All manuscripts submitted to Journal of the Clinical Ascent are screened for plagiarism using Turnitin plagiarism detection software. The journal maintains a strict policy against plagiarism and self-plagiarism; any manuscript found to contain such practices will be immediately rejected.

Prior to the peer-review process, each submission is evaluated for similarity by a member of the editorial team. Manuscripts must demonstrate a similarity index of less than 20% to be considered for further review. Submissions exceeding this threshold may be returned to the authors for revision or rejected, depending on the extent and nature of the similarity.

Plagiarism is defined as the use of another individual’s ideas, words, or work without proper acknowledgment or citation, thereby presenting them as one’s own. It can occur in various forms, ranging from direct copying to improper paraphrasing. To ensure clarity, the following forms of plagiarism are emphasized:

• Direct (Verbatim) Copying: Reproducing another author’s work word-for-word, in whole or in part, without proper permission, acknowledgment, or citation. This can be identified through direct comparison with the original source.
• Substantial Copying: Reproducing a significant portion of another author’s work without appropriate citation or permission. The term “substantial” refers to both the quantity and the qualitative importance of the copied material in relation to the overall work.
• Paraphrasing Without Attribution: Rewriting ideas, sentences, or phrases from a source without proper acknowledgment. Although expressed in different words, the original idea remains identifiable. This form of plagiarism is often more difficult to detect but is equally unethical.