clarity. simplicity. consistency

Clarity. Simplicity. Consistency.

Revised September 2015

CFHI English Style Guide 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... 4

2.0 KEY RESOURCES ................................................................................................................. 4

3.0 IMPORTANCE OF CLEAR WRITING ................................................................................. 5

3.1 Considerations ...................................................................................................................... 5

3.2 Express ideas simply and concisely ..................................................................................... 5

3.3 Use a positive, direct tone .................................................................................................... 6

3.4 Make information visually appealing ................................................................................... 6

3.5 Be consistent ........................................................................................................................ 6

4.0 TOP STYLE TIPS ................................................................................................................... 7

5.0 TEXT STYLES ........................................................................................................................ 9

5.1 Formatting ............................................................................................................................ 9

5.1.1 Font style ......................................................................................................................... 9

5.1.2 List format ..................................................................................................................... 9

5.1.3 Quotation and citation format ...................................................................................... 10

5.1.4 Sentence and paragraph structure .................................................................................. 10

5.2 Spelling............................................................................................................................... 11

5.2.1 Canadian spelling ......................................................................................................... 11

5.2.2 Using spelling and grammar check ............................................................................... 11

5.3 Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................... 12

5.3.1 Acronyms and initialisms ............................................................................................ 12

5.3.2 Degrees, designations and titles .................................................................................... 13

5.3.3 Geographic abbreviations ............................................................................................. 13

5.3.4 Abbreviations of numbers ........................................................................................... 14

5.3.5 Other abbreviations ...................................................................................................... 15

5.4 Capitalization ..................................................................................................................... 16

5.4.1 General ......................................................................................................................... 16

5.4.2 Job and organization titles ........................................................................................... 17

5.4.3 Government departments ............................................................................................. 18

5.4.4 Races, languages and peoples ...................................................................................... 18

5.4.5 Titles and headings ...................................................................................................... 19


5.4.6 Scientific and medical terms ........................................................................................... 20

5.5 Punctuation ......................................................................................................................... 20

5.5.1 Spacing ........................................................................................................................ 20

5.5.2 Commas ........................................................................................................................ 20

5.5.3 Dashes and hyphens..................................................................................................... 21

5.5.4 Other punctuation ........................................................................................................ 22

5.6 Numbers ............................................................................................................................. 24

5.6.1 General ......................................................................................................................... 24

5.6.2 Dates and time .............................................................................................................. 24

5.6.3 Measurements............................................................................................................... 25

5.7 Word usage ......................................................................................................................... 26

5.7.1 Terminology: Inuit, Métis, First Nations and Aboriginal ............................................ 28

6.0 REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................... 30

6.1 Endnotes and footnotes ...................................................................................................... 30

6.2 References and bibliographies ........................................................................................... 30

6.3 In-text citations ................................................................................................................... 30

6.4 General rules ...................................................................................................................... 31

7.0 APPENDICES ....................................................................................................................... 34

7.1 CFHI spellings.................................................................................................................... 34

7.2 Editing checklist ................................................................................................................. 39


CFHI ENGLISH STYLE GUIDE 1.0 INTRODUCTION Canadian English is a mix of American and British language and spellings. It is constantly evolving, which is why selecting and committing to in-house styles can help organizations achieve consistency, a basic principle of good communications. This style guide captures the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement’s current styles and is a tool to help CFHI staff, external authors and editors prepare written materials for CFHI. It covers clear writing principles, key spelling and punctuation rules, common grammar and usage mistakes, and CFHI’s style for references. This is a living document and can be amended at any time (for example, with new terms, spellings, styles, etc.). The principles behind this guide are:

1. Clarity – First and foremost, CFHI communications products should be easy for our audiences to understand.

2. Simplicity – CFHI’s approach is to keep written materials as simple as possible (for

example, minimizing punctuation and capitalization).

3. Consistency – It is important for CFHI to be consistent in the way it presents information.

2.0 KEY RESOURCES In general, CFHI uses the following English references:

For spelling – the Canadian Oxford Dictionary, second edition (2004). For style – The Canadian Style: A Guide to Writing and Editing, second edition

(1997). The Canadian Style is available free of charge through TERMIUM at: http://www.btb.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2guides/guides/tcdnstyl/index-eng.html?lang=eng.

For references – a hybrid of styles (see section 6 – References), but mainly follow the American Psychological Association (APA) style, which can be accessed free of charge through the Purdue Online Writing Lab at: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/.

