Policy on the use of AI

Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI-Assisted Technologies

The Editorial Board of the journal Social Pharmacy in Health Care recognizes the potential of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and technologies based on large language models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT, to support scientific research. At the same time, the Journal adheres to the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and international associations of medical editors (WAME, ICMJE) regarding transparency and accountability in the use of such tools.

Use of AI by Authors

AI tools (including LLMs) may not be listed as authors or co-authors of a manuscript. Authorship implies responsibility for the scientific integrity of the work, which AI cannot assume. Any use of AI must be properly verified and disclosed by the human authors.

AI tools may be used to perform secondary, auxiliary tasks (such as correcting grammatical errors, stylistic editing, or improving the language of the text), but should not replace the author’s primary responsibilities (creating original scientific content or hypotheses; formulating scientific conclusions and recommendations; creating or editing the manuscript’s figures and tables).

Authors bear full responsibility for the accuracy, reliability, and originality of the manuscript content, including any data, figures, or text generated with the assistance of AI.

Disclosure Requirements

• If the authors used AI tools, this must be clearly stated in the “Materials and Methods” section and/or in the “Use of Artificial Intelligence Technologies” section.
• The name of the tool, its version, and the specific purpose for which it was used must be indicated.

For more information on COPE’s guidelines regarding AI and authorship, click here.

Use of AI by Reviewers

Reviewers are strictly prohibited from uploading manuscripts, in whole or in part, to AI systems. This constitutes a violation of confidentiality and copyright policies, as many AI systems use input data for model training. Reviewers bear personal responsibility for the content of and critical evaluation presented in their reviews.

Use of AI by Editors

Members of the Editorial Board do not use AI technologies to make final decisions regarding the acceptance or rejection of manuscripts. The assessment of scientific merit remains the exclusive prerogative of human experts.

The Editorial Board reserves the right to use specialized software to detect AI-generated content in cases where there is reason to suspect violations of publication ethics or where factual inaccuracies typical of LLM-generated text (“hallucinations”) are identified.