Awareness of nurses and midwives regarding violations of publication ethics

Abstract Background The promotion of the academic development of nurses and midwives in Bulgaria already has serious traditions, which place high demands on their scientific activity. The issue of violations of publication ethics is relevant for all fields of science, which directed our attention to studying the awareness of nurses and midwives about them. Methods As part of a larger scientific study, we conducted an anonymous survey among a total of 746 individuals (7.8% lecturers, 73.6% practicing nurses, and 18.7% interns) from higher education institutions and hospitals in the country. Regarding publication ethics, we surveyed the respondents about which violations they were familiar with and which of them they had encountered in publications by Bulgarian nurses and midwives. Results According to the lecturers, who are also the most involved in scientific work and have more publications, the most common violations are “incorrect citation of other authors” (31.7%) “inclusion in the authorship of persons who do not meet the criteria” (28.6%); and “multiple publication of the same scientific material” (22.2%). According to the practicing nurses, the most common are “plagiarism” (28.8%); “fabrication (compilation) of results” (25.6%), and “falsification (adjustment) of results” (23.7%). According to the students, the most common, are “compilation of results” (33.0%) and “plagiarism” (22.3%). However, we do not have information about the source of the shared opinions and how objective they are. There is also a significant share of respondents who have never encountered any of the mentioned violations (30.2% lecturers, 35.2% interns, and 41.7% practicing nurses). Conclusions There is a need for more popularity of the principles of publication ethics among nurses and midwives in Bulgaria, which will contribute to preventing violations and rejection of manuscripts for publication. Key messages • It is necessary to include in the education of nurses and midwives the study of the principles of publication ethics in order to prevent violations. • Knowledge of violations of publication ethics by Bulgarian nurses and midwives will increase the scientific value of their publications.