Occasionally, CFHI’s style differs from these references. When there is a discrepancy, this style guide prevails. For assistance with writing and editing, please consult with a member of CFHI’s communications team.


3.0 IMPORTANCE OF CLEAR WRITING Clear writing is vital to ensure that CFHI’s target audiences can understand CFHI communications products and take action (if applicable) based on the content. Writing clearly and in plain language is not about ‘dumbing down’ information. It is about presenting thoughts logically, expressing ideas as simply and concisely as possible, using a positive and direct tone, making information visually appealing, and being consistent in spelling and grammar. In today’s busy world, people appreciate information that can be understood and absorbed the first time they read it. 3.1 Considerations These key considerations should be addressed when developing communications materials:

Purpose: Why are you communicating? Is the purpose of your message to inform, to persuade, to promote, to request action, etc.?

Audience: Who is the target audience you are trying to reach with your message? This will dictate how you will develop your message, what information your audience needs and the method of communication that would be most effective in delivering the message to your target audience.

Medium: What is the most effective way of getting your message across? Consider that people read differently online than they do when they read print materials. If writing for an online medium, it’s important to write user-friendly content that is short and to the point.

Objectives: What are you trying to accomplish? Establish objectives that are specific and realistic, and consider if your message is meeting those objectives.

3.2 Express ideas simply and concisely Try to explain your topic as if you are talking to someone who is relatively new to the subject. Use plain language – the shortest, most common words possible to get your idea across to the reader. Avoid jargon. If needed, define complicated terms and explain complex ideas using examples, anecdotes, comparisons and graphics. Be concise and stick to essential facts, particularly at the beginning of document sections and paragraphs. Elaborate with more detail later in the body of the text.


3.3 Use a positive, direct tone Avoid appearing either overly familiar or cold and patronizing. Use a positive, objective and direct tone. Avoid using contractions (for example, don’t, I’ll) unless you are intentionally writing in conversational style. Try to avoid negative phrasing by flipping the idea into positive expression.

Not: Do not speak negatively. Correct: Speak positively.

Use active sentence structure (subject-verb-object order) as often as possible.

Not: The funding was approved by CFHI. Correct: CFHI approved the funding.

To make your text come alive and read more smoothly, choose action verbs (for example, ‘decide’ vs. ‘make a decision’) and concrete nouns (things that can be observed with the senses, such as ‘car’, as opposed to abstract ideas, such as ‘transportation’).

Not: Information will be provided to you by mail. Correct: We will mail you a course outline.

3.4 Make information visually appealing The way information is visually presented also affects how well readers understand it. Here are a few tips to increase the readability of text:

Use lots of white space (the space around text) by avoiding long blocks of text and breaking sections into sub-sections with headings and sub-headings.

Use vertical (bulleted or numbered) lists to present a series of ideas (see section 5.1.2 – List format).

Emphasize important information with meaningful titles and headings, summaries and appropriate text formatting, such as bolding and italics to draw the eye to important points.

Include visuals such as tables, charts and infographics to reinforce and explain ideas. Include a table of contents or web navigation to help readers understand the order of

information. 3.5 Be consistent Be consistent in how you use spelling, abbreviations, capitalization, numbers and punctuation. This style guide outlines CFHI’s standard formatting, spelling, punctuation and grammar guidelines.


4.0 TOP STYLE TIPS Below are some of the recurring style issues at CFHI:

1. Write ‘CFHI’ or ‘the Foundation’, not ‘the CFHI.’ 2. Write ‘healthcare’, not ‘health care.’

3. Use Canadian spelling. Set the language in Word to ‘Canadian English.’ (See section

5.2.1 – Canadian spelling.) 4. Where appropriate, it is preferable to use ‘pan-Canadian’ or ‘across Canada’ rather than

‘national.’ ‘National’ is often interpreted as federal, which can be contentious in a domain such as healthcare that falls primarily under provincial-territorial jurisdiction (See section 5.7 – Word usage.)

5. Use hyphens for ‘decision-making,’ ‘decision-maker,’ ‘policy-making’ and ‘policy-maker.’ (For additional words, see Appendix 7.1 – CFHI spellings.)

6. Write out single-digit numbers (one through nine), except for percentages (for example, 5

percent). Use numerals for the rest (10 and up). Do not use ‘th’ superscripts for numbers (for example, 100th). Note: The default in Word is to automatically insert ‘th’ superscripts for numbers; thus, you will need to remove the ‘th’ superscript for numbers in your text.

