Information for Authors

The Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved publishes original papers, guest editorials, brief communications, and reviews regarding the health of low-income and other medically underserved people. We welcome manuscripts. Though our concerns—access to, quality of, and cost of health care—are universal, our primary focus is domestic rather than international. Questions about the suitability of a topic should be directed to the editor. Prospective authors must complete and enclose the following checklist with their manuscripts. Submit your manuscript to:

Virginia Brennan, Ph.D., Editor
Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved
Meharry Medical College
1005 D. B. Todd Blvd.
Nashville, TN 37208
Phone: 1-800-669-1269 or (615) 327-6819
FAX: (615) 327-6362

Checklist for Preparation of Manuscripts

I. General Instructions

Write clearly and succinctly, with a minimum of jargon. Type manuscript double-spaced, in both upper- and lower-case letters. Do not use proportional spacing or justified margin. With word processors, allow each typed line to wrap automatically. Do not use carriage returns at the end of each line. Spell out numbers from one to nine except for measurements (e.g., four days; 14 beds; 3 mm). Within a paragraph where a number higher than nine appears (e.g., 15 questions) use numerals for all numbers (e.g., 7 responses).

For References

In the text, refer to each reference with an Arabic number in superscript (preferred) or in parentheses. Number references consecutively and place at the end of the text. List all authors when there are three or fewer. Otherwise, list the first three, then "et al." Use the following formats, based on Index Medicusstyles:

Journal article (GIVE COMPLETE PUBLICATION DATE PLUS VOLUME AND NUMBER):

Zuckerman B, Frank DA, Hingson R, et al. Effects of maternal marijuana and cocaine use on fetal growth. N Engl J Med 1989 Mar 23;320(12):762-8.

Book

Morris JN. The last weeks of life: Does hospice care make a difference? In: Mor V, Greer DS, Kastenbaum R, eds. The hospice experiment. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University, 1988.

Government report

National Center for Health Statistics. Health, United States, 1989. (DHHS Pub. no. [PHS] 90-1232.) Hyattsville, MD: U.S. Public Health Service, 1990.

Published conference presentation

Hinman AR. Progress over the last decade. In: Proceedings of the 24th Immunization Conference, Orlando (FL), May 21-5, 1990:17-20. Atlanta: Centers for Disease Control, 1990.

Unpublished conference presentation

McJamerson E, Pearson W Jr. The declining participation of African-American males in higher education: Causes and consequences. Presented at: Mid-South Sociological Association Conference, Baton Rouge (LA), Oct 1989.

Material accepted for publication

Hall LE, Callender CO, Yeager CL, et al. Organ donation in blacks. Transpl Proc (In press.)

Other unpublished material (cite in the text but not in the references) (B. Jones, personal communication)

Please note: JHCPUaccepts Internet urls only as supplementary information. All references must include specification of the published source.

II. Original Papers

Research reports, literature reviews, policy analyses, evaluations of innovative or otherwise noteworthy health and health care programs; 2,501-10,000 words

Cover letter

In a cover letter, identify the primary author. The letter should state that the manuscript is not being considered for publication elsewhere and will not be as long as it is under consideration at JHCPU.The letter also should state that all authors have approved the final manuscript.

Title pages

On one title page, give the title of the paper (not to exceed 8 to 10 words), the number of words in the paper, and the name(s), academic degree(s), and institutional affiliation(s) of all authors. To allow blind review, include a second page listing only the title.

Abstract and key words

On a separate page, provide an abstract of up to 150 words that presents the reason for the paper, the main findings, and the principal conclusions. The abstract should be able to stand alone without the paper. After the abstract, list 3...