ABOUT THE JOURNAL

Journal of Applied Health Sciences (JAHS) is an international, peer-reviewed, open-access scientific journal dedicated to advancing high-quality, interdisciplinary, and practice-oriented research across the entire field of applied health sciences. The journal serves as a platform that integrates public health, clinical and allied health professions, environmental and occupational health, health systems research, integrative medicine, forest therapy and nature-based interventions, health education, and methodological innovations within the scientific study of health.

Guided by rigorous ethical standards, transparent editorial procedures, and the principles of responsible scientific publishing, JAHS provides a high-quality academic outlet for researchers, practitioners, educators, policymakers, and multidisciplinary teams. The journal emphasises evidence-based practice, methodological robustness, ethical integrity, and the translation of research into professional and community health outcomes.

Mission and Vision

The mission of JAHS is to promote scientific excellence and support the global health sciences community by disseminating robust, original research that enhances public health, clinical practice, professional education, patient safety, and system resilience. The journal particularly values interdisciplinary approaches and research that bridges science, policy, and real-world practice.

Its vision is to serve as a reference journal for applied health sciences in Europe and globally, contributing to improved health literacy, stronger health systems, a competent health workforce, environmental and occupational health protection, and the development of preventive and integrative health models.

Editorial and Ethical Foundations

JAHS operates with a firm commitment to the highest principles of publication ethics, as described in its Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement, following COPE, ICMJE, WAME, and Scopus guidelines.
The journal ensures:

  • double-masked international peer review for all submissions

transparent conflict-of-interest management for authors, reviewers, and editors

rigorous originality and plagiarism screening using iThenticate

  full compliance with ethical standards in human and animal research

  robust procedures for corrections, retractions, and expressions of concern

  • internationally recognised standards for research integrity, human subject protection, and responsible data stewardship.

JAHS was among the early regional journals to introduce a comprehensive Generative AI use policy in scientific publishing, ensuring transparency, integrity, and accountability in modern academic workflows.

 

Scope and Thematic Breadth

JAHS welcomes submissions from all fields of applied health sciences, including but not limited to:

  • Public health, epidemiology, health promotion, environmental and climate-related health research
  • Clinical and allied health sciences (nursing, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, radiology, laboratory diagnostics)
  • Environmental and occupational health, sanitary engineering, risk assessment, ergonomics
  • Integrative, preventive, and community health, including forest therapy, forest medicine, and nature-based interventions
  • Health systems research, health policy, emergency preparedness, digital health, and health informatics
  • Education and training, simulation, curriculum development, professional competencies
  • Interdisciplinary and methodological innovations, mixed-methods research, psychometrics, modelling, bioethics, and philosophy of health
    (as defined in the full Aims & Scope document

 

The journal strongly encourages manuscripts that address interdisciplinary challenges, system-level health improvements, and translational insights linking research to practice.

Peer-Review and Editorial Process

To ensure publication quality and academic rigor, all submissions undergo a structured, multi-stage editorial and review process, including:

  1. Initial editorial assessment
  2. iThenticate® similarity check
  3. Assignment to at least two independent, international reviewers
  4. Double-blind peer review
  5. Detailed reviewer evaluation based on scientific merit, methodology, ethics, and relevance
  6. Point-by-point revision and possible re-review
  7. Final decision by the Editor-in-Chief
  8. Technical editing, proofreading, and digital publication

The journal strictly prohibits biased or non-transparent review practices and adheres fully to COPE guidelines in managing concerns or disputes.

Open Access, Licensing, and Indexing Standards

JAHS is published as a diamond open-access journal — entirely free for authors and readers.
There are no submission fees or article processing charges (APC) of any kind.

All content is published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence, allowing unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction, and adaptation with proper attribution.

Each article receives a unique Digital Object Identifier (DOI) to ensure permanent discoverability, citation, integration into scholarly databases, and long-term archiving (Hrčak).

Language Policy and Publication Frequency

The journal publishes two issues per year, in both print and digital formats.

JAHS accepts manuscripts in:

  • English (with an extended summary in Croatian)
  • Croatian (with an extended summary in English)

This bilingual model increases visibility, enhances regional and international reach, and supports integration into global indexing systems.

Commitment to Scientific Integrity and Transparency

JAHS ensures transparency throughout the entire publication lifecycle through:

  • full disclosure of funding and conflicts of interest

declaration and audited use of generative AI tools

open reporting of corrections, retractions, or ethical concerns

  data availability statements aligned with reproducibility standards

  strict anti-plagiarism procedures using iThenticate at multiple editorial stages

  • commitment to long-term preservation of scholarly content
  • promotion of responsible conduct of research and academic integrity.

International Orientation and Strategic Positioning

JAHS explicitly aims to strengthen regional and international scientific collaboration by:

  • inviting contributions from diverse health systems across Europe, Asia, the Americas, and the Global South
  • promoting interdisciplinary projects, multicentric studies, and international authorship
  • publishing emerging topics such as forest medicine, nature-based interventions, climate-health interactions, digital health transformation, patient safety, and integrative medicine
  • serving as a platform for evidence-based policy-making and professional development.

The journal’s strategic profile—combining biomedical, public health, environmental, and integrative sciences—aligns closely with modern Scopus priorities and global research trends.

JAHS is a modern, ethically grounded, and internationally oriented scientific journal committed to advancing applied health sciences through rigorous research, open access, and global collaboration. By integrating high editorial standards, transparent policies, interdisciplinary breadth, and a clear focus on methodological and ethical excellence, JAHS strengthens scientific capacity, professional practice, public health, and health system resilience at both regional and global levels.

