Good Referencing Guide for Medical

Education Students:
Using the APA referencing system

Centre for Medical Education

School of Medicine
University of Dundee

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Introduction
1. What is referencing?
It is an important process of acknowledging another persons ideas used in constructing
your essays or reports.

2. Why reference?
There are 6 main reasons why referencing is important (expanded from Queen
Margaret University, 2010):
a. To demonstrate that you are aware of the work of other individuals and are including
them
b. To acknowledge other peoples ideas
c. To support the points and arguments you want to make
d. To allow the reader the opportunity to locate and check the source if required
e. To distinguish between own opinion and views of others
f. To demonstrate an up to date review of the literature

3. When should you use citations and references?

When you summarise, paraphrase, or quote ideas from someone elses work that have
directly influenced your work (American Psychological Association, 2010). Failure to do
so can be considered plagiarism. Please see University guidance for more information
on plagiarism: http://www.dundee.ac.uk/academic/plagiarism.htm

4. The APA style of referencing

There are different styles of referencing. The Centre for Medical Education at the
University of Dundee requires the use of the APA referencing style (APA, 2010). This
system is made up of two components: the citation and the reference list.

Citations
1. Overview
This provides brief details of the author and date of publication for referencing the work
in the body of the text.

2. Examples
a. One work by one author. The surname of author and the year of publication are
placed within the relevant sentence in the text, in brackets:

Writing can be a creative and playful activity (Bolton, 2005).

b. Name of author appears naturally in the text. Include the year of publication in
brackets:

Bolton (2005) suggests that writing can be a creative and playful activity.

c. If you use a direct quote from the work. This should be enclosed in quotation
marks and the relevant page number should be given after the year within the
brackets:

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 Career development starts with an assessment of where you are and then
determining where you want to be (Turner, 2007, p. 34).

d. One work by two authors. The surname of each author should be included before
the date:

(Waugh & Grant, 2006)

Names of authors appear naturally in text:

Waugh and Grant (2006) propose

e. If there are three to five authors. The first time the work is cited, all authors should
be included in the citation:

(Smith, Dennis, & Howden, 2003)

All subsequent citations should only provide the surname of the first author
followed by the Latin phrase et al., which means and others

(Smith et al., 2003)

f. If there are six or more authors. The surname of the first author only should be
given, followed by et al.

(Dennis et al., 2003)

g. Groups that serve as authors (e.g. Government organisations). The full name of
the organisation is included in the first time the work is cited:

(General Medical Council, 2010)

Subsequent citations utilise the standard abbreviation for the organisation:

2nd Citation: (GMC, 2010)

h. Two or more works within the same parentheses. Order the citations
alphabetically and separate the citations with a semi-colon:

(Bolton, 2005; Smith, 2004a; Waugh & Grant, 2006)

i. Two or more works supporting the same idea written within the text.

Bolton (2005), Smith (2004a), and Waugh and Grant (2006) all discuss

j. If two or more works have the same author(s) and year of publication. They can
be distinguished by lower-case letters (a, b, c, etc), following the year and within
the brackets:

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 1st Citation: (Smith, 2004a)
2nd Citation: (Smith, 2004b)

k. If two or more works have the same author but different years of publication.
The authors surname is listed once, followed by the date of each subsequent work:

(Dennis, 2012, 2014)

Or in text:

As suggested by Dennis (2012, 2014)

l. Two works with authors with the same surname. The authors first initial is
included even if the date of publication is different.

(Smith, A., 2014; Smith, B., 2013)

Or in text:

Within their studies A. Smith (2014) and B. Smith (2013) both concluded

m. For works with no author. Anonymous should be used:

(Anonymous, 2006)

n. For works with no date. n.d. should be used:

(Dennis, n.d.)

Reference List
1. Overview
A reference list is a complete list of all the references cited in the text. It is important
that all citations are included in the reference list and that all items within the
reference list are cited within the body of the work (Tip: a good way to check this is
to print off your reference list and then go through your work, ticking each reference
off as you come to the citation).

The reference list should provide details to allow a reader to find the sources listed.
Therefore it is important that they are complete and accurate. In the APA style,
references are listed at the end of the text or essay.

2. Order of references
Each reference for an entire body of work (e.g. including appendices) is listed in
alphabetical order by author. If there are multiple papers with the same authors,
then they should be listed by year with the earliest work listed first. See the final
section of this guide for a sample reference list.

3. Reference types
a. Books
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 i. Titles and subtitles. Where a book has a sub-title, this is usually printed on the
front cover of the book in a smaller type face than the title. In the reference, the
title and sub-title are separated by a colon (see example by Greenspan and
Wieder below). They should also be italicised.

ii. Editions of books. When the edition of a book is mentioned on the title page,
state this after the title in the reference (see the examples below). However,
when a book is a first edition or no edition is noted, then omit the edition
number in your reference.

iii. Examples
Basic Format Surname of author(s), Initial(s). (Year of publication). Book title
(Edition.). Place of publication: Publisher.

