JMIR Research Protocols

Protocols, grant proposals, registered reports (RR1)

Editor-in-Chief:

Amy Schwartz, MSc, Ph.D., Scientific Editor at JMIR Publications, Ontario, Canada


Impact Factor 1.5 CiteScore 2.4

JMIR Research Protocols  (JRP, ISSN 1929-0748) is a unique journal indexed in PubMed, PubMed Central (PMC), MEDLINE, Sherpa Romeo, DOAJ, Scopus, Web of Science(WoS)/ESCI, and EBSCO, publishing peer-reviewed, openly accessible research ideas and grant proposals, and study and trial protocols (also referred to as Registered Report Stage 1 papers). 

JMIR Research Protocols received a Journal Impact Factor of 1.5 according to the latest release of the Journal Citation Reports from Clarivate, 2025.

With a CiteScore of 2.4 (2024), JMIR Research Protocols is a Q2 journal in the field of General Medicine, according to Scopus data.

It should be stressed however that most authors do not publish their protocols for "impact" or citations, rather to document their ideas to how to design experiments, to document their successful grant proposals, or to publish (and maybe brag a little about) their already funded protocols (which do not require additional peer-review). We offer this platform for scientists to publish peer-reviewed protocols for a very low APF, and unfunded protocols for a reasonable fee that includes peer-review. 

While the original focus was on eHealth studies, JRP now publishes protocols and grant proposals in all areas of medicine, and their peer-review reports, if available (preliminary results from pilot studies, early results, and formative research should now be published in JMIR Formative Research).

JRP is fully open access, with full-text articles deposited in PubMed Central.

Why should I publish my protocol? 

  • JRP publishes research protocols, grant proposals, pilot/feasibility studies and early reports of ongoing and planned work that encourages collaboration and early feedback, and reduces duplication of effort.
  • JRP will be a valuable educational resource for researchers who want to learn about current research methodologies and how to write a winning grant proposal.
  • JRP creates an early scientific record for researchers who have developed novel methodologies, software, innovations or elaborate protocols.
  • JRP provides a "dry-run" for peer-review of the final results paper, and allows feedback/critique of the methods, often while they still can be fixed.
  • JRP enhances rigor and demonstrates to reviewers of subsequent results papers that authors followed and adhered to carefully developed and described a-priori methods, rather than fishing for P-values (HARKing).
  • JRP facilitates and guarantees subsequent publication of results demonstrating that the methodology has already been reviewed, and reduces the effort of writing up the results, as the protocol can be easily referenced.
  • JRP is compatible with the concept of "Registered Reports" and since May 2018, published protocols receive an International Registered Report Identifier (What is a Registered Report Identifier?) and acceptance of the subsequent results paper is "in principle" guaranteed in any JMIR journal and partner journals - see What is a Registered Report?. We assign an IRRID (International Registered Report Identifier) to each published protocol, faciliating the linking between protocol and final study, and also indicating that results papers of studies are also "in principle accepted" for subsequent publication in other JMIR journals (or other members of the IRRID Registry Network) as long as authors adhere to their original protocol - regardless of study results (even if they are negative), reducing publication bias in medicine.
  • Authors publishing their protocols in JRP will receive a 20% discount on the article processing fee if they publish their results in another journal of the JMIR journal family (for example, JMIR for e-health studies, i-JMR for others).

Need more reasons? Read the Knowledge Base article on "Why should I publish my protocol/grant proposal"!

 

Recent Articles

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RCTs - Protocols/Proposals (eHealth)

To the best of our knowledge, no studies have investigated the withdrawal strategy of pharmacological treatment with solifenacin or mirabegron in children diagnosed with urinary incontinence who have achieved continence on pharmacotherapy.

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Scoping Review Protocols

The use of video meetings and text-based meetings has surged and emerged as a critical tool in health care. These tools offer many benefits, such as patient prescreening, counseling services, remote patient tracking, and monitoring. With the increasing demand for technologies, health care professionals require training and educational competency development to sustain in the modern digital age. This necessitates synthesizing evidence about the existing training programs in arranging and regulating such meetings, the implementation, and reassurance about the effectiveness of these digital health meetings.

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Systematic Review Protocols

Stroke is a leading cause of disability, commonly resulting in difficulty completing basic and instrumental activities of daily living. Rehabilitation is recommended to improve functional performance; however, it remains unknown whether early (hospital-based) intervention is effective; nor is it known what intervention components should be delivered.

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Non-randomized Protocols and Methods (ehealth)

Women who experience intimate partner violence (IPV) are more likely to develop disabling chronic pain (CP). However, there is little information on what it means to live with CP while being exposed to IPV. In addition, despite well-established risk and protective factors for CP and its health outcomes, there are no data on whether these factors differ in women who have experienced IPV compared to those who have not.

