Authorship and copyright
Authorship implies responsibility and accountability for published work. To remove ambiguity surrounding contribution to the article, the WA author contribution policy ensures quantity and quality of contribution that qualify an individual for authorship. Authors contributing equally should be indicated.
The corresponding author is the one author, who takes primary responsibility for communication with the journal during the manuscript submission, peer review, and publication process, and typically ensures that all the journal's administrative requirements, such as providing details of authorship, clinical trial registration documentation, ethics committee approval, and gathering conflict of interest forms and statements, are properly completed, although these duties may be delegated to one or more coauthors.
Professional writers employed by pharmaceutical companies or other academic, governmental, or commercial entities who have drafted or revised the intellectual content of the paper must be included as authors.
All those qualifying for authorship must give final approval of the submitted manuscript and take responsibility for the conduct of the research. Contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship must be listed in the Acknowledgments section with roles and affiliations. The Acknowledgments section allows authors space to recognize and express appreciation to others who have contributed to the study but do not meet the Authorship or Co-investigators Criteria.