One to seven Bolton, G. (2005). Reflective practice: Writing and professional

authors development (2nd ed.). London: Sage.

British Medical Association, & Royal Pharmaceutical Society of

Great Britain. (2007). British national formulary (54th ed.).
London: BMA and RPSGB.

Greenspan, S.I., & Wieder, S. (2006). Infant and early

childhood mental health: A comprehensive developmental
approach to assessment and intervention. Washington:
American Psychiatric Publishing.

More than Dennis, A., Howden, S., Schofield, S., Rees, C., McAleer, S., . . .
seven authors Ajjawi, R. (2014). Exploring Medical Education. Dundee:
University of Dundee Publications.
Chapter or Beaumont, K. (2004). Safety and risk. In: M. Mallick (Eds.),
article in an Nursing knowledge and practice: Foundations for decision
edited book making (2nd ed., pp. 25-44). Edinburgh: Baillire Tindall.

Iggulden, H. (2003). Communicating. In: K. Hollan (Eds.),

Applying the Roper-Logan-Tierney model in practice (pp. 89-
120). Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone.
Edited book Brooke, I. (Ed.). (2003). The Chambers dictionary (9th ed.)
with no named Edinburgh: Chambers.
authors of
chapter Heath, H.B.M. (Ed.). (1995). Potter and Perrys foundations in
nursing theory and practice. London: Mosby.
E-book Dennis, A., Howden, S., Schofield, S., Rees, C., McAleer, S.,
Ajjawi, R., et al. (2014). Exploring Medical Education.
Retrieved from http://dundee.edu/exploringmeded
Translation Dennis, A., Howden, S., Schofield, S., Rees, C., McAleer, S.,
Ajjawi, R., et al. (2014). Explorando Educacin Mdico
[Exploring Medical Education]. Dundee: University of Dundee
Publications.

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 b. Journal articles
i. In references for journal or newspaper articles, all the significant words in the
journal or newspaper title begin with capital letters. Titles are written out in full
and italicised, e.g. in a reference, the BJN would be written, British Journal of
Nursing.

ii. Examples
Basic Format Surname of author(s), Initial(s). (Year of publication of
article). Title of article. Title of Journal, Volume number
(Part/issue number), page number(s) of article.

One to seven Bell, V. (2007). Online information, extreme communities and

authors internet therapy: is the internet good for our mental health?
Journal of Mental Health, 16(4), 445-457.

Foster, J., & Turner, M. (2007). Implications of the Mental

Capacity Act 2005 on advance care planning at the end of life.
Nursing Standard, 22(2), 35-39.

More than seven Dennis, A., Howden, S., Schofield, S., Rees, C., McAleer, S., . . .
authors Ajjawi, R. (2014). Exploring Medical Education. Dundee
Healthcare Education, 1(1), 1-10.

c. Other
Newspaper Dennis, A. (2014, June 16). Exploring Medical Education, The
articles Dundee University Times, pp. 5.

Websites Department of Health. (n.d.). A simple guide to MRSA.

Retrieved September 20, 2007, from
http://www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/11/34/79/04113479.pdf

Health and Safety Executive. (2006). Five steps to risk

assessment. Retrieved September 20, 2007, from
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg163.pdf

Presentation or Dennis, A., & Rees, C. (2014, January). Understanding

lecture trainees and trainers experiences of supervised learning
events in the UK Foundation Programme. Presented for the
CMDN Seminar Series, Dundee, Scotland.
Online Mattick, K. (2013). Educational interventions to support junior
presentation or doctors prescribing. [Online lecture]. Retrieved April 3, 2014,
lecture from http://blogs.cmdn.dundee.ac.uk/meded-
research/monthly-educational-research-seminar-series/2013-
seminars/march/
Government Department of Health. (2012). Liberating the NHS: developing
Documents the healthcare workforce. From design to delivery. Retrieved
from

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 https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/developing-
the-healthcare-workforce-from-design-to-delivery.
Conference Dennis, A., & Rees, C. (2014, January). Understanding
Symposium trainees and trainers experiences of supervised learning
events in the UK Foundation Programme. Paper presented at
the University of Dundee Medical Education Conference,
Dundee, Dundee, Scotland.
Blog Post A Dennis. (2014, June 15). Exploring Medical Education [Web
log post]. Retrieved from
http://dundee.edu/exploringmeded
Unpublished work Dennis, A. (2014). Exploring Medical Education. Unpublished
manuscript.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How are tables and figures cited?
The best way to credit a source for a table or figure is to provide either a table note or a
figure caption below the table or figure. Within these sections you should include the
Copyright permission that you have:

Type of source Copywrite permission footnote

Journal From Title of Article, by A. Author, Date of Publication, Journal
Name, Volume, p. xx. Copyright [year] by Name of Copyright
Holder. Reprinted or adapted with permission

Book From Title of Book, by A. Author, Date of Publication, Place of

Publication: Publisher. Copyright [year] by Name of Copyright
Holder. Reprinted or adapted with permission

2. Do I need to include the website address within the citation for a website?
No the citation should only contain the authors surname and date

(Dennis, 2014)

3. Can I abbreviate the names of Journals?

No the expectation in APA style is that you write out the full name of the journal in the
reference list.

