Announcements

Call for Papers: Comorbidity Causes, Health Implications, and Multisystem Approaches to Treatment and Care

Announcement posted 8/17/23

Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD) welcomes submissions for its upcoming collection, “Comorbidity Causes, Health Implications, and Multisystem Approaches to Treatment and Care.” Chronic conditions are the leading cause of death, disability, and health care costs in the United States and are highly prevalent, with 6 in 10 adults having one disease and 4 in 10 having 2 or more (comorbidity or multimorbidity). Comorbidities, also called concurrent conditions, coexisting conditions, or concomitant conditions, are distinct health disorders that are present at the same time; they may exist together for many reasons, including shared causes and risk factors. Comorbidities can increase individual risk of complications or developing a new health condition altogether. Common comorbidities include obesity, COVID-19, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, high blood lipid levels, arthritis, sleep apnea, depression, dementia, anxiety disorders, osteoarthritis, lung disease, and periodontal disease.

For this collection, PCD encourages the submission of manuscripts covering diverse topics using various article types. Please refer to the Types of Articles page on the journal’s website for specifications for each article type. PCD is seeking submissions on topics including but not limited to the following:

Epidemiological burden of multimorbidities among racial and ethnic groups
Examining the impact of lack of access to health care on the treatment and care of comorbidities across life stages of children, men, and women
Clinical or community-delivered interventions addressing poor health behaviors that increase the risk of developing coexisting conditions (eg, the link between smoking and lung disease, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure)
Exploring the impact of comorbidities among Medicaid enrollees
Understanding the relationship between comorbidities and quality-of-life measures
Integrating health systems (eg, primary care, men’s health, reproductive health, behavioral health, cardiopulmonary specialties) to improve health outcomes
Emerging medication therapies to treat coexisting chronic conditions
Cost-effectiveness studies to determine health care costs among people living with multiple health conditions
Economic evaluation of interventions, services, or health systems approaches that can remediate the effects of multimorbidity in safe and cost-effective ways
Building unifying systems of care to include health care systems, clinics, academic institutions, community-based organizations, community settings, and community participation to address comorbidities

Submission Guidelines

The deadline to receive final manuscripts is February 15, 2024. If accepted, your manuscript will be reviewed and published on a rolling basis. Articles will be assembled into a PDF collection accessible on the PCD website after all accepted papers have been published. Cover letters to the Editor in Chief are required and must state that the submission is for consideration in the PCD collection, “Comorbidity Causes, Health Implications, and Multisystem Approaches to Treatment and Care.”

About the Journal
PCD is a peer-reviewed public health journal sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and authored by experts worldwide. PCD was established in 2004 by the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion with a mission to promote dialogue among researchers, practitioners, and policy makers worldwide on the integration and application of research findings and practical experience to improve population health. For more information about the journal, please visit https://www.cdc.gov/pcd.

Call for Papers: Advancing Chronic Disease Data Modernization Enhancements to Meet Current and Future Public Health Challenges

Announcement posted 8/14/23

Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD) welcomes submissions for its upcoming collection, “Advancing Chronic Disease Data Modernization Enhancements to Meet Current and Future Public Health Challenges.” The nation’s health data systems are often antiquated, resulting in a myriad of negative effects on chronic disease prevention and health promotion efforts. In addition, antiquated data management systems often become difficult to support, maintain, scale, or integrate into new platforms. Enhancing the nation’s data systems will require making important changes to ensure skilled individuals are in place, new operational processes are adopted, and appropriate policies are established to facilitate monitoring and evaluation of data modernization action plans. This collection will feature peer-reviewed papers showcasing efforts under way by federal, state, tribal, local, and territorial public health agencies to collect, use, and share data. PCD is interested in publishing papers describing and highlighting data management infrastructure transformations that support response-ready systems capable of meeting current and future health challenges.

