorial ethics, retraction, corrections, conflicts of interest, scientific integrity, and misconduct reporting policies of Archivos de Medicina. In cases of doubt, precedence will be given to the principles of scientific record integrity, the recommendations of COPE and ICMJE, and the technical guidelines of Crossref/Crossmark.

Contact

Any reader, author, reviewer, or institution wishing to report a potential error or issue in an article published by Archivos de Medicina may contact the editorial team at archmed@umanizales.edu.co.

References