Skip to Main Content

Vancouver (AMA) referencing style

A guide to referencing in the Vancouver (American Medical Association - AMA) style. Includes tips for using EndNote.

Specialised health resources

Elements of the reference

Author AA, Author BB. Title of page. Title of Database/Website. Month DD, YYYY. (date published if available) Updated Month DD, YYYY. (date updated if available) Accessed Month DD, YYYY. URL

  • These resources can just be treated as webpages which are part of a website.
  • If there are no authors listed, it's often reasonable to attribute authorship to the website itself.  
  • If the page has been authored by an organisation, and the name of the organisation and the title of the web site are the same, the author can be omitted from the front of the reference.
Reference list
  1. Upadacitinib. Australian Medicines Handbook. Updated January, 2024. Accessed June 28, 2024. https://amhonline.amh.net.au/chapters/immunomodulators-anti-inflammatories/janus-kinase-inhibitors/upadacitinib
  2. Myrrh tincture. British Pharmacopoeia. 2024. Accessed June 28, 2024. https://www.pharmacopoeia.com/bp-2024/herbal-drugs/myrrh-tincture.html
  3. Polymorphic light eruption. Therapeutic Guidelines. August, 2022. Accessed June 28, 2024. https://tgldcdp.tg.org.au/viewTopic?topicfile=c_DMG_Polymorphic-light-eruption_topic_1&guidelineName=Dermatology&topicNavigation=navigateTopic
  4. Means RT, Brodsky RA. Diagnostic approach to anemia in adults. UpToDate. Updated April 2, 2024. Accessed June 28, 2024. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/diagnostic-approach-to-anemia-in-adults
  5. Supirocin. MIMS Online. Updated June 1, 2024. Accessed June 28, 2024. https://www.mimsonline.com.au/Search/FullPI.aspx?ModuleName=Product%20Info&ID=154910001_2
EndNote reference type

Online Database

  • Add database entry title in the Title field.
  • Enter the title of the database in the Name of Database field, e.g. UpToDate
  • Add the update date to Date Published, e.g. August, 2022. If there is also a date published available, add this to the Year field with whatever information is available, e.g. 2019, or May 7, 2019
  • Enter the URL in the URL field and the accessed date in the Date Accessed field, e.g. September 11, 2024.

Web Page

Alternatively these resources can just be treated as webpages using the Web Page reference type

  • Enter the title of the database in the Place Published field.
  • Add the date published to the Year field. Include the month and day (Month DD) in this field if known, e.g May 16, 2020, or May, 2020.
  • Add the date updated (Month DD, YYYY) to the Last Update Date field.
  • Enter the URL in the URL field and the access date in the Access Date field, e.g. September 11, 2024 (ignore the Access Year field).

Cochrane reviews

Elements of the reference

Author AA, Author BB, Author CC, Author DD, Author EE, Author FF. Title of article. Journal Abbreviation. Year;volume(issue):pp-pp. DOI

  • Cochrane reviews are articles published in the journal Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and can be treated as journal articles. They have article numbers rather than page numbers.
  • Citation information such as the issue can be found by clicking 'cite this review' on the Cochrane Library, or by viewing the article in another database such as PubMed
Reference list
  1. Claire R, Chamberlain C, Davey MA, Cooper SE, Berlin I, Leonardiā€Bee J, Coleman T. Pharmacological interventions for promoting smoking cessation during pregnancy. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2020;(3):CD010078. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD010078.pub3
EndNote reference type

Journal Article (or Electronic Article)