For this collection, PCD encourages the submission of manuscripts covering diverse topics using various PCD article types. Please refer to the Types of Articles page on PCD’s website for specifications of each article type. Examples of topics of interest include but are not limited to the following:

Frameworks that guide data modernization changes and position data systems to improve reliability, serviceability, and trustworthiness
Methodologies used to monitor, evaluate, and report effectiveness of data management systems
Scientific documentation that tracks progress of continuous improvements and provides accountability
Identification of key outputs and outcomes (ie, specific metrics) to track and monitor from inception that provide insights into what is working and/or what needs modification
Strategies to maintain higher quality, more accessible, and more complete health data collection to ensure data is representative of all people
Improving equity-centered data systems to collect data on social factors that impact health
Identification of privacy-enhancing technologies that increase public confidence in data governance and reporting
Protecting privacy-related policies governing the release of public health data
Strategies to improve timeliness, completeness, and quality of critical data for public health responses
The application of data modernization on public health efforts to improve chronic disease prevention and control

Submission Guidelines
Although not required, corresponding authors are strongly encouraged to submit an inquiry to the journal in advance of submitting a manuscript to determine suitability. PCD asks that only the corresponding author submit an inquiry to the journal for review. The corresponding author is the person who takes primary responsibility for communication with the journal during the submission, peer-review, and publication process if the paper is accepted. The corresponding author’s inquiry should include the following information:

Article title
Name of the corresponding author
Author name(s), degree(s), title(s), and affiliation(s)
PCD article type (visit https://www.cdc.gov/pcd/for_authors/types_of_articles.htm)
Has the article ever been submitted elsewhere for consideration? If yes, please indicate the name of the journal, the date of the final decision, and an explanation of the decision
Indicate that this inquiry is related to this Call for Papers
Abstract (300 words or less)

PCD will provide feedback to the corresponding author about the journal’s interest in the proposed manuscript and guidance on what information is needed.

The deadline to receive final manuscripts is November 30, 2023. If accepted, your manuscript will be reviewed and published on a rolling basis. Articles will be assembled into a PDF collection accessible on the PCD website after all accepted papers have been published. Cover letters to the Editor in Chief are required and must state that the submission is for consideration in the PCD collection, Advancing Chronic Disease Data Modernization Enhancements to Meet Current and Future Public Health Challenges

Call for Papers: Public Health Nurse-Led Research, Practice, and Education in Disease Prevention and Control

Announcement posted 7/2/23

Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD) welcomes submissions for its upcoming collection, “Public Health Nurse-Led Research, Practice, and Education in Disease Prevention and Control.” The American Public Health Association defines public health nursing as “the practice of promoting and protecting the health of populations using knowledge from nursing, social, and public health sciences.” The public health nurse’s scope of practice includes policy reform, environmental and system-level changes, and health promotion. Nurses serve in various capacities to help improve population health, including but not limited to their roles as clinicians, educators, researchers, managers, leaders, and policy makers.

Public health nurses work and lead in diverse settings to identify, develop, deliver, and evaluate evidence-based approaches to improve population health for all. PCD is interested in learning about current public health nursing efforts to develop, implement, and evaluate the following: population-based interventions to prevent chronic diseases and control disease effects on quality of life, morbidity, and mortality; interventions that reduce the disproportionate incidence of chronic diseases among at-risk populations; and public health law and health-policy–driven interventions. In addition, PCD is interested in models for education and professional development of the current and future public and population health nursing workforce.

Possible topic areas include but are not limited to the following:

Emerging healthcare models that examine the role, utility, and effectiveness of public health nursing as an essential component of primary care and public health
Training and education of nurses around concepts for public health nursing practice such as clinical prevention, population health, systems thinking, healthcare policy development and implementation, finance, regulatory environments, interprofessional collaboration, and root causes of health inequities, including structural racism, sexism, poverty, and other nonmedical determinants of health
Public health interventions delivered in community, healthcare, school, workplace, home, homeless shelters, and other settings to address health promotion, disease prevention, or disease management, including healthy eating, active living, etc
Nursing and public health interventions to address chronic disease prevention and chronic illness across the life stage from pregnancy to older adulthood
Addressing health disparities in chronic disease through community-engaged approaches and multidisciplinary collaboration with other health professions, community residents and organizations, and academic partners
Approaches to planning and implementing community health interventions, care, services, and programs in various settings
Developing, implementing, and evaluating health-policy–driven efforts at the local community level to identify system approaches to help eliminate health disparities
Strategies, training, and organizational approaches to enhance workforce diversity in public health nursing

Submission Guidelines

Corresponding authors are required to submit an inquiry to the journal to determine suitability in advance of submitting a manuscript. PCD asks that only the corresponding author submit an inquiry to the journal for review. The corresponding author is the person who takes primary responsibility for communication with the journal during the submission, peer-review, and publication process if the manuscript is accepted. The corresponding author’s inquiry should include the following information:

Article title
Name of the corresponding author
Author name(s), degree(s), title(s), and affiliation(s)
PCD article type (visit https://www.cdc.gov/pcd/for_authors/types_of_articles.htm)
Has the article ever been submitted elsewhere for consideration? If yes, please indicate the name of the journal, the date of the final decision, and an explanation of the decision
Indicate that the inquiry is related to this Call for Papers
Abstract (300 words or less)

Inquiries must be submitted to the journal before November 3, 2023.

