IJIP features ongoing special issues that highlight timely topics in infection prevention, healthcare epidemiology, and antimicrobial stewardship. These collections bring together leading researchers to accelerate discovery and translation.

• Review the current special issue themes
• Ensure your manuscript aligns with the stated scope
• Submit through ManuscriptZone with the correct issue selection
• Engage with guest editor feedback during review

• Connect with guest editors and contributing authors
• Identify gaps for future special issues
• Propose datasets or tools for community use
• Engage in cross disciplinary collaborations

• Define the infection prevention gap the special issue addresses.
• Provide a rationale for guest editor expertise and topic coverage.
• Specify anticipated article types and approximate submission volume.
• Outline peer review timelines and editorial decision workflows.
• Describe outreach plans to infection prevention and epidemiology communities.
• Identify data reporting standards required for submissions.
• Clarify whether cross disciplinary submissions are in scope.
• List any planned invited contributions or consortium partners.
• Provide proposed metrics for impact or policy relevance.
• Describe data harmonization requirements for multicenter submissions.
• Specify expected submission window and targeted publication date.
• Note any patient safety or regulatory considerations for topic areas.
• Define expected peer reviewer pool and recruitment strategy.
• Describe data sharing expectations for special issue contributors.
• Specify interdisciplinary scope across IPC, microbiology, and public health.
• Outline plan for patient safety or ethics oversight in invited topics.
• Provide expected timeline for revisions and final acceptance.
• Identify metrics for success such as policy uptake or guideline impact.
• State whether a preprint policy will be highlighted in the call.
• Include communication plan for targeted author outreach.
• Note if a conference partnership supports the special issue.
• Provide guidance on thematic keywords for submissions.
• Specify editorial support for data harmonization across sites.
• Describe plans for webinar promotion or community engagement.
• Define guest editor responsibilities for conflict management and decisions.
• Clarify expectations for data availability statements in the issue.
• Outline review capacity planning and reviewer recruitment targets.
• State policies for preprints and prior dissemination in the call.
• Provide guidance for harmonized definitions across participating sites.
• Describe plans for rapid communications or policy impact briefs.
• Specify whether protocol papers or methods notes are in scope.
• Include plans for stakeholder engagement or practitioner dissemination.
• Describe quality checks for surveillance data and outbreak metrics.
• List expected ethical approvals for multi site submissions.
• Clarify expected handling of sensitive or confidential datasets.
• Provide reporting standards required for intervention evaluations.
• Define plans for multimedia or data visualizations in the issue.
• Clarify final publication schedule and guest editor sign off steps.

IJIP is committed to rigorous, transparent publishing in infection prevention and control. We emphasize reproducible surveillance methods, clear reporting of case definitions, and ethical compliance across all article types.

The editorial office supports authors, editors, and reviewers with clear guidance and responsive communication. For questions about scope or workflow, contact [email protected].

We encourage continuous improvement in reporting practices and share updates that help the community maintain high standards in infection prevention science and implementation.