Using the Vancouver Style in the College Setting

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Using the Vancouver Style in the College
Setting
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Two audiences/settings of use for the Vancouver
Style

• Manuscripts for publication (primarily)
• Papers written by college students in
  health-care fields
• Final Authority for rules (may vary)
• Journal targeted for publication OR your
  instructor

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What are the rules, and where can I find them?

• Rules about the appearance of a paper
• In-text citation rules and rules for entries on
  the References list
• Final Authority is targeted journal or
  instructor, but an NLM publication (1991) and two
  articles in JAMA (1997277 and 1997278) form a
  close second-place authority Recommended
  Formats, Uniform Requirements and Instructions
  for Authors, all now available on the Internet
• Most of the important rules appear on just a few
  pages

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Vancouver Style rules Two different sets
of issues

• 1. Form Content
• Overall appearance,
• Formal English skills,
• Reporting data in tables
• 2. Citing References
• in body of text, and at end of paper
• Targeted journal OR Your instructor is
• final authority

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Key Differences Vancouver v. APA

• In-text numbering system, not parenthetical
  author, year, and page/paragraph number
• Reference list numbered, not alphabetized
• No periods after initials, no ampersand in author
  section of Reference items
• Date appears after title, not after author
• No italicization, few parentheses in Reference
  list
• Journal titles abbreviated, not spelled out
• No spaces between year, volume, number, page
  numbers
• Available from intro to URL of Internet
  sources v. Retrieved MONTH DAY, from URL
  (APA)

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Key Differences Vancouver v. AMA

• Spelled out editor, editors v. ed. or
  eds.
• No italicization (Vancouver) v. Italics for
  titles of book-length works and journal titles
  (AMA)
• No period after title of journal (Vancouver) v.
• Period after title of journal (AMA)
• Vancouver Abbreviated p. to introduce page
  numbers
• Available from intro to URL of Internet sources
  (and no date of retrieval required) v. Available
  at before URL and final Accessed DATE
  (AMA)

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Rules about Appearance of Paper

• Double space all text, including title page
• Published sources do not dictate margin size
  generousUse plenty of room on the top, bottom,
  left right (1 minimum)
• Number all pages (even title page) in top,
  right-hand corner using numeral only page
  header determined by journal or instructor
• Ten possible items on title page (see Uniform
  Requirements (IV.A.2.) but also follow journal
  guidelines or instructors rules

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Vancouver Appearance of Numbers

• Published sources do not dictate appearance of
  numbers, but in practice most journals opt for
  the AMA pronouncement Use numerals for almost
  all numbers My 3 cats, which are 3, 4, and 7
  years old, have caught 23 mice in the past 3
  months.
• Exceptions Ordinals first thru ninth numbers,
  like one, used in idiomatic expressions
  fractions numbers that begin a sentence, title,
  subtitle, or heading numbers spelled out in
  quotations

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Vancouver style on Abbreviations

• RULE Use only standard abbreviations Uniform
  Requirements (IV.A.14. )
• Official pronouncements are sketchy, but in
  practice journals follow AMA system of scientific
  nomenclature, specific prescriptions for
  organizations, months, states in US, units of
  measure, clinical/ medical terms, titles of
  medical journals (called Index Medicus) (Chapter
  11, AMA Manual)
• Vancouver follows AMA tendency to drop
  punctuation Rev Corp Dr J Lab
  Clin Med
• FDA MD Inc
  6 lb 4 oz

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General Rules for references

• Quotations, Paraphrases, and Summaries of Source
  Material should be
• ACCURATE
• SMOOTH TO READ
• SAME AS REFERENCE LIST CHECK!
• (one exception personal communication)

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Citing References in the Body of the Paper

• Official pronouncements are silent about the form
  of in-text citations, but in practice journals
  use a numbering system, either parenthetical or
  superscript
• Some journals place number in parentheses after
  quotation or paraphrase in the order in which
  references first appear in paper Example (6).
  Most journals follow AMA manuals dictate for a
  superscript system in the body of the text25 ?
• More than one number or superscript permitted
  (3, 5) OR2, 25, 28
• Page numbers okay in superscript28(pp2-13) ?use
  p OR pp
• Maximum of 23 characters in superscript
• (If more, use footnote in italic letters)
• ___________________________
• References 3, 4, 7, 9, 11, 13, 21, 24-29, 31.

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The Reference List General Rules

• Begin with the title, flush with left margin
  References
• Includes all sources cited in the body of a paper
  (but no added ones!)
• Numbers (plus period) follow the order of the
  first citation of each source in the body of your
  text
• No special indentation rules all lines are
  double-spaced, flush with L margin

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Vancouver Style Essential Info/Order of Sources

• Author(s) (if known)
• Title(s)
• Publication Information Date
• General Rule No italicsever. (Careful some
  journals/instructors follow some or all of the
  AMA rules on italics!!!)

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Vancouver Style Author Format (see
Recommended Formats for official rules)

• Last name(s) first and middle initials, but no
  punctuation, no ampersand (), no titles like
  MD period at the end e.g. Jones PT, Smith I.
• Complications
• More than six authors add ,et al. after
  name of sixth author (or after the name of the
  third authorsome journals/instructors follow AMA
  style on this rule
• Institution or Association? Spell it out.
• Use , editor. or , editors. after
  name(s) of editor(s)

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Vancouver Style Title Format

• Capitalize initial letter of only proper nouns
  (Smith, Omaha) and the first word in the title
  (but not first word of sub-title)
• Articles in journals or in edited books
• Entry requires two titles
• In book the books title preceded by In
• Editor name(s) , editor. or ,
  editors.
• In journal standard abbreviation (see Index
  Medicus) for the journal title appears right
  after article title, followed by publication info

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Vancouver Publication Info Journals

• General rule YEAR VOL PAGE numbers
• semicolon after YEAR, Colon after VOL,
  period at the end (Caution journals/instructors
  may require different punctuation patterns!)
• Add number number in parentheses after VOL only
  if each issue begins on page 1

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Vancouver Publication Info for books

• Required City, Abbreviated State, and Publisher
• If multiple cities, name of first city listed
  only
• Place COMMA between city state
• Separate state publisher with colon ( )
• place semicolon after name of publisher.
• Add year published PERIOD.
• e.g. Boston, MassEbony2001.
• Add page numbers to report only one article in a
  book (These rules for punctuation vary widely)
• e.g., Boston, MassEbony2001. p.
  345-378.

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Vancouver Publication Info, Internet sources

• Indicate type of source in square brackets after
  title (But this practice varies widely according
  to journal/instructor)
• e.g., monograph on the Internet or serial
  online
• Internet sources require a final sentence
  beginning Available from
• Ex Available from http//nursingworld.org/membe
  r2.htm
• Place period only after an ending slash (/)
• Rules to cite Internet sources vary widely in
  practice get to know expectations of journal or
  instructor

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Editing Checksheet for References List

• Each entry complete?
• Author/Title(s)/Date/Pub. Info
• Each element in order?
• Each entry using right form?
• Patterns of Capitalizing/
• (non-)Italicizing/ Standard
  Abbreviating/Indenting/ Punctuating
• List matches in-text citations (numbers or
  superscripts)?

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How to Master Vancouver Style

• Read journals that use Vancouver Style, and be
  conscious of writers choices
• Practice using Vancouver Style for many
  different kinds of sources, papers
• Ask your instructor questions (Dr. Marlin Schaich
  at Methodist College is also available for
  questions 354-7062)
• Follow NMC Crib Sheet for leading journal in
  your field