Journal profile · Social Sciences-Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
SSM Qualitative Research in Health
ISSN 2667-3215 · Elsevier · United Kingdom
SSM Qualitative Research in Health: CAS Zone 3 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.5 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 2,200; review about 139 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); 175 articles in 2025; indexed in Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
SSM Qualitative Research in Health is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 3 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Migration, Health and Trauma, Global Maternal and Child Health and Mental Health and Patient Involvement, together about 19.6% of its articles. Its main subfields are General Health Professions. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
SSM - Qualitative Research in Health is a peer-reviewed, open access journal that publishes international and interdisciplinary qualitative research, methodological, and theoretical contributions related to medical care, illness, disease, health, and wellbeing from across the globe.SSM - Qualitative Research in Health is edited by Stefan Timmermans, former Senior Editor at Social Science & Medicine . SSM - Qualitative Research in Health publishes applied qualitative research based on robust methodology. The journal aims to support researchers who work in disciplines where qualitative research is under represented and who produce research that has the potential to speak to a broad interdisciplinary audience of social scientists, health providers, public health scholars, practitioners, and health policy decision makers. We welcome research from a variety of qualitative methodological traditions including but not limited to conversation and discourse analysis, ethnography, focus groups, and interviews.SSM - Qualitative Research in Health also offers the opportunity to publish special issues or sections to reflect current interest and research in topical or developing areas. The journal fully supports authors wanting to present their research in an innovative fashion though the use of multimedia formats.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Social Sciences-Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
Editor-in-chief Stefan TimmermansPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 9, United Kingdom 5, Australia 3, Taiwan, China 2, Canada 1 (25 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Migration, Health and TraumaPsychology7.4%
- Global Maternal and Child HealthMedicine6.4%
- Mental Health and Patient InvolvementHealth Professions5.9%
- Homelessness and Social IssuesHealth Professions5.7%
- Reproductive Health and ContraceptionMedicine5.2%
- Vaccine Coverage and HesitancySocial Sciences4.9%
- Employment and Welfare StudiesHealth Professions4.5%
- LGBTQ Health, Identity, and PolicyPsychology4.4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Public, Environmental & Occupational Health | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Social Sciences, Biomedical | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Public, Environmental & Occupational Health | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Social Sciences, Biomedical | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 2.5Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.7LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 4.7Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.03LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.11LetPub ·
- h-index
- 30OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 184OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.15OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 4%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 0%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 158LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 873 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 178 | 178 | 58 |
| 2025 | 175 | 175 | 302 |
| 2024 | 133 | 133 | 686 |
| 2023 | 171 | 171 | 1,504 |
| 2022 | 182 | 182 | 2,680 |
| 2021 | 34 | 34 | 477 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
Too few articlesOnly 3 articles from the last 24 months carry both submission and acceptance dates, too few for a median
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Figures by source
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 21 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 6 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 60 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 139 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 1 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 22 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | USD 2,200 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 1,720 / EUR 1,610 / GBP 1,380 / JPY 213,330 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 1,450 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 2,710 | — | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare5 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 8,000 words
- Reference style
- APA
- Highlights
- Optional
Article types accepted3, with length limits
- full length articlesFull Length Articles which can be a maximum of 8000 words excluding abstract, tables, figures, references and appendices as well as the main text.Length not stated
- short communicationThe journal publishes the following types of contribution: Full Length Articles which can be a maximum of 8000 words excluding abstract, tables, figures, refere…main text ≤ 3,000 words
- short communicationsShort Communications which can be a maximum of 3000 words.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability
Data statement encouraged Model summary
To foster transparency, you are encouraged to state the availability of any data at submission.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Double anonymized peer review Model summary
This journal follows a double anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharing allowed Model summary
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- United Kingdom
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2667-3215
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about SSM Qualitative Research in Health
What CAS zone is SSM Qualitative Research in Health in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, SSM Qualitative Research in Health is in Zone 3 of Medicine, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Public, Environmental & Occupational Health / Social Sciences, Biomedical. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of SSM Qualitative Research in Health?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 2.5; this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 4.7, h-index 30.
How long does peer review take at SSM Qualitative Research in Health?
The publisher reports about 139 days (submission to acceptance); authors report an average review time of about 21 weeks. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of SSM Qualitative Research in Health?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Manuscript length: ≤ 8,000 words; Reference style: APA; Highlights: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of SSM Qualitative Research in Health based?
Of the 25 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (9), United Kingdom (5) and Australia (3). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index SSM Qualitative Research in Health?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, SSM Qualitative Research in Health is indexed in Scopus and DOAJ.
Is SSM Qualitative Research in Health open access, and what is the APC?
SSM Qualitative Research in Health is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 2,200.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-26). Last updated: .