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Non-Randomized Study Protocols and Methods (Non-eHealth)

The incidence of postoperative pancreatic fistula following distal pancreatectomy is as high as 30%-50%. Postoperative pancreatic fistula can be a major cause of perioperative morbidity, resulting in prolonged hospital stays and increased health care costs. The management of the pancreatic stump is one of the key factors influencing the occurrence of postoperative pancreatic fistula after distal pancreatectomy, but the optimal management approach remains debatable. The main methods for pancreatic stump closure include manual suturing and stapler closure. However, both methods are associated with a high risk of postoperative pancreatic fistula, which may be related to the balance between providing sufficient pancreatic duct burst pressure and ensuring blood supply to the stump. Ligation of the pancreatic stump has been attempted to reduce the risk of postoperative pancreatic fistula following distal pancreatectomy, but its efficacy remains limited by the challenge of achieving the optimal ligation force.

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Non-Randomized Study Protocols and Methods (Non-eHealth)

Emotional resilience is a dynamic process by which individuals may prevent, overcome, and thrive following challenging events. Emotional resilience can be defined as absence of negative outcomes (ie, symptoms of psychopathology) and/or the presence of adaptive outcomes (ie, well-being). Despite the wealth of research tracking the nature of and contributions to emotional resilience in adolescence and adulthood, there is a dearth of evidence on the nature of resilience and its development during preadolescent childhood despite this being an important preventative period for later mental health difficulties and a period when emotional experiences change.

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Formative Studies and eHealth/mHealth Development

Unsafe sexual behaviors among Black male adolescents and young adults increase their susceptibility to negative health outcomes that widen persistent health disparities. Parent-adolescent relationships and communication can impact Black male adolescents and young adults’ sexual health behaviors, but parents and adolescents often lack knowledge and effective tools to improve health outcomes. Culturally tailored sexual health interventions that integrate the intersectionality of race, gender, family, and social influences on sexual health are limited yet needed to reverse these trends.

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RCTs - Protocols/Proposals (eHealth)

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS), a chronic inflammatory disease, causes spinal stiffness, functional impairment, and reduced quality of life. While exercise is critical for managing AS, traditional home-based programs lack real-time supervision to ensure movement quality and adherence. Emerging digital tools like inertial sensors may address this gap, but their clinical impact remains unproven.

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RCTs - Protocols/Proposals (non-eHealth)

Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is a progressive degeneration of the knee joint that has the potential to impair the function of the lower extremity. Tuina, as an important component of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), is a common treatment for KOA. However, the prevailing practice often limits the therapeutic focus to the knee joint, overlooking potential coexisting hip and ankle injuries. Thus, the therapeutic efficacy may not be optimal in these instances.

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Scoping Review Protocols

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is the fourth-most-prevalent cancer in both Indonesia and Asia. Globally, an estimated 133,354 cases and 80,008 deaths were attributed to NPC in 2020. Early diagnosis plays a key role in managing NPC. Molecules found in bodily fluids, such as saliva, contain compounds (including microRNAs [miRNAs]) that can aid in detecting diseases like NPC. More studies on the expression, role, use, and accuracy of salivary miRNAs as potential diagnostic biomarkers of NPC are needed.

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Scoping Review Protocols

Children and youth with medical complexities have chronic conditions, functional limitations, and extensive care needs requiring significant family involvement and frequent health service use. Pediatric medicine has improved their life expectancy, shifting care from acute to home settings. In Ontario, home care is publicly funded and includes nursing, therapy, personal support, and allied health services. However, families continue providing the bulk of care, often at great personal costs. As care complexity increases, so does the reliance on home care providers. Yet, many providers report feeling unprepared due to insufficient pediatric training, lack of supervision, and system-level gaps. Here we applied Weiner’s theory of organizational readiness for change, framing readiness as a shared psychological state involving commitment to and confidence in delivering change, thus helping conceptualize provider readiness as encompassing individual competence, contextual supports, and motivational factors. Despite its importance, provider readiness in pediatric home care remains poorly understood.

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RCTs - Protocols/Proposals (eHealth)

African American men are at a higher risk for serious health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and stroke compared to non-Hispanic White men. Physical activity (PA) is a modifiable health behavior that has been shown to decrease chronic disease risk; yet, PA engagement is alarmingly low in African American men. Interventions to improve PA engagement are effective in a number of populations; however, very few have been tailored to the unique needs of African American men. Even fewer have leveraged mobile health apps, despite African American men’s interest in and willingness to use such technologies for health improvement.

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Preprints Open for Peer-Review

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