
Increasing awareness, quality, and discoverability.
Plain Language Summaries (PLS) communicate the significance of scientific research in jargon-free and clear language. They can describe clinical trials and other original research, review articles, case reports, and congress abstracts, among other scientific publications.
PLS have enabled readers, from patients, caregivers, and policy makers, to decision-makers and non-specialist healthcare professionals, to capture the content quickly and bookmark the paper for reading which has increased views, access to the article, and its associated metrics.
By helping the public to understand biomedical research, researchers like yourself can contribute to raising awareness of its value and attracting further public support, engagement, and involvement.
Expand your professional network and enhance your reputation with PLS today.
We Invite You To Read A Selection Of Our Published PLS Articles
To view Taylor & Francis’ full list of published Plain Language Summaries please click here.
Ready To Submit Your Own PLS?
Begin your journey of your article being accompanied by a PLS.
The PLS should be 250 words or less, written in plain English, and placed after the Abstract and before the Introduction, with its own heading (“Plain Language Summary”). For all technical specifications, read our PLS Guidelines for Authors.
For further information on how to write about biomedical and health research in plain English, please read the INVOLVE Plain English Summaries resource from the National Institute for Health Research.
Once your PLS is complete (or during the writing process), ask someone who doesn’t have any knowledge of the subject to read the PLS and provide feedback. They should find it interesting and be able to understand the study, its conclusions, and the potential impact of the research.
Take a look at a plain language summary published in Postgraduate Medicine on the article page on Taylor & Francis Online, and indexed on PubMed.
Already Published Your Article?
It may not be too late to add a PLS. This option is available for one year following article date of publication and incurs a processing fee of $1200/€1000/£850. Where possible, the PLS will be peer reviewed by the manuscript’s original reviewers. After acceptance for publication, the PLS is available alongside the manuscript’s abstract on the article hosting page. We will also add it to the HTML version of the article as a minor correction, and the correction notice will state that a PLS has been added to the article. However, it won’t be added to the typeset article (PDF version) or indexed on PubMed.