Structure and Function of the Editorial Office

This constitutes a preliminary Manual of Operations for the Journal's Editorial Office. The following procedures constitute our initial vision of how we would like the review process to operate. These procedures will be updated as needed, based on direct experience.

• Submission
  
• The manuscript is submitted electronically to the Editor-in-Chief.
• The Editor decides whether the submitted manuscript should be: (1) Sent to an Associate Editor for review or (2) Rejected without review. If rejected, a standard letter is sent electronically to the corresponding author, ideally within 1 week of receipt of the manuscript.
• If considered for further review, the Editor assigns the manuscript to an Associate Editor, on the basis on his or her scientific expertise and the number of manuscripts the Associate Editor has handled in the calendar year to date. The manuscript number, assigned Associate Editor, and date of assignment are recorded in a dedicated database.
• Manuscript in the Hands of the Associate Editor
  
  • The Associate Editor who handles the manuscript may: (1) Reject without further review or (2) Identify 2 to 4 reviewers to be sent a request for manuscript review. Reviewers should be selected from among Editorial Board Members (preferably one) and other experts in the field.
  • Potential reviewers will be sent an abstract of the manuscript and asked to respond to the review request within 48 hours of receipt (excluding Federal holidays and weekends). Reviewers who decline are requested to provide an alternate. Reviewers and/or their alternates who accept are provided an Internet link to access the manuscript. Completed reviews are expected within 2 weeks of assignment acceptance. Electronic reminders of the review due date will be sent out at 10 days, 14 days, and every 2 days thereafter, through 30 days. Unless alternative arrangements have been made, after 30 days have passed, the reviewer will be notified that he or she has been dropped or replaced.
    
  • After the Associated Editor receives all reviews, he or she may: (1) Reject the manuscript or (2) Provide the authors an opportunity to respond to reviewer comments, revise their manuscript in accordance with reviewers' suggestions, and resubmit the manuscript within 8 weeks. The Associate Editor may add his or her comments and recommendations for revision at this time.
    
  • The Associate Editor may evaluate resubmissions himself or herself or send the resubmission to one or more of the original reviewers. In some cases, a second and occasionally a third review-resubmission cycle may be needed for the Associate Editor to make a final recommendation regarding acceptability.
    
• Manuscript Back to the Editor
  
  • Once the Associate Editor makes a final recommendation for rejection or acceptance, he or she returns the manuscript to the Editor with the decision and supporting documentation (e.g., reviewer and author comments). The following information should also be provided to the Editor: The name of each reviewer, his or her turnaround time, and a quality rating of the review on a scale from 0 to 5 (5 = Outstanding).
  • The Editor makes a final decision on the acceptability of the manuscript, and may also request additional editorial changes before routing the accepted manuscript to the Journal of Gerontology Medical Sciences production staff.

Special Cases

• Manuscripts on which the Editor is an author will be handled by the Deputy Editor, following the same procedures described above.
• Documentation of and compliance with the procedures described above will be handled by the Editorial Assistant using managing software adapted for this specific purpose.