7. Do not use a comma before the last ‘and’ or ‘or’ in a list, unless needed for clarity. (See section 5.5.2 – Commas.)

8. Use commas for numbers of 1,000 and more (for example, 1,637,000).

9. Use only one space, not two spaces, after periods, colons and semi-colons.

10. When writing percentages: a) Spell out ‘percent’ (one word). b) It is acceptable to use the percent symbol (%) in media where space is at a premium,

such as the newsletter and website, and tables in reports. c) Always use a numeral followed by a percent symbol, with no space in between (for

example, 100%).

11. a) Use ‘en’ dashes – with spaces on either side – for mid-sentence lists and interjections. b) Use ‘en’ dashes with spaces on either side for inclusive numbers (for example,

1999 – 2000). (See section 5.5.3 – Dashes and hyphens for more information, including keyboard

shortcuts.) 12. Write out ‘for example’ and ‘that is’ in the body of the text. Abbreviate (for example, e.g.

and i.e.) when space is tight, such as in charts and tables. Note: The abbreviations ‘e.g.’


and ‘i.e.’ are not followed by a comma.

13. a) For simple bulleted lists, use lowercase at the beginning of each item (first word next to the bullet) and no punctuation at the end of each bullet line and at the end of the entire list.

b) For lists containing full sentences, use a capital letter at the beginning of each item (first word) and a period at the end of each sentence. (See section 5.1.2 – List format.)

14. a) Use full capitalization (with the first letter of each word capitalized) for the titles of

major publications (for example, The Ottawa Citizen) and proper names. b) Use sentence capitalization (with the first letter of the first word capitalized) for

headings and sub-headings. (See sections 5.4 – Capitalization and 5.4.5 –Titles and headings.)

15. Number references sequentially in the body of the text and link them to endnotes, following American Psychological Association (APA) style. (See section 6 – References.)


5.0 TEXT STYLES 5.1 Formatting 5.1.1 Font style Font Face CFHI uses various fonts depending on the medium. For external communications materials such as brochures, handouts and graphics, use these fonts:

If a serif font is needed for external written communications (for example, formal correspondence on CFHI letterhead), use Times New Roman. Italics Use italics sparingly. Italics may be used to:

emphasize or stress a word (for example, ‘Sometimes honesty is the worst policy.’) contrast two words (for example, ‘He did not have to go. He wanted to go.’) highlight foreign words that are not part of everyday usage, including scientific Latin

names (for example, ‘laissez-passer’, ‘Escherichia coli’) highlight the title of published books, pamphlets, reports and studies, acts and statutes,

plays, musical compositions, paintings, films, newspapers and periodicals (for example, Ottawa Sun)

Bold and underlining Use bolding of text sparingly. Bold text may be used for headings and, on rare occasions, to emphasize important words. Avoid underlining text unless it is a clickable hyperlink or cross-reference (a reference to another text or part of a text, typically given in order to elaborate on a point). 5.1.2 List format A vertical (or point-form) list breaks up text and makes a series of ideas easier to follow and understand. CFHI uses a modern list style with a circular bullet point:

Use ordered (numbered or lettered) lists only when the order or rank of ideas is important. Otherwise, use unordered (bulleted) lists.

For list items that are complete sentences, begin each item/sentence with a capital letter and end with a period.

For a simple bulleted list, a blank line precedes the listed items. Items begin with a


lowercase letter, and there is no punctuation at the end of each item and at the end of the entire list. Use punctuation sparingly and avoid using semicolons.

A simple list would look like this:

a few words or phrases no complete sentences no capital letters or punctuation

5.1.3 Quotation and citation format For quotations of less than three lines, use quotation marks and no indentation. Insert the closing quotation mark after the period at the end of a sentence. For example: “Renewed funding for CFHI will allow us to continue implementing better ways of working in healthcare and spreading them across Canada.” For quotations of three lines or more, use block format (single-spaced, indented, no quotation marks). For example:

CFHI is able to demonstrate measurable results, having development, implemented and spread innovations that could save healthcare systems over $1 billion annually. A benefit-cost analysis, completed as part of a 2014 corporate evaluation, showed that just six CFHI-supported projects have avoided more healthcare costs than CFHI’s entire budget from 2006 to 2013.

