Welcome to the Health Sciences Investigations Journal

Health Sciences Investigation (HSI) Journal is a peer-reviewed, open-access journal dedicated to disseminating research findings in the health sciences. The HSI Journal is published by the University of Ghana College of Health Sciences.

Aim

Our aim is to advance knowledge in health-related sciences and promote equitable access to scientific reporting, particularly for researchers in resource-limited settings.

Mission

Our mission is to serve as a premier journal for advancing high-quality reporting of health and allied health sciences research in resource-limited settings and globally. We publish peer-reviewed research findings and policy analyses that impact local populations and inform the global scientific community.

Publication Scope

The HSI Journal welcomes submissions across a broad range of health sciences disciplines, including medical sciences, pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences, nursing, physical therapy, medical laboratory science, environmental and occupational health, public health, medical imaging and radiation sciences, and related fields. We publish diverse manuscript types ranging from original research articles and protocols to evidence syntheses, including systematic, scoping, and narrative reviews. Additionally, we accept case reports, medical images, brief communications, commentaries, and letters to the editor. Beyond standard issues, the Journal publishes special supplements and Books of Abstracts from scientific symposia. Authors may consult the Journal’s Article Types [insert URL] page for detailed descriptions of submission categories and requirements. Authors interested in proposing special issues or additional publication lines are encouraged to contact the editorial office at hsijournal.ug.edu.gh.

Licensing

  • Certified name: Health Sciences Investigations Journal
  •  Abbreviation: HSI Journal
  • Electronic ISSN: 2704-4890 (ONLINE)
  • Print ISSN: 2720-7609 (PRINT)
  • Website: www.hsijournal.edu.gh
  • Language of Publication: British English
     

Journal Address:

  • Office: University of Ghana College of Health Sciences, Charles Easmon Building, 2nd floor, Room 29, P.O Box k52, Korle-Bu, Accra, Ghana.
  • Contact email: hsijournal@ug.edu.gh
  • Contact numbers (Phone/WhatsApp):     
  •          Yvonne Okantey:   +233 0244156175 
  •          Amin Agongo:        +233 558005106

To Advertise

To advertise or reproduce content in HSI Journal, please send an email hsijournal@ug.edu.gh.

Publishing Model

The Journal operates a fully open access publishing model in accordance with the international standards set by the Budapest, Bethesda, and Berlin Declarations on Open Access,. All articles are freely available immediately upon publication without subscription or access barriers. Content is published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, including for commercial purposes, provided the original work is properly cited. The Journal charges an Article Processing Charge (APC) to support the costs of editorial processing and publication; details are available on the Journal’s APC page [insert URL].

Article Processing Charges (APC)

The HSI Journal operates under a Gold Open Access publishing model, which ensures that all published articles are freely and immediately available to readers worldwide without subscription barriers. To sustain this model (covering costs such as digital hosting, manuscript submission and tracking systems, copyediting, typesetting, DOI registration, plagiarism screening, editorial management, and long-term archiving) the Journal applies a standard APC of USD 300 for all accepted manuscripts. This fee is default for every accepted submission, regardless of the author's geographic location or institutional affiliation. It is charged only after a manuscript has been accepted following peer review, and editorial decisions are made independently of an author's ability to pay. The APC invoice is issued to the corresponding author upon acceptance and must be settled before the article is officially published online. However, in alignment with the Journal’s commitment to inclusivity and equitable access, we provide a waiver programme [insert URL] to support authors from diverse financial backgrounds and institutional affiliations.

APC Waiver Programme

The Journal is committed to equitable access to scientific reporting through its APC waiver programme. We recognize that financial constraints should never be a barrier to the dissemination of quality research. As such, we offer waiver tiers, which must be requested at the time of manuscript  submission:

1. Standard Waiver (Flat Rate)  
Waiver   USD 100
Amount payable USD 200 
Eligibility    Applies to manuscripts stemming from projects without dedicated research funding. This option is available to  authors who demonstrates a need for financial assistance, regardless of institutional affiliation or geographic location.
Approval      Granted on a case-by-case basis by the Editorial Office
2. University of Ghana (UG) Staff Waive  
Criterion    Details
Waiver percentage Up to 50% off the standard APC
Amount payable USD 150 (50% of 300)
Eligibility    First and corresponding authors must be current staff of the University of Ghana
Verification required Institutional email address (ug.edu.gh) or official staff ID of first and corresponding authors
Approval Granted on a case-by-case basis by the Editorial Office
3. Funded Projects    
Criterion  Details
Waiver  No waiver applies. The full APC is required as funding is available.
Amount payable USD $300 (full standard APC)
Eligibility  Research funded by a grant or institutional funding. Research with dedicated funding
4. Partial or Full Waiver (Exceptional Circumstances)   
 Waiver Variable 
Amount payable Variable 
Eligibility  In exceptional cases of demonstrated severe financial hardship (such as unfunded researchers from low-income countries or independent scholars with no institutional support), the Journal may grant a partial or full waiver of the APC.  Editorial Invitations (Manuscripts specifically commissioned or invited by the Editor-in-Chief) may be granted a partial or full waiver.
Verification   required Authors requesting a full or partial waiver must upload a formal letter of request on their institution’s letterhead. This letter should be signed by a Department Head or Dean, confirming that the institution does not have a budget allocated for Article Processing Charges and that the research is not supported by an external grant.
Approval Such requests are evaluated on a case-by-case basis by the Editorial Office and require a written explanation of the author's circumstances.

Waiver Administration

All waiver decisions are managed by the Editorial Office independently of the peer-review process. To maintain editorial integrity, reviewers are not informed of waiver requests. The Journal reserves the right to request official confirmation of an author's funding status where applicable. Waiver decisions are typically made shortly after the application is received to enable authors to finalize their decision regarding APC commitment.
Invoicing and Payment 
An invoice for the APC is submitted to the corresponding author only after the manuscript has been formally accepted for publication. Final payment of the APC (or formal granting of a waiver) is required before the manuscript is published online.
Editorial Disclaimer 
Editorial decisions on manuscript acceptance are based solely on scholarly merit and are never influenced by an author's ability to pay or by the status of a waiver request.
How to Request a Waiver
To request a waiver, authors should contact the Editorial Office at hsijournal@ug.edu.gh
Requests should be made during submission of the manuscript. Requests made after a manuscript has been accepted are not considered. 
Submission Requirement: Please include "Waiver Request Letter" as an additional file during the upload process. Include the following information:
•    Manuscript title and corresponding author name and affiliation
•    Requested waiver category (e.g., Standard waiver, Full waiver)
•    Brief justification for waiver