Window to the Past

 

Window to the Past

The Window to the Past section of Colombia Médica is dedicated to publishing historiographic articles and interdisciplinary reflections that integrate perspectives from politics, art, literature, or other human sciences. Its goal is to explain or contribute to understanding current health situations or health policies. This section aims to highlight the value of history and the humanities in addressing contemporary challenges in the health field.

Objectives

  1. Publish relevant historiographic research that provides critical reflections on current issues in medicine and public health.
  2. Stimulate dialogue between medical sciences and the humanities, emphasizing their impact on health and social well-being.
  3. Provide a platform for interdisciplinary reflections that link politics, art, literature, and social sciences to contemporary health topics.

Publication Criteria

Content

  • Articles must focus on historiographic topics or interdisciplinary reflections offering a critical and documented analysis of health situations or current health policies.
  • Contributions on the historical evolution of diseases, health systems, social movements related to medicine, or analyses of artistic and literary representations relevant to health are accepted.
  • Arguments must be supported by relevant historical, literary, or scientific sources with a critical interpretation connecting the past to the present.

Length

  • There is no strict word limit for articles, but a range of 3,000 to 5,000 words is recommended, excluding references, tables, and figures.
  • References should be sufficient to support the analysis, prioritizing documentary sources, historical texts, and relevant academic literature.

Structure

  1. Title: Clear, concise, and representative of the content (maximum 20 words).
  2. Abstract: Non-structured, up to 200 words, briefly describing the article’s objective, focus, and relevance.
  3. Keywords: Between 3 and 6, following the terms of Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) when applicable.
  4. Introduction: Contextualization of the topic, historical or humanistic relevance, and specific objectives of the article.
  5. Body of the article: Development of the argument with a clear structure, including:
    • Historiographic analysis: Based on documentary sources or primary literature.
    • Interdisciplinary reflection: Integration of artistic, literary, or political perspectives with health topics.
  6. Conclusion: Summary of the main ideas, their relevance to current issues, and possible implications for health or health policies.
  7. References: In Vancouver format, prioritizing original and relevant sources.

Guidelines and Publication Standards

Although Window to the Past articles do not require strict methodological guidelines, authors should:

  • Use historical, literary, or scientific sources rigorously and critically.
  • Establish clear connections between historical or humanistic analyses and their relevance to current health problems.
  • Declare any conflicts of interest or funding sources that might influence the analysis presented.

Format

  • Formatting details can be found in the Manuscript Submission Format section.
  • Figures: Editable formats (.jpeg, .png, .tiff) with a minimum resolution of 300 dpi.
  • Tables: Numbered and with descriptive titles, if necessary for the analysis.
  • Additional documents: Authors must attach the following completed documents at the time of manuscript submission:
    1. Copyright Transfer Agreement: Completed and signed by all authors.
    2. Conflict of Interest Declaration: Detailing any financial, professional, or personal relationships that could influence the content of the article.
    3. CRediT Taxonomy Author Contribution Form: Specifying each author's role in the preparation and development of the manuscript (e.g., conceptualization, methodology, writing, data analysis).

  • Compliance with these requirements is mandatory, and their absence may delay or prevent the manuscript’s review process.

Review Process

  1. Reception: The editorial board will initially evaluate the manuscript to verify its relevance and compliance with basic requirements.
  2. Peer Review: Articles will be reviewed by experts in historiography, humanities, or social sciences under a double-blind review model.

Ethical Considerations

  • Authors must ensure that the manuscript is original and has not been previously published or is under consideration in another journal.
  • Declaring any conflicts of interest or funding sources is mandatory.

Submission Process

  • Manuscripts must be submitted exclusively through the Colombia Médica editorial management system.
  • Non-compliance with the established guidelines may result in immediate rejection of the manuscript.

Publication Rights

  • Once accepted, articles will be published under the CC-BY-NC license, allowing non-commercial use and distribution, provided that the authors and the original source are acknowledged.