Journal of Rawalpindi Medical College (JRMC)

Official Publication of Rawalpindi Medical University
Current Issue

Abstracting & Indexing

JRMC Scientometrics

h-Index
Number of Articles

Editorials: 54 Original Articles: 1203 Case Reports: 37 Review Articles: 11 Letter to the Editor: 11 Total: 1324

The Journal of Rawalpindi Medical College openly invites submissions for consideration and peer review.
The editor is assisted by members of the editorial board along with expert referees in the evaluation of submissions, and accepted papers are scheduled for publication at the discretion of the editorial office. Please refer to our Instructions for authors:
  • Examples of the type of material we publish
  • Guidance on formatting your paper before you submit work.
If you have any queries, please email the editorial office.

Our Journey

The Journal of Rawalpindi Medical College (JRMC) has been a cornerstone of medical research and education since its inception in 1997.

  • Founded by visionary medical educators—Prof. Khalid Randhawa, Prof. Mussadiq Khan, Prof Khalid Hassan, and Prof Masood Qureshi—the journal was established to provide a platform for high-quality medical research and scholarly discourse. In its early years, under the editorship of Prof Khalid Hassan, Prof Imtiaz Ali, and Prof Arif Malik, JRMC was published biannually and achieved recognition by the Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC) in 2002.
  • The journal continued to evolve, and in 2014, through the dedicated efforts of Prof. Irfan and Dr Nadeem Ikram, it transitioned to a quarterly publication format and later secured recognition from the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan. 
  • Today, under the leadership of Dr M. Khurram and Dr Arsalan Manzoor Mughal, and with the vision of Vice Chancellor Prof M. Umar, JRMC remains committed to maintaining the highest ethical and academic standards in medical publishing. As an open-access, double-blind peer-reviewed journal, JRMC strictly follows the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE).      

     Our mission is to foster excellence in health sciences by providing a trusted platform for physicians, researchers, and healthcare professionals to share knowledge that advances medical education, improves research standards, and contributes to better health outcomes worldwide. Over the years, JRMC has gained recognition from esteemed indexing bodies, including the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Crossref, Index Medicus for the Eastern Mediterranean Region (IMEMR), Portico, JISC, PMDC, and HEC (Category Y). Our journal continues to expand its reach and impact, publishing original research, review articles, and case reports in the fields of Medicine, Dentistry, and Allied Health Sciences. As the official publication of Rawalpindi Medical University (RMU), JRMC remains steadfast in its commitment to academic integrity, research excellence, and the dissemination of medical knowledge. Our archives are available both online at journalrmc.com and in print at the JRMC Office, Rawalpindi Medical University, Tipu Road, Rawalpindi. To publish your research in our journal please read the author guidelines.

Editorial Board

Editor in Chief
Executive Editor
Managing Editors
Dr. Farrah Pervaiz
Assistant Editor
Associate Professor of Community Medicine & Additional Director R&D
Rawalpindi Medical University
Editorial Board Members
Section Editors
Managers
IT Support
Miss Afza Kazmi
Manager IT
Rawalpindi Medical University
Mr. Muhammad Shahzad Shameer
Software Engineer
Rawalpindi Medical University
Bibliographer
Mr. Amir Shahzad
Librarian
Rawalpindi Medical University
Mr. Muhammad Amir
Data Analyst
Rawalpindi Medical University

International Editorial Board

North America

Europe

Asia

Africa

Australia

National Editorial Board

Islamabad Capital Territory

Punjab

Sindh

Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa

Balochistan

JRMC's Collaborations

Reference from VC Impact Presentation

JRMC's Reviewers 2013-2024

We would like to thank everyone who has helped us by peer reviewing articles submitted to JRMC. Following is the list of our international and national reviewers.

