From RGU Vancouver to Cite Them Right Vancouver

This section shows the main differences between RGU Vancouver and Cite them Right Vancouver, with examples for the most common resource types.

What's Different in Cite Them Right Vancouver?

The Cite Them Right Vancouver style is based on the official guidance available for Vancouver from the National Library of Medicine in the USA.

Some of the main overall changes from RGU Vancover to Cite Them Right Vancouver are:

  • No use of italics in most references
  • Changes to media type descriptions (e.g. [internet] rather than [monograph on the internet])
  • Change to pagination information for journal articles and books
  • No requirement to include both updated date and publication date in website references
  • No requirement for publishing information, except for book references.

Referencing Books

Book references in RGU Vancouver and Cite Them Right (CTR) Vancouver are very similar. Author rules such as the use of et al. when there are more than six authors will remain the same as in current RGU Vancouver guidance.

Main differences:

  • Book titles are not italicised
  • URLs are included if the book is accessed online
  • (brackets) are placed around the country or state abbreviation if the place of publication is not within the UK

Compare the styles

You can copy this URL to share a direct link to this referencing template:

RGU Vancouver (old)

Author's surname First Initial(s). Book title. Edition (if not first). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.




Example

Citation

A number is assigned to each citation within the text and placed in brackets. For example: A recommended techique for studying physical activity (3) shows that...


Direct Quotes

If the item is quoted from only once then the page number should be placed at the end of the reference. If the item is quoted from on multiple occasions then the page number should be placed within the citation e.g. (3, p. 2)

Endnote

Thomas JR, Martin PE, Etnier JL, Silverman SJ. Research methods in physical activity. 8th ed. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics; 2022.

CTR Vancouver (new)

Author's surname First initial(s). Book title [internet]*. Edition (if not first). Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication [cited date]*. Available from: DOI or URL*

*to be included if accessed online

Example

Citation

The same as current RGU Vancouver practice.


Direct Quotes

The page number where the quote is taken from should be placed within the citation e.g. The authors state that "......" (3, p. 2)

Endnote

Accessed in paper

Thomas JR, Martin PE, Etnier JL, Silverman SJ. Research methods in physical activity. 8th ed. Champaign (IL): Human Kinetics; 2022.

Accessed online

Thomas JR, Martin PE, Etnier JL, Silverman SJ. Research methods in physical activity [internet]. 8th ed. Champaign (IL): Human Kinetics; 2022 [cited 2023 Nov 04]. Available from: https://ezproxy.rgu.ac.uk/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=ccm&AN=166098134&
scope=site

Bibliography

If you have used an item for information but not directly referred to it in your assignment then it should be included in a separate Bibliography after the Endnote. The format of the Bibliography entry is exactly the same as the Endnote with the omission of the citation number. The Bibliography is arranged alphabetically by author surname.

Referencing Journal Articles

In the old RGU Vancouver, we referenced journal articles as print, unless they were published only online, regardless of how the articles were accessed. This was very confusing for students. CTR Vancouver is much better placed to handle journal articles accessed online.

Main differences:

  • Journal titles are no longer required to be in italics
  • DOIs or URLs are included if the article is accessed online
  • Missing elements such as volume or page numbers can be left out

Compare the styles

You can copy this URL to share a direct link to this referencing template:

RGU Vancouver (old)

Author's surname First initial(s). Article title. Journal title. Year of publication; Volume(Issue).






Example

Citation

A number is assigned to each citation within the text and placed in brackets. For example, "a study on gestational diabetes (1) states that...".

If the citation involves a direct quote then the page number should be added to the citation e.g. (1, p. 644)

Endnote

Ngwezi DP, Savu A, Yeung RO, Butalia S, Kaul P. Validity of alternative claims-based algorithms for Type 1, Type 2 and gestational diabetes in pregnancy. Canadian Journal of Diabetes. 2023; 47(8):643-648

CTR Vancouver (new)

Author's surname First initial(s). Article title. Journal title (using official abbreviation if available) [Internet]*. Date of publication as year month day (if available) [cited date]*; Volume(Issue): page numbers. Available from: DOI or URL*

*to be included if accessed online

Example

Citation

Same as current RGU Vancouver practice.

Endnote

Accessed in print

JNgwezi DP, Savu A, Yeung RO, Butalia S, Kaul P. Validity of alternative claims-based algorithms for Type 1, Type 2 and gestational diabetes in pregnancy. Can J. Diabetes. 2023; 47(8):643-648.

Accessed online (DOI)

Ngwezi DP, Savu A, Yeung RO, Butalia S, Kaul P. Validity of alternative claims-based algorithms for Type 1, Type 2 and gestational diabetes in pregnancy. Can J. Diabetes [Internet]. 2023 [cited 2024 Jan 31]; 47(8):643-648. Available from: 10.1016/j.jcjd.2023.07.003

Journal abbreviations

Vancouver referencing stipulates that the official abbreviation of journal titles must be used where available. Details will often be found on the journal article, the journal website, or on the database the article is sourced from. Titles can also be checked in the National Library of Medicine catalog. If there is no official abbreviation then the full journal title should be used.

Referencing Websites

While widely similar to RGU Vancouver, website references are easier to construct in the CTR style.

Main difference:
  • No publication information is required

Compare the styles

You can copy this URL to share a direct link to this referencing template:

RGU Vancouver (old)

Author's surname First initial(s). Page title. [internet]. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication [updated date; cited date]. Available from: URL

Example

Citation

A number is assigned to each citation within the text and placed in brackets. For example, "a study on covid vaccination rates (2) stated that...".

Reference List

NHS Inform. Covid status: common questions. [internet]. Edinburgh: NHS Inform; 2022 [updated 2023 Jan 08; cited 2023 Apr 05]. Available from: https://www.nhsinform.scot.nhs-scotland-covid-status/covid-status-common-questions/

CTR Vancouver (new)

Author's surname First Initial(s). Page title [internet]. Year of publication [cited date]; Available from: URL


Example

Citation

Same as RGU Vancouver.

Reference List

NHS Inform. Covid status: common questions [internet]. 2022 [cited 2023 Apr 05]; Available from: https://www.nhsinform.scot.nhs-scotland-covid-status/covid-status-common-questions/


Named author vs. organisation author - The example we have used shows an organisation as author (NHS Inform). If there was a named author then their name should be used rather than the organisation. The format of the author name would follow the same format as for books and journals.

More templates

Check the templates page for more CtR Vancouver updates for the most common media types. This page is a work in progress and will be continually updated during the summer. The full set of templates will be available by September 2024.

If you require a template that is not included on this page then please contact us for advice. Email the team at library.support@rgu.ac.uk