Aims & Scope
Core Research DomainsTier 1
Healthcare Systems & Delivery Models
- Healthcare infrastructure design and optimization
- Integrated care models and care coordination
- Healthcare workforce management and planning
- Primary care systems and access strategies
- Healthcare delivery system innovations
- Organizational structures and governance models
Comparative analysis of integrated care delivery models across regional health systems, evaluating coordination efficiency and population health outcomes.
Quality Improvement & Patient Safety
- Quality measurement frameworks and metrics
- Patient safety protocols and error reduction strategies
- Healthcare process improvement methodologies
- Safety culture and organizational learning
- Adverse event reporting and analysis systems
- Quality assurance program evaluation
Implementation study of a hospital-wide safety protocol using Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles, measuring reduction in medication errors and system-level barriers.
Health Policy & Economics
- Healthcare policy analysis and impact evaluation
- Cost-effectiveness and economic evaluation studies
- Healthcare financing and reimbursement models
- Health insurance systems and coverage policies
- Healthcare disparities and equity policies
- Regulatory frameworks and compliance analysis
Economic evaluation of value-based payment models in accountable care organizations, analyzing cost savings and quality metric performance over three years.
Health Informatics & Digital Health
- Electronic health record system implementation and optimization
- Health information exchange and interoperability
- Telemedicine and remote care delivery systems
- Clinical decision support systems
- Health data analytics and population health management
- Digital health technology adoption and evaluation
Evaluation of a machine learning algorithm for predicting hospital readmissions using EHR data, including implementation barriers and workflow integration challenges.
Secondary Focus AreasTier 2
Patient Experience & Engagement Systems
System-level approaches to measuring and improving patient satisfaction, communication frameworks, patient education programs, and engagement strategies at the organizational level.
Healthcare Workforce Studies
Nursing workforce planning, healthcare professional training systems, interprofessional collaboration models, burnout prevention programs, and staffing optimization research.
Public Health Systems & Population Health
Community health program evaluation, preventive care delivery systems, health promotion initiatives, disease surveillance systems, and population health management strategies.
Healthcare Ethics & Legal Frameworks
Ethical decision-making frameworks in healthcare organizations, patient rights policies, informed consent systems, healthcare regulations, and medico-legal analysis.
Chronic Disease Management Systems
Care coordination models for chronic conditions, disease management programs, long-term care delivery systems, rehabilitation service organization, and palliative care frameworks.
Healthcare Consulting & Management
Healthcare organizational strategy, change management in health systems, performance improvement consulting, healthcare operations research, and strategic planning methodologies.
Emerging Research AreasTier 3
Editorial Note: Submissions in emerging areas undergo additional editorial review to ensure alignment with journal scope. Authors should clearly articulate the systems-level or organizational implications of their research.
Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Operations: AI applications for healthcare system optimization, predictive analytics for resource allocation, and automated workflow management systems.
Precision Public Health: Data-driven population health interventions, genomic data integration in health systems, and personalized prevention program design at scale.
Climate Change & Health Systems: Healthcare system resilience to climate impacts, environmental sustainability in healthcare operations, and climate-related health service planning.
Blockchain in Health Information Systems: Distributed ledger technologies for health data management, blockchain-based credentialing systems, and secure health information exchange platforms.
Out of Scope
We Do NOT Consider
- Clinical Treatment Protocols: Individual patient treatment plans, therapeutic interventions, drug dosing regimens, or clinical practice guidelines. Rationale: These belong in clinical specialty journals, not health services research.
- Diagnostic Methods & Procedures: Novel diagnostic techniques, imaging protocols, laboratory methods, or clinical examination procedures. Rationale: Our focus is on healthcare systems, not clinical diagnostics.
- Basic Biomedical Research: Molecular mechanisms, pathophysiology, genetic studies, or bench research without clear health systems implications. Rationale: Outside the scope of health services and systems research.
- Individual Case Reports: Single patient cases, rare disease presentations, or unusual clinical scenarios without systems-level analysis. Rationale: Case reports do not address organizational or systems questions.
- Pharmaceutical Studies: Drug efficacy trials, pharmacokinetics, medication development, or clinical pharmacology without health systems context. Rationale: Clinical pharmacology is outside our disciplinary scope.
- Surgical Techniques: Operative procedures, surgical innovations, or technical surgical reports. Rationale: Surgical practice belongs in specialty surgical journals.
Article Types & Priorities
Priority 1 Fast-Track
- Original Research Articles (quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods)
- Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
- Methods & Measurement Studies
- Implementation Science Research
- Health Services Research
Priority 2 Standard
- Short Communications (novel findings, pilot studies)
- Data Notes & Dataset Descriptions
- Policy Analyses & Perspectives
- Program Evaluations
- Methodological Innovations
Priority 3 Selective
- Commentaries (by invitation or exceptional relevance)
- Letters to the Editor
- Book Reviews (health systems focus)
- Conference Reports (major health systems conferences)
Editorial Standards & Requirements
Reporting Guidelines
CONSORT for trials, STROBE for observational studies, PRISMA for systematic reviews, SQUIRE for quality improvement, COREQ for qualitative research, CHEERS for economic evaluations.
Data Transparency
Data sharing encouraged via public repositories. Data availability statements required. Analysis code sharing recommended for reproducibility.
Ethics & Compliance
IRB/ethics approval required for human subjects research. Informed consent documentation. HIPAA compliance for US-based studies. Declaration of conflicts of interest mandatory.
Preprint Policy
Preprints accepted and encouraged. Authors may post to medRxiv, SSRN, or institutional repositories before, during, or after peer review.
Open Science Practices
Pre-registration of studies encouraged. Registered reports considered. Open peer review option available. ORCID integration for author identification.
Statistical Rigor
Appropriate statistical methods required. Effect sizes and confidence intervals mandatory. P-value interpretation guidelines followed. Statistical review for complex analyses.
Editorial Decision Metrics
Ready to Submit?
If your research addresses healthcare systems, service delivery, quality improvement, or health policy at the organizational or population level, we invite your submission.
Contact Editorial Office: [email protected]
