About the Journal

The Journal of Community Systems for Health (JCSH) is an open-access, peer-reviewed fair publication that considers articles related to community systems that create health in general, and community health systems in particular.

OUR PRINCIPLES

We believe that a different system for publication of high-quality, peer-reviewed articles is possible, one where authors, reviewers, and editors have more control over the process and are not encumbered by a publication ecosystem that focuses on high levels of production and economic benefit.

We believe it is possible to produce high quality research where researchers keep the control over how scientific literature is published. We believe that research should not be for-profit, and that the knowledge produced should be free both at delivery and access levels.

We therefore support the principles of the Fair Open Alliance that proclaim:

  1. The journal has a transparent ownership structure and is controlled by and is responsive to the scholarly community.
  2. Authors of articles in the journal retain copyright.
  3. All articles are published in an open access format and an explicit open access license is used.
  4. Submission and publication is not conditional in any way on the payment of a fee from the author or their employing institution, or on membership of an institution or society.
  5. Any fees paid on behalf of the journal to the publishers are low, transparent, and in proportion to the work carried out.

We also support the Community Health Systems Chaminuka Manifesto which articulates a collective understanding of priorities and principles that should guide efforts to fortify community systems for health, while accommodating multiple perspectives and starting points.

 
AIMS AND SCOPE 
 

The JCSH aims to provide a platform for high quality research on community systems for health.

This journal is based on the concept of community health systems defined as the “sets of local actors, relationships, and processes engaged in producing, advocating for, and supporting health in communities and households outside of, but existing in relationship to, formal systems of health and health care” (Schneider and Lehmann, 2016). The term 'community' in this context extends beyond geographical locations to include shared identities, interests and networks that transcend local boundaries. By broadening the focus to community systems for health, the journal emphasises both the social and structural factors that influence health and the notion of 'community health' as woven into the fabric of daily life. an integral part of everyday life.

 
The journal is particularly interested in topics related to:
  • The core values, assumptions and principles that characterise the framing of the community systems for health, such as equity, inclusiveness, whole of society approach, social determinants and locally driven interventions.
  • Decision-making and programmes to strengthen the community systems for health through all phases, from context-sensitive designs and models, the implementation and scale-up of programmes, and monitoring and evaluation strategies;
  • The history, political-economy, social and gendered contexts of CSHs at all levels, from global to local knowledge, beliefs and practices;
  • A holistic focus on Community Health Workers (CHWs), including effective strategies for identifying, selecting and recruiting, training and developing, supporting and retaining CHWs;
  • Community accountability and responsiveness, and participation mechanisms; strategies for collective action and effective citizen participation;
  • Relationships and connections between community systems and the broader health system.
  • The oversight, direction and stewardship required to strengthen CSHs, as well as ensure accountability and promote inter-sectoral collaboration;
  • Methodologies and processes that align with the values of the CSH and contribute to social change.
 
PUBLICATION FEES
 
Publishing in the  Journal of Community Systems for Health is free of charge. Color illustrations, supplemental audio-visual and interactive materials are also free of charge.
 
PUBLICATION FREQUENCY
 
All articles are posted online immediately as they are ready for publication and will be assigned a DOI number for citation and other purposes once published without delay.
 
OPEN ACCESS POLICY
 
The  Journal of Community Systems for Health utilizes the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC-BY 4.0) License, which allows to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format without embargoed period and allow others to remix, tweak, and build upon work for any purpose. Author(s), their employer(s), or their funder(s) retain copyright and others using their work should provide them appropriate credits. Authors are permitted to post their manuscript to personal or institutional websites, in repositories and similar after publication (while providing the bibliographic details of that publication).
 
STATEMENT ON PUBLISHING ETHICS
 
We believe that adherence to ethical standards in publication and research findings’ dissemination is central to the research process. JCSH adheres to the Core Practices of the Committee On Publication Ethics (COPE), the Code of Conduct of the Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association (OASPA), and the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing of the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).
 
PRIVACY STATEMENT
 
The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.