What are good publication practice (GPP) guidelines?
Transparency and accountability have become high priorities for the publication of company-sponsored research. Ethical publication planning should therefore ensure that the design and results of clinical trials and other biomedical research studies are reported accurately and promptly and transparently. GPP guidelines provide recommendations regarding the publication of research studies that are sponsored by pharmaceutical, biotechnological, and diagnostic companies.
Which organization published the GPP guidelines and when?
In 1992, the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) developed standards for pharmacy services under the heading “Good Pharmacy Practice in Community and Hospital Pharmacy Settings.”
The original GPP guidelines were published in 2003 and updated in 2009 as GPP2 and 2015 as GPP3. GPP 2022, a key guidance document for the publication of company-sponsored biomedical research, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine on August 30, 2022, is the most recent update of the GPP guidelines. However, the GPP 2022 document does not include a version number. Further, GPP 2022 recommends that future GPP updates must include the year of the update rather than the version number in order to align with good clinical practices.
What are the salient features of GPP 2022?
In the GPP 2022 update, the Steering Committee focuses on several new areas, including alliances, and the role of patients in publications, policies, and procedures. Advice is also offered on the use of social media, documentation, and enhanced content, including plain language summaries (PLSs). Another important feature of this update is inclusivity in terms of demographic characteristics and geography as well as job roles.
In the latest update, GPP is significantly reorganized to offer guidance and process steps for:
- steering committees,
- publication planning,
- publication working groups,
- authorship and contributorship determination, and
- the publication process.
This reorganization is intended to provide ready-to-go advice for teams and to offer an overview of the basic best practices for planning and developing biomedical publications.
In the infographic presented below, GPP3 contents are mapped to GPP 2022.
Scope:
These GPP guidelines apply to publications (defined as peer-reviewed or peer-oriented biomedical publications such as manuscripts, conference meeting presentations, posters, and abstracts, including enhanced content, preprints, and PLSs of or about such publications) of biomedical research (including but not limited to clinical research, translational and biomarker studies, nonclinical research, health economics, real-world evidence, and outcomes research) conducted by or in collaboration with companies or company sponsors.
Continued effort is required to ensure that these guidelines are widely applied. IWANA has an efficient team that meticulously adheres to the GPP guidelines and helps authors publish their biomedical research in congresses and journals in a timely manner. IWANA is thus committed to following good publication practices in an attempt to increase the quality of healthcare, support education, and promote public health.