The deadline to receive final manuscripts is May 3, 2024. If your inquiry is approved, your final manuscript will undergo internal review and external peer review. Manuscripts accepted for publication will be published on a rolling basis. Articles will be assembled into a PDF collection accessible on the PCD website after all accepted papers have been published. Cover letters to the Editor in Chief are required and must state that the submission is for consideration in the PCD collection, “Public Health Nurse-Led Research, Practice, and Education in Disease Prevention and Control.”

About the Journal

PCD is a peer-reviewed public health journal sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and authored by experts worldwide. PCD was established in 2004 by the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion with a mission to promote dialogue among researchers, practitioners, and policy makers worldwide on the integration and application of research findings and practical experience to improve population health. PCD has a current Impact Factor of 5.5 (2022) and is ranked 21^st of 180 journals in Journal Citation Reports (JCR). For more information about the journal, please visit https://www.cdc.gov/pcd.

PCD Announces Latest Impact Factor Increase

Announcement posted 6/30/23

Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD) received its new Journal Citation Reports’ (JCR’s) 2022 Journal Impact Factor, which assessed citations of PCD articles published in 2019 and 2020. The journal’s Impact Factor increased from 4.354 in 2021 to 5.5 in 2022. According to JCR, PCD ranks 21st of 180 journals in the Public Health, Environmental, and Occupational Health category worldwide. PCD’s 2022 JCR rankings represent an increase from its 2021 ranking in this category, where it was ranked 52nd of 182 journals worldwide in 2021. This is undoubtedly a result of PCD’s role in rapidly publishing peer-reviewed content; implementing a sustained rigorous peer review process; and publishing science-based articles on a variety of important and timely topics.

Additionally, in the category of Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health, Scimago Journal Rankings (SJR) ranked PCD 3rd of 33 open-access US journals, 59th of 608 journals worldwide, and 22nd of 252 open-access journals worldwide. PCD’s 2022 SJR rankings represent an increase from its 2021 rankings in the Public Health, Environmental and Occupational category, where it was ranked 4th of 33 open-access US journals, 76th of 585 journals worldwide, and 35th of 254 open-access journals worldwide. In 2022, PCD was also ranked in the top 10% of 27,955 journals evaluated by SJR.

PCD is influential in disseminating proven and promising peer-reviewed public health findings, innovations, and practices with editorial content respected for its integrity and relevance to chronic disease prevention. During the coming months, PCD anticipates publishing timely and emerging content on sleep deprivation, sleep disorders, and chronic disease; state and local health department-led research, surveillance, and evidence-based public health practice; patterns of comorbidity and multimorbidity among adults; policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) changes; training resources on how to conduct performance monitoring and program evaluation; and advancing data modernization and data management in public health.

Many thanks to our Editorial Board, Associate Editors, Statistics Review Committee, reviewers, authors, readers, along with NCCDPHP leadership and PCD Staff who have contributed to the success of the journal.

For the latest in peer-reviewed chronic disease research, evaluation, and practice content, visit www.cdc.gov/pcd.

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Call for Papers: PCD 2024 Student Paper Contest

Announcement posted 3/30/23

Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD) welcomes submissions from students at the high school, undergraduate, and graduate levels, recent postgraduates, and medical residents for PCD’s annual Student Paper Contest. PCD is interested in publishing papers relevant to the prevention, screening, surveillance, and population-based intervention of chronic diseases, including but not limited to arthritis, asthma, cancer, depression, diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and COVID-19 and chronic conditions. The journal is also interested in research examining the role that social determinants exact on health, including the less explored determinant of racism.