Do not change spelling or punctuation in a quotation, even when it does not conform to CFHI style guidelines. For more information on quotation marks, please see section 5.5.4 – Other punctuation. 5.1.4 Sentence and paragraph structure It is difficult to read long, dense blocks of text. To improve clarity, keep paragraphs and sentences short. Each sentence should explain one idea, and each paragraph should develop one idea. A longer sentence is acceptable if it closely connects related ideas. Vary sentence length for interest, but avoid individual sentences over 2.5 lines. Avoid front-end loading sentences by making sure your most important points always come first (for example, putting a long explanation in front of the meat of the sentence). Often this can be corrected by flipping the clauses or splitting the sentence into two shorter sentences.

Not: Recent efforts in Ontario, where the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care has linked new funding for surgical procedures to improved quality measures, including infection rates, suggest that governments may be broadening their focus.


Correct: Recent efforts in Ontario suggest that governments may be broadening their focus; the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care has linked new funding for surgical procedures to improved measures, including infection rates.

Use active sentence structure. Using action verbs and showing who is doing the action to whom (subject-verb-object) will keep the reader’s attention and make the meaning clearer.

Not: The registration information was sent to them on Friday.

Correct: CFHI emailed the registration information to webinar participants on Friday.

5.2 Spelling This section outlines CFHI’s guidelines for spelling. (Also see section 3 – Spelling in The Canadian Style.) 5.2.1 Canadian spelling CFHI uses Canadian spelling. The only cases where you should not use Canadian spelling are when:

quoting directly from an American or British source writing a proper name (use the person or company’s preferred spelling) referencing a publication in its original language (for example, the French title of a book

that is only available in French) In general, Canadians use:

-our endings for words like colour and honour (exceptions: honorary, error) -re endings for words like metre and centre -ze endings for words like organize and analyze (exceptions: advertise, exercise) -ce endings for nouns like licence and practice (but -se endings for verbs license and

practise) double consonants (when adding the suffixes ‘ing,’ ‘ed’ and ‘es’) for words such as

‘labelling’ and ‘labelled’ (exceptions: focused, focusing, focuses) When in doubt, please refer to the Canadian Oxford Dictionary, second edition (2004). When two spellings are listed in the same entry, use the one that appears first. When two spellings appear in two separate entries, use the primary entry (the one followed by the definition). For spellings that CFHI commonly uses, please see Appendix 7.1 – CFHI spellings. 5.2.2 Using spelling and grammar check The spelling and grammar check tool can help to avoid mistakes, but it will not point out errors in word usage (for example, ‘their’ vs. ‘there’) or errors like ‘heath’ instead of ‘health.’ When


using the ‘find and replace’ function to correct identified errors, avoid selecting ‘replace all’ – review each change individually. Make sure that your spelling checker is set for Canadian English. To set your spelling checker to Canadian English in Word 2013:

1. Click the ‘Review’ tab. 2. Click ‘Set Language’ in the proofing toolbar (toward the left). 3. In the window that appears, select ‘English (Canada)’ and click OK.

To change the language for existing text to Canadian English, simply select/highlight all of the text and follow the above steps. 5.3 Abbreviations This section outlines CFHI’s guidelines for abbreviations. For more information, please see section 1 – Abbreviations in The Canadian Style. 5.3.1 Acronyms and initialisms Acronyms and initialisms are abbreviations made from the first letters of a series of words. They save space when you need to refer to a long name repeatedly in a document. An acronym is sounded out as a word (for example, NATO), while the letters of an initialism are sounded out one by one (for example, CFHI). These tips will help you use acronyms and initialisms properly:

Spell out the entire expression in your document the first time you use it. For unfamiliar abbreviations, spell out the expression at the beginning of every major document section.

It is not always necessary to indicate the acronym or initialism in brackets directly after spelling out the full expression, unless needed for clarity.

Not: The Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement (CFHI) is a not-for-profit organization funded by the government of Canada. CFHI is dedicated to accelerating healthcare improvement. Correct: The Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement is a not-for-profit organization funded by the Government of Canada. CFHI is dedicated to accelerating healthcare improvement.

In general, do not use periods or spaces between letters in abbreviations (for example, BSc, HST). Exceptions include:

o geographic locations, which take periods in the traditional format (for example, N.B.)


o people’s initials, which take periods followed by spaces (for example, J. K.

Rowling)

When writing the plurals of capital letters or numbers, do not use an apostrophe (for example, MPs, PhDs, 1990s) unless needed for clarity (for example, A’s in math).

Do not use acronyms and initialisms for unfamiliar expressions if you are only using them once or twice in your document.

