Copyright for authors

Unless otherwise specified, authors share the copyright for their article with the Community Eye Health Journal.  Authors must always be attributed alongside the journal when articles are quoted or re-used.  Authors may use their own articles for profit or non-profit purposes without asking permission from the journal. Acknowledgement should be given to the journal along with a web link, where appropriate. Generally, photographers and illustrators retain copyright for images and photographs published in the journal. More information on the journal's copyright and third party permissions policy can be found on the copyright and permissions page.

Complying with copyright and privacy laws in your article

Authors are responsible for ensuring that articles comply with copyright and privacy laws.

Use references

If you quote or copy another work in your article you should reference the source of that work. This includes your own work if it has been published elsewhere.

Obtain permission from the copyright holder before including content from another work

As well as referencing others’ work you must also obtain permission from the copyright holder before using any photo, figure or other content from another work, unless it falls within the “fair use” provision. You should also check with the publisher whether you need permission to republish your own work.

Who to ask for permission?  Usually, you should first of all contact the publisher of the work. However, for a photograph, you should contact the person or institution named in the photo caption or in a list at the front or back of the work.

What to ask for?  Because the Journal distributes and licenses your article widely in both print and electronic formats please ask for nonexclusive, worldwide rights in all formats and media, for one-time use from the copyright holder of the photo, figure etc. that you wish to re-use.

What is “fair use”? Fair use is an exception to the copyright law which allows you to quote or paraphrase brief excerpts from a work in copyright. There is no fixed rule but the use of short excerpts for purposes of evidence, criticism, review, or evaluation is generally recognized as fair use.  You do not need permission to make fair use of an excerpt, but you must reference the original work.

Obtain consent from the subjects of your photographs

As a matter of good practice, photographers or videographers should receive written consent from the subjects of any photographs or digital images. Consent should be obtained for images of individual and identifiable patients. Consent would not be required for fundus photos, intra-operative pictures, or close-up photos of the anterior segment, as these would not identify the patient. However, ideally consent should be obtained for all published images.

General images of groups participating in community activities do not require written consent from the individuals, but it is considered good practice to first explain the purpose of taking photographs or video in the community and how images will be used. Those not wishing to be photographed or filmed would then have the option of removing themselves from the frame.

For images of individual patients in which their identity cannot be concealed, you must obtain the patient's written permission. If an image is of a child, written permission must be obtained both from the child (if old enough) and from a parent or guardian. Unless absolutely necessary, images of a person who is not mentally competent to give consent should not be used. If essential, a close family member or someone else close to the patient should be asked for their view. They cannot give legal consent. Where a patient has died, permission should be obtained from next of kin.

Without written permission, clinical images showing patients should be masked, cropped or electronically distorted to render the patients unidentifiable. Black bands across the eyes are ineffective in disguising a patient’s identity.

Authors, photographers and videographers may wish to use our consent form. If a patient is not literate, or speaks a different language, the consent form should be read out and carefully explained to the patient before they indicate their consent by providing a thumb print.

For more information on copyright and permissions for authors, please contact Sally.Parsley@Lshtm.ac.uk.

Acknowledgement. These guidelines have been adapted from the University of California Press's Book Copyright Guidelines.