PCD’s 5 primary goals for this publication opportunity are to:

Provide applicants with an opportunity to become familiar with a journal’s manuscript submission requirements and peer-review process;
Assist applicants to connect their knowledge and training on conducting quality research with a journal’s publication expectations;
Develop applicants’ research and scientific writing skills to become producers of knowledge in addition to consumers of knowledge;
Provide applicants with an opportunity to become first author on a peer-reviewed paper;
Promote supportive, respectful, and mutually beneficial author―mentor relationships that result in strengthening applicants’ ability to generate and submit future scholarly manuscripts.

Submission Requirements

PCD uses PCD ScholarOne Manuscripts for manuscript submission and tracking. Before submitting your manuscript, please read the instructions below in addition to the information provided on the PCD website under Manuscript Requirements.

Eligibility

Student applicants must be currently enrolled in a high school, undergraduate, or graduate degree program. Postgraduate applicants must have received their graduate degree within the past 12 months and be participating in a medical residency, postdoctoral fellowship, or similar training program under the supervision of a mentor, advisor, or principal investigator.
Applicants should meet the standard to serve as first author. The first author is the person who conducted or led the topic being presented and prepared the first draft of the manuscript. The first author must also ensure that all other authors meet the criteria for authorship.
Applicants and coauthors are expected to demonstrate the highest ethical standards in submitting scholarly work to the journal for consideration. Applicants and coauthors should become familiar with the journal’s Editorial Policy.
Applicants (not mentors) must serve as the corresponding author for manuscripts submitted in conjunction with the student research collection. No exceptions will be allowed.
Manuscripts must report on research done while in one of the qualifying student or postgraduate categories listed above.
The research must have been completed within the last 12 months.
Manuscripts must not be published previously or submitted elsewhere for publication.
Manuscripts must represent original research submitted as Original Research or GIS Snapshots article types. Other article types will not be considered. For a detailed explanation, see information on Original Research and GIS Snapshots articles on PCD’s Types of Articles page.
Students and recent postgraduates must submit a cover letter indicating their interest in being considered for the Student Paper Collection and the name and contact information of their advisor. The cover letter must also indicate current level of academic enrollment: high school, undergraduate, or graduate degree, or applicable postgraduate residency, fellowship, or other training program. In addition, applicants should address all routinely required disclosures in the cover letter. Learn more about general cover letter requirements on PCD’s How to Submit a Manuscript page.
Applicants must provide a letter of recommendation from their advisor confirming either the student’s enrollment in a degree program or the postgraduate candidate’s residency or fellowship. The advisor must confirm that the research was conducted while in training under the advisor’s supervision. The advisor’s letter must confirm that the applicant conceptualized the analysis and was the primary author of the manuscript. The advisor’s letter must also acknowledge that the advisor recognizes that no one other than the applicant can serve as corresponding author.
Applicants should submit the cover letter and advisor letter when they submit the manuscript.

Deadline

Manuscripts must be received electronically no later than 5:00 PM EST on Monday, March 25, 2024.

Manuscript Review Process

Not all manuscripts submitted for consideration will undergo peer review. The Editor in Chief will screen and determine which manuscripts advance to peer review. The decision to advance papers to peer review will be made based on fit, quality, and available human capital to handle submission volume.
Applicants and advisors must understand that the decision-making process to identify which manuscripts will advance through the various stages of review is a lengthy process. Therefore, applicants and advisors must have patience as the decision-making process moves through review stages.
An applicant receiving comments and suggestions on a manuscript does not mean the manuscript will be accepted for publication.
Applicants interested in getting a sense of where manuscripts are in the review process are encouraged to contact the journal. Such inquiries should come directly from the applicant serving as corresponding author.

Winners in each category will receive the following recognition:

Acknowledgment in the Editor in Chief’s collection editorial
Special promotion on the journal’s social media platforms
Accompanying podcast to discuss the paper
Potential selection as a peer reviewer to determine next year’s winner

Helpful Hints

Please be sure to visit the Author’s Corner section of PCD’s website for important information on what to avoid when developing the manuscript, tables, and figures. Students and mentors are encouraged to review previous collections of student papers, by visiting the PCD website at CDC – Preventing Chronic Disease: PCD Collections.

About the Journal

PCD is a peer-reviewed electronic journal established to provide a forum for researchers and practitioners in chronic disease prevention and health promotion. The journal is published weekly by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.

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The opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors’ affiliated institutions.