 

 

Impressum:

Publisher:
University of Applied Health Sciences, 10000 Zagreb, Mlinarska cesta 38

Editor-in-chief:
Aleksandar Racz (CV)

Deputy editors:
Bruno Splavski, Professor at the University Josip Juraj Strossmayer, Osijek, Croatia
Tomislav Sajko, Assoc. prof. at University of Zagreb – Stomatološki fakultet + UHC Sestre milosrdnice ,Zagreb
Damir Lučanin, Assoc. prof. at University of Zagreb

Assistant editors:
Filip Vrban, University of Applied Health Sciences, Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Zagreb, Croatia
Ivana Vrdoljak, University of Applied Health Sciences, Chair of Health Informatics, Zagreb, Croatia

Editorial Board:
Jasna Bošnir, Dr Andrija Štampar Teaching Institute of Public Health & University of Applied Health Sciences, Zagreb, Croatia & University of Health Studies, University of Rijeka, Croatia
Lana Feher Turković, University of Applied Health Sciences, Chair of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Clinical Chemistry, Zagreb, Croatia
Tatjana Njegovan Zvonarević, University of Applied Health Sciences, Study Programme of Occupational Therapy, Zagreb, Croatia
Goran Roić, Children’s Hospital Zagreb (Children’s Hospital “Klaićeva”) & University of Zagreb School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia
Ivan Jurak, University of Applied Health Science Zagreb
Biserka Sedić, University of Applied Health Science Zagreb + Assoc. Prof. at University Josip Juraj Strossmayer, Osijek, Zagreb

Editorial Council (members from the Republic of Croatia):
Domagoj Gajski, Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Centre “Sestre milosrdnice”, & Chair of Anatomy and Physiology, University of Applied Health Sciences, Zagreb, Croatia
Ivna Kocijan, University of Applied Health Sciences, Department of Medical Laboratory Diagnostics (physiology and molecular biology), Zagreb, Croatia
Željko Krznarić, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb & University Hospital Centre Zagreb (Clinical Hospital “Rebro”), Zagreb, Croatia
Igor Filipčić, Psychiatric Hospital “Sveti Ivan” & Dean and Chair of Psychiatry, University of Applied Health Sciences, Zagreb, Croatia
Gordana Grozdek Čovčić, University of Applied Health Sciences, Department of Physiotherapy, Zagreb, Croatia
Hrvoje Jurić
Miljenko Franić, University of Applied Health Sciences, Chair of Clinical Medicine, & Clinical Hospital Dubrava, Zagreb, Croatia
Goran Krstačić, Polyclinic for Prevention of Cardiovascular Diseases and Rehabilitation “Srčana”, Zagreb, & University of Osijek School of Medicine
Ines Lazibat, University Hospital Dubrava & University of Zagreb (neurology), Zagreb, Croatia
Ana Mojsović Ćuić, University of Applied Health Sciences, Chair of Biology and Physics, Zagreb, Croatia
Amir Muzur, Faculty of Health Studies & Faculty of Medicine, University of Rijeka (Public Health and History of Medicine / Bioethics), Rijeka, Croatia
Ozren Rađenović, University of Applied Health Sciences, Vice-Dean for Students & Department of Kinesiology (sport), Zagreb, Croatia
Claire Alexandra Sangster Jokić, University of Applied Health Sciences, Department of Occupational Therapy, Zagreb, Croatia; & Faculty of Education and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Snježana Schuster, University of Applied Health Sciences, Department of Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy, Zagreb, Croatia
Dubravka Šimunović, University of Applied Health Sciences, Department of Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy, Zagreb, Croatia
†Alan Šustić, Faculty of Medicine & Faculty of Health Studies, University of Rijeka (Anaesthesiology, Reanimatology and Intensive Care), Rijeka, Croatia
Vanja Vasiljev, Chair of Social Medicine and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, and Faculty of Health Studies, University of Rijeka, Rijeka, Croatia
Mario Zovak, Department of Surgery, University Hospital Centre “Sestre milosrdnice”; Professor of Surgery, University of Zagreb

Editorial Council (foreign members):
Ioan Stephan Florian, Department of Neurosurgery, Iuliu Haţieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy & County Emergency Clinical Hospital, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Orhan Jašić, Department of History, Faculty of Humanities, University of Tuzla, Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Željko Kaluđerović, Department of Philosophy, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia (ethics and bioethics)
Jacques van Lankveld, Faculty of Psychology, Open University of the Netherlands, Heerlen, Netherlands
Juan Mezzich, Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
Lukas Rasulić, Clinic for Neurosurgery, Clinical Center of Serbia & Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
Vsevolod Rozanov, Bekhterev Psychoneurological Institute / St Petersburg State University; international mental health organisations), Russia/Ukraine
Jana Strakova, Institute for Research and Development of Education, Faculty of Education, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
Kevan Wylie, Sheffield, UK; Honorary Professor, University of Sheffield

Technical editors:
Ozren Digula, Head of Information Technology Service, University of Applied Health Sciences, Zagreb, Croatia

Lectors:
Martina Klanjčić, Head of the Chair of Foreign Languages, University of Applied Health Sciences, Zagreb, Croatia
Nikola Novaković, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Pula, Croatia

The Journal is published on a biannual basis. The articles can be published in Croatian language, with a summary in English, or in English (with a summary in Croatian).
The journal will be concurrently published in print and digital form and all accepted articles will be freely available in the electronic form to scientific, professional and research community at the Journal’s official website.

ISSN 2459-5640

https://doi.org/10.24141/1