International Reviewers

National Reviewers

Publications

JRMC Most Read Articles

The Implication of Positive Reinforcement Strategy in dealing with Disruptive Behaviour in the Classroom: A Scoping Review

Aisha Rafi , Ambreen Ansar , Muneeza Amir Sami
Vol. 24 No. 2 (2020)
Total Reads: 137

Association of ABO Blood group phenotypes with FEV1/FVC values among students of Aziz Fatima Medical and Dental College

Hira Zahid, Anam Rehman, Saima Zareen, Sana Rasheed, Shireen Jawed, Benash Altaf
Vol. 28 No. 2 (2024)
Total Reads: 74

Assessment Of Awareness Level and Perception In Usage Of Plastic Bags And Its Hazards Among Secondary School Students

Mohi Ud Din, Zain Arif, Hafiz Usama Naveed, Maryam Tauseef, Nouman Yaseen, Talha Mahboob
Vol. 28 No. 1 (2024)
Total Reads: 64

JRMC Most Cited Articles

The Implication of Positive Reinforcement Strategy in dealing with Disruptive Behaviour in the Classroom: A Scoping Review

Aisha Rafi , Ambreen Ansar , Muneeza Amir Sami
Vol. 24 No. 2 (2020)
Total Citations: 55

Second Wave of COVID-19 Pandemic: Its deleterious and mortal repercussion in Pakistan

Rizwana Shahid, Shazia Zeb
Vol. 24 No. 4 (2020)
Total Citations: 17

Compliance on the Use of Different Types of Face Mask by Healthcare Workers and General Public in Tertiary Care Hospital of RMU during COVID-19 Pandemic

Saba Sarfraz, Muhammad Raheel Raza, Khizar Aziz, Muhammad Umar, Khola Noreen, Malik Shehryar
Vol. 24 No. Supp-1 (2020)
Total Citations: 13

RMU Data bank

RMU Model of Data Bank is a centralized platform for healthcare professionals and researchers working on the three most prevalent diseases in Allied Hospitals: Dengue Fever, Diabetes Mellitus, and Hepatitis. It provides access to valuable data, guidelines, and best practices for preventing, diagnosing, and treating  these diseases. This data bank aims to address theincreasing burden of these diseases by collecting and curating accurate and up-to-date data, developing evidence-based Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), facilitating research and knowledge sharing, and promoting preventive strategies.

Hepatitis-C Data Holy Family Hospital 2006-2019
Dengue Data RMU Alied Hospitals 2013-2024

Finalized by The VC

Digital Research Resources

Digital Services

Digital Classroom

Digital Library

Plagiarism Check

Hec Digital Library

HEC National Digital Library (DL) is a programme to provide researchers within public and private universities in Pakistan and non-profit research and development organizations with access to international scholarly literature based on electronic (online) delivery, providing access to high quality, peer-reviewed journals, databases, articles and e-Books across a wide range of disciplines. The e-books support programme will allow researchers to access most of the important text and reference books electronically in a variety of subject areas. Around 75,000 number of electronic content has been made available through the Digital Library Programme.

Total Journals

23,0000

Total Online Books

1,78,000

Total Research Thesis

10,00,000

UpToDate Library

Enrolled Institutes

36500

Clinicians

2 million

Topics

12000

The UpToDate library is a widely trusted, evidence-based clinical decision support system (CDSS) used by healthcare professionals worldwide. Developed by Wolters Kluwer, UpToDate provides clinicians with the latest medical information to support diagnosis, treatment, and care decisions. It offers in-depth articles, drug information, clinical calculators, patient education materials, and practice guidelines, all written and peer-reviewed by over 7,300 physician authors, editors, and peer reviewers.

UpToDate is known for its commitment to continuously updating content to reflect new medical research and clinical best practices, ensuring users always have access to the most current and relevant information at the point of care.

Library Resource Usage Trends 2006-2021

JRMC

Special Reports

RMU & Covid-19

21 January 2024 | Report

Overview

The reports on COVID-19 present the comparison of all four surges of COVID-19 in Rawalpindi Region. Understanding the trajectory of COVID-19 case counts assisted the government and its hospitals in responding to the impact of the pandemic. The primary focus of this report is on the statistics of patients  in the first to fourth surges of COVID-19.

