The Netherlands Journal of Critical Care (Neth. J. Crit. Care) is committed to transparency and integrity in scholarly publishing. The journal follows relevant guidance from the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) regarding the disclosure and management of financial and non-financial relationships and activities that may influence, or may reasonably be perceived to influence, scholarly judgment. ICMJE's current Recommendations were updated in January 2026.

1. Definition of a Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest may exist when a secondary interest has the potential to influence an individual's professional judgment concerning a primary interest, such as patient welfare, scientific validity, research integrity, or objective reporting.

Both actual conflicts and perceived conflicts are relevant because undisclosed relationships may undermine confidence in the research and publication process.

2. Authors

All authors must disclose financial and non-financial relationships and activities that could influence, or could reasonably be perceived to influence, the submitted work.

Potential conflicts may include:

• Employment or consultancy
• Research funding or grants
• Honoraria or speaking fees
• Travel or meeting support
• Stock ownership or financial interests
• Patents or patent applications
• Royalties
• Paid expert testimony
• Membership of advisory boards
• Personal or professional relationships
• Academic competition or rivalry
• Institutional interests
• Other relationships or activities relevant to the manuscript

Authors should provide complete and accurate disclosures at the time of submission. ICMJE recommends transparent disclosure by authors and encourages use of its Disclosure Form.

3. Financial Support and Sponsorship

Authors must disclose all sources of financial support directly related to the submitted work.

The funding statement should identify the funder or sponsor and, where applicable, describe its role in:

• Study design
• Data collection
• Data analysis
• Data interpretation
• Manuscript preparation
• Decision to submit the manuscript
• Publication decisions

Authors should also disclose any restrictions imposed by sponsors on access to data, analysis, interpretation, or publication.

4. Peer Reviewers

Reviewers must disclose any relationship or activity that could bias, or could reasonably be perceived to bias, their evaluation of a manuscript.

A reviewer should decline the review or recuse themselves when a significant conflict exists. Reviewers must not use confidential or unpublished information obtained through peer review for personal, academic, financial, or professional advantage.

5. Editors and Editorial Staff

Editors and editorial staff involved in manuscript decisions must disclose relevant relationships and activities and should recuse themselves from handling a manuscript when a conflict could compromise their impartiality.

Where necessary, the manuscript will be assigned to another qualified editor who can make an independent decision.

Editorial staff must not use confidential information obtained through manuscript handling for private or professional gain.

6. Editorial Independence

The presence of a conflict of interest does not automatically prevent publication. The journal will assess the nature and significance of the disclosed relationship and determine whether appropriate management is required.

Editorial decisions must remain independent of commercial interests, advertisers, sponsors, personal relationships, or financial considerations.

7. Disclosure Statement in Published Articles

Where applicable, published articles should contain a clear Conflict of Interest Statement.

If no relevant conflict exists, authors should provide an appropriate declaration, such as:

“The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.”

The journal may request additional information or supporting documentation when necessary to ensure transparency.

8. Undisclosed Conflicts

Failure to disclose a relevant relationship or activity may constitute a publication-ethics concern.

If an undisclosed conflict is identified before publication, the journal may request clarification or correction of the disclosure.

If a significant undisclosed conflict is identified after publication, the journal may publish a correction, expression of concern, or take other appropriate action depending on the circumstances.

9. Management of Conflicts

The editorial team may take appropriate measures to manage conflicts, including:

• Reassigning an editor
• Replacing a reviewer
• Requesting additional disclosures
• Requiring clarification from authors
• Adding a disclosure statement to the published article
• Seeking institutional or external advice where necessary

The objective is to preserve the fairness, transparency, and credibility of the editorial process.

10. Author Responsibility

Authors are responsible for providing complete and accurate conflict-of-interest information and for updating the journal if relevant circumstances change during the editorial or publication process.

A complete disclosure allows readers and editors to make informed judgments regarding the relevance of relationships and activities to the published work.

11. Commitment to Transparency

The Netherlands Journal of Critical Care considers transparent disclosure of conflicts of interest an essential component of responsible medical publishing. All authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial staff are expected to comply with this policy and with applicable ICMJE and COPE principles.

Contact:
Email: editor@njcconline.com