4. How do I cite and reference a personal correspondence?

As personal communications are not recoverable by another person, they are not
included in the reference list. Instead they are cited in text only:

K. Dennis (personal communication, April 10, 2014)

5. What if the source has missing information?

In general if a source has a lot of missing information, it is worthwhile questioning
whether the source is reputable and whether you should be using it. Here are some

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 examples of missing data and how you would indicate this within the citation or
reference.

Missing author Move the title of the source to the author position
Missing date: No date Write (n.d.) where the date would normally be reported
Missing date: Write (in press) where the date would normally be
Accepted for reported
publication but not
published
Missing date: Write [ca. 2014] where the date would normally be
Estimated date reported
Missing publisher Write s.l. where the publisher location would be
location
Missing publisher Write s.n. where the publisher name would normally be
name

6. What if the source I want to cite is not including in this guide?

This guide is by no means exhaustive. In the first instance, we recommend that you
check the manual published by the APA (APA, 2010). You might want to also explore
their website: http://www.apastyle.org/learn/index.aspx
Example of
Example direct quote.
See section
Excerpt from text (Rees et al., 2013) 2c under
Citations
A final example of power construction refers to the use of laughter. The following
comment from a clinical teacher demonstrates this as he teases a female medical Example of
student by withholding information from her: He he he he he he he okay Ill tell multiple
you what all might be revealed (Rees & Monrouxe, 2010, p. 3391). These findings authors and
are consistent with reports in the broader social science literature demonstrating two or more
that power can be enacted and resisted through questions, directives, pronominal works in a
talk and knowledge (Lorentzen, 2008; Skelton, Wearn, & Hobbs, 2002; Takano, parentheses.
See sections
2005; Wang, 2006).
2e and 2k
under
Although previous research has explored some elements of the construction of Citations
power within hospital based encounters, we know that power is context specific
and so power relationships and enactments may differ in bedside teaching within other
health care contexts, such as general practice. Indeed, primary and secondary care
are thought to have different organisational cultures (i.e. assumptions, values, Example of
ideology and behaviour; Willcocks, 2004). Willcocks (2004) talks about the the name of
differences between primary and secondary care with relation to six factors: the the author
historical background of the specialty; the nature of work tasks in the specialty and appearing
use of technology; relationships with external and internal environments; naturally in
individualism and motivation; amount of communication within the specialty, and the text. See
values and socialisation. To our knowledge, no studies have explored power fully sections 2b
within the organisational context of family medicine. under
Citations

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References for excerpt

Lorentzen, J.M. (2008). I know my own body: Power and resistance in womens
experiences of medical interactions. Body Society, 14, 4979.

Rees, C.E., & Monrouxe, L.V. (2010). I should be lucky ha ha ha ha: The construction of
power, identity and gender through laughter within medical workplace learning encounters.
Journal of Pragmatics, 42, 338499.

Skelton, J.R., Wearn, A.M., & Hobbs, F.D.R. (2002). I and we: a concordancing analysis of
how doctors and patients use first person pronouns in primary care consultations. Family
Practice, 19, 4848.

Takano, S. (2005). Re-examining linguistic power: Strategic uses of directives by professional

Japanese women in positions of authority and leadership. Journal of Pragmatics, 37, 633
66.

Wang, J. (2006). Questions and the exercise of power. Discourse Society, 17, 52948.

Willcocks, S.G. (2004). Clinical managers and cultural context: Comparisons between
secondary and primary care. Health Services Management Research, 17, 3646.

References
American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication Manual of the American
Psychological Association. (6th Ed.). Washignton D.C.: American Psychological Association.

Queen Margaret University. (2010). Write and Cite: The QMU Guide to the British Standard
Harvard 2010 System of Referencing. Edinburgh: Queen Margaret University. Retrieved
Queen Margaret University Library website:
http://www.qmu.ac.uk/lb/information/Guides/WRITE_CITE_QMUHarvard2010_Aug2013onl
ineVERSION2.pdf

Rees, C.E., Ajjawi, R., Monrouxe, L.V. (2013). The construction of power in family medicine
bedside teaching encounters: A video-observation study. Medical Education, 47(2), 154-65.

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