This report was published by Rawalpindi Medical University & the data it received from its allied hospitals on COVID-19. Primarily the Department of Infectious Diseases in Holy Family Hospital liaised with the University in sharing its data.

RMU TEAM

Department of Infectious Diseases, RMU

EDITORS

Dr. Mujeeb Khan

COPYRIGHTS

Dengue Report 2019​

21 January 2024 | Report

Overview

Dengue is now endemic to Pakistan, with its usual peak incidence in the post-monsoon period. Rawalpindi division is among the regions in Punjab which has had to face 7 consecutive epidemics from 2013-2019. The Dengue epidemic of 2019 was by far the worst year of the epidemic. Towards the middle of August, there was a sudden surge in patients presenting with symptoms of Dengue Fever. Testing confirmed Dengue Fever, which was unprecedented as the epidemic season was usually expected to start in early September.

The Department of Infectious Diseases (DID), present in the Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi deals with many endemic Infectious Diseases from all over Pakistan, including the Dengue epidemics, Influenza outbreaks, Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever outbreaks, Tuberculosis and Leptospirosis patients, etc. They compiled their data and published a report on the Dengue outbreak in 2019 and subsequently proposed a recommendation to tackle dengue in the coming years.

 

RMU TEAM

Department of Infectious Diseases, RMU

EDITORS

Dr. Mujeeb Khan

COPYRIGHTS

Dengue Report 2022

21 January 2024 | Report

Overview

Dengue is now endemic to Pakistan, with its usual peak incidence in the post-monsoon period. Rawalpindi division is among the regions in Punjab which has had to face 7 consecutive epidemics from 2013-2019. The Dengue epidemic of 2019 was by far the worst year of the epidemic. Towards the middle of August, there was a sudden surge in patients presenting with symptoms of Dengue Fever. Testing confirmed Dengue Fever, which was unprecedented as the epidemic season was usually expected to start in early September.

The Department of Infectious Diseases (DID), present in the Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi deals with many endemic Infectious Diseases from all over Pakistan, including the Dengue epidemics, Influenza outbreaks, Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever outbreaks, Tuberculosis and Leptospirosis patients, etc. They compiled their data and published a report on the Dengue outbreak in 2019 and subsequently proposed a recommendation to tackle dengue in the coming years.

 

RMU TEAM

Department of Infectious Diseases, RMU

EDITORS

Dr. Mujeeb Khan

COPYRIGHTS

Hepatitis Free Rawalpindi

21 January 2024 | Report

Overview

The Community Program of RMU for Screening and Treatment of Hepatitis C Cases in Rawalpindi aims to eradicate Hepatitis C from the Rawalpindi division and make Rawalpindi the 1st hepatitis-free city in Pakistan. They plan on doing this Awareness and Prevention in community and health professionals. This booklet provides the guidelines as to how Rawalpindi Medical University and its allied hospitals envision achieving this.

RMU TEAM

Department of Gastroenterology, HFH

EDITORS

Prof. Bushra Khaaar

COPYRIGHTS

Breast Cancer Awareness Program

21 January 2024 | Report

Overview

The Community Program of RMU for Screening and Treatment of Hepatitis C Cases in Rawalpindi aims to eradicate Hepatitis C from the Rawalpindi division and make Rawalpindi the 1st hepatitis-free city in Pakistan. They plan on doing this Awareness and Prevention in community and health professionals. This booklet provides the guidelines as to how Rawalpindi Medical University and its allied hospitals envision achieving this.

RMU TEAM

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EDITORS

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COPYRIGHTS

RMU Flood Relief Action Program

21 January 2024 | Report

Overview

As a result of continuing monsoon rains and floods, 81 of the 116 worst-affected districts have been designated disaster-stricken. Sindh, Balochistan, and South Punjab have been notably afflicted, although Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) and Gilgit Baltistan have also been severely impacted. According to the NDMA, this has significant consequences for human lives, property, infrastructure, livelihood, and livestock, impacting 33 million people

RMU TEAM

Department of Medicine and Allied, RMU

EDITORS

Prof. Dr. Muhammad Umar

COPYRIGHTS

JRMC

Clinical Practice Guidelines
Distinguished Authors
Diagnosis, Management and Prevention of Hepatitis C
2017 Update

World Gastroenterology Orgranization

Dr. Muhammad Umar, Editor in Chief of Journal of Rawalpindi Medical College, has been appointed as the first Pakistani Chairman of the World Gastroenterology Organisation (WGO) Committee for Treatment Guidelines for Hepatitis C. This nomination was made during the WGO meeting in Chicago, USA, in May 2011, Guidelines were developed over a year for adoption by member countries. He also serves as the Governor of the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) for Pakistan and has authored Pakistan’s first book on Hepatitis C, along with five other books. Dr. Umar has held leadership roles in the Pakistan Society of Gastroenterology and GI Endoscopy and the Pakistan Society of Hepatology and authored the National Practice Guidelines for Hepatitis C in Pakistan.

Dr. Muhammad Umar
JRMC Patron-in-Chief
Dr. H-T-Bushra Khaar
JRMC Editor

Finalized by The VC

International Guidelines

National Guidelines

An Update on National Consensus Practice Guidelines for the Treatment of Hepatitis C & Literature Review in Epidemiology of Hepatitis C in Pakistan - 2022
Current Issue
Vol. 1 No. 1 | April 2025

Over the last 5 years there was some consistency in the treatment options and their availability of the new DAAs in Pakistan however quite a good data and research done locally and available online. Hence it was anticipated to review the available local data and update the previous version of the guidelines. The working
group on National Consensus Practice Guidelines(NCPG) of Centre for Liver and Digestive diseases under the mentorship of Prof. Dr. Muhammad Umar and Prof. Dr. Hamama-tul-Bushra Khaar reviewed the five-year data from 2017-2021. The team also kept into consideration the international evidence and western guidelines, including the updated AASLD and EASL guidelines for management of Hepatitis C and tailored the local guidelines with consensus from leading physicians and Hepatologists from different areas of Pakistan.

RMU Salmonella Infection Treatment Guidelines​
Current Issue
Vol. 1 No. 1 | April 2025

Institutional Antimicrobial Usage Protocols is one of the most exciting initiative that Rawalpindi Medical University has taken. The threat brought on by antimicrobial resistance is a key factor driving this project. Salmonella treatment guidelines are produced through series of discussions held between Antimicrobial Usage Policy Committee including members of various disciplines. It involved a structured and intensive discussion process to ensure that content was carefully reviewed and coordinated for consistency.

Antibiotic Treatment Guidelines for Intensive Care Units of RMU & Allied Hospitals​
Current Issue
Vol. 1 No. 1 | April 2025

These are evidence-based recommendations for empirical antimicrobial usage in intensive care units of Rawalpindi Medical University and Allied Hospitals. Evidence is based on the available data of 2019 of antimicrobial resistance patterns seen in intensive care units.

Treatment should be reviewed clinically at 48-72 hours with the results of clinical findings, imaging results, microbiological cultures and other laboratory findings. Antimicrobials can then be stopped, switched to oral therapy, changed to a narrow spectrum agent or continued with further review.

Visual Clinic

Case Records of the Patients Presented to Liver Center, Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi

Health Education Public Engagement & Community

Pakistan is grappling with a dual public health challenge—the double burden of disease, where communicable diseases (CDs) such as hepatitis, tuberculosis, and dengue, and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like diabetes, hypertension, and cancer continue to threaten lives. Addressing these complex health issues requires a proactive approach grounded in education, prevention, and community engagement. At the forefront of this effort, the Journal of Rawalpindi Medical University (JRMC) proudly showcases the transformative role of students and faculty in leading health education and awareness campaigns. These initiatives aim to bridge knowledge gaps, implement preventive strategies, and empower communities with sustainable, evidence-based health solutions. Pakistan has been confronting several health challenges due to recent disease outbreaks:
Influenza (H1N1)

Hospitals in Karachi are currently overwhelmed by a surge in influenza cases, particularly the H1N1 strain. This season’s outbreak appears more intense than in previous years, leading to increased hospital admissions.

Polio

The country has reported a resurgence of polio cases, with the National Institute of Health confirming new instances of Wild Poliovirus Type 1 (WPV1) in Sindh’s Badin district. This brings the nationwide tally to 50 cases this year, underscoring the ongoing challenges in eradicating the disease.

Drug-Resistant Typhoid

There is a concerning spread of extensively drug-resistant (XDR) typhoid in Pakistan, particularly affecting children. This strain emerged in 2016 and shows resistance to nearly all antibiotics, complicating treatment efforts. The situation is exacerbated by limited access to clean water and sanitation facilities

Hepatitis Community Awareness

These outbreaks highlight the critical need for robust public health measures, including vaccination campaigns, improved sanitation, and effective disease surveillance, to mitigate the impact of these health challenges.

Hepatitis C Free Rawalpindi City Initiative

Conducting early disease detection for hepatitis, tuberculosis, and parasitic infections

Food & Waterborne Disease Prevention Campaigns

Educating families about safe drinking water, hygiene practices, and diarrheal disease management

Fighting the Rising Wave of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs)

 

With the alarming rise of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer, RMU has integrated lifestyle medicine principles into its health awareness programs. Key interventions include:

  1. Lifestyle Medicine Awareness Programs – Promoting healthy eating, physical activity, mental well-being, and smoking cessation.
  2. Obesity & Diabetes Prevention Workshops – Engaging schools and workplaces in healthy lifestyle education to curb metabolic disorders.
  3. Tobacco Cessation & Lung Health Advocacy – Conducting anti-smoking campaigns and promoting smoke-free environments.
  4. Mental Health & Stress Management – Integrating mindfulness practices and raising awareness on stress-related illnesses.

Research Ongoing Projects

Research Conferences

Research Projects on Artificial Intelligence

JRMC

Sustainable Development Goals​ (SDG)

SGD 03 - Good Health and Wealthnes

Rawalpindi Medical University’s campaign and sessions are focused on good health & wellness. These initiatives aim to enhance students’ understanding of the adverse health effects of smoking. The university actively promotes and enforces a smoke-free policy, encouraging students to adhere to it. Smoking Cessation Support campaign assists smokers in quitting using personalized methods that best suit their needs.

SGD 04 - Quality Education

Enhance the knowledge and awareness of a health issue, problem, or potential solution within the target audience.Shape perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes to potentially modify social norms related to the health concern. Prompt proactive action among individuals and communities in addressing the health issue.Demonstrate or illustrate practical, healthy skills that empower individuals to make informed choices.

SGD 05 - Gender Equality

Rawalpindi Medical University, with a total enrollment of 3,755 students, is committed to promoting gender equality in its educational programs. In accordance with the data, here’s a detailed breakdown of the university’s student population, particularly focusing on gender equality. Among these students, 733 women have embarked on their educational journeys this academic year

SGD 13 - Climate Actions

The Clean and Green Initiative of Rawalpindi Medical University is showing its excellence not only just in the field of education but also in horticulture, facilitating environmental improvement. In the wake of the National Plantation Campaign initiated by the government of Pakistan, RMU established a Green Task Force to ensure lush green outfields and plant hundreds of trees.

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Meeting with Medical Editors of Twin Cities
JRMC Website Review and Strategy Meetings
Research Methodology Workshop
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