5.3.2 Degrees, designations and titles Academic degrees and professional designations Academic degrees (for example, doctor of philosophy) and professional designations (for example, registered nurse) are written out in full using lowercase letters. When abbreviating them, do not use periods or spaces between the letters (for example, BA, PhD, BSc, MD, RN). Honorifics (courtesy titles) Only use ‘Dr.’ for medical doctors. For people with doctorate degrees, the name is followed by the abbreviation for the degree (for example, Jill Smith, PhD). Government of Canada departments For a full list of approved titles for Government of Canada departments, as well as official abbreviations, visit the Registry of Applied Titles. 5.3.3 Geographic abbreviations In the body of the text, spell out the names of provinces (for example, Ontario) and streets (for example, Baker Street). However, the names of provinces and territories may be abbreviated when they follow the name of a city, town, village or geographic feature (for example, Orillia, ON). For charts, tables and references, use geographic abbreviations with periods and no spaces in between the letters (for example, Ont., B.C., P.E.I., St., Ave.).


The following table indicates the official abbreviations for provinces and territories in Canada:

Province Traditional Canada Post CFHI Alberta Alta. AB AB British Columbia B.C. BC BC Manitoba Man. MB MB New Brunswick N.B. NB NB Newfoundland and Labrador N.L. NL NL Northwest Territories N.W.T. NT NWT Nova Scotia N.S. NS NS Nunavut Nun. NU NU Ontario Ont. ON ON Prince Edward Island P.E.I. PE PEI Quebec Que. QC QC Saskatchewan Sask. SK SK Yukon Territory Y.T. YT YT

Use Canada Post short forms (without periods) only in mailing addresses. Use CFHI abbreviations in all CFHI communications. Notes: It is not necessary to use the provincial abbreviation after the names of well-known cities such as Vancouver, Winnipeg, Toronto and Ottawa. See section 15 – Geographical Names in The Canadian Style for a list of correct geographical abbreviations. Spell ‘Quebec’ and ‘Montreal’ without accents in English. 5.3.4 Abbreviations of numbers Also see section 5.6 – Numbers for more guidelines pertaining to numbers styles. Dates In the body of the text, always spell out the name of month (for example, December) and day (for example, Monday). Abbreviate dates only for references, charts, tables and figures (for example, Wed., Aug. 12). Note: May, June and July are never abbreviated. Exceptions to this rule are media where space is at a premium such as the CFHI e-newsletter and e-blasts. See section 5.6.2 – Dates and time for how to properly punctuate dates.


Time To abbreviate units of time, use periods (no spaces) between the letters and a space after the number (for example, 9 a.m.). Time zones are written in full in the body of the text (for example, Pacific Standard Time) unless they follow an exact time, in which case they are written using uppercase letters with no spaces or periods (for example, 5:00 a.m. EST). Ensure you differentiate between Eastern Standard Time (EST) and Eastern Daylight Savings Time (EDT). For Canadian time zones, see the National Research Council of Canada’s website at http://www.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/eng/services/time/time_zones.html. Mathematical units Spell out mathematical units (for example, centimetre) in the body of the text but abbreviate them (for example, cm) in tables, charts and figures. Include a space between the numeral and abbreviation (for example, 4 cm). The International System of Units (SI) abbreviations (for example, m, kg, C) do not take periods or an ‘s’ to form the plural. Imperial unit abbreviations (for example, ft., in., mi., oz.) do take periods but still no ‘s’ in their plural forms. See sections – 1.23 The International System of Units (SI) and 1.24 – The imperial system in The Canadian Style for correct spellings and abbreviations of mathematical units. Percentages Spell out ‘percent’ (one word) in writing (for example, 100 percent). In media where space is at a premium, such as the newsletter and website, and tables in reports, it is acceptable to use the percent symbol (%) with no space in between (for example, 100%). 5.3.5 Other abbreviations Ampersand Avoid using the ampersand symbol (&) in the body of the text unless it forms part of a proper name (for example, Proctor & Gamble) or common expression (for example, R&D).


Latin terms Write out Latin terms in the body of the text. Abbreviate when space is tight, such as in charts and tables. When you abbreviate, a comma does not follow the abbreviation. Be careful not to confuse the use of these common terms:

e.g. for example (introduces an example) i.e. that is, in other words (introduces an explanation) etc. and so on (replaces additional examples) et al. and others (replaces additional authors in references)

Note: The following terms are not abbreviations and are not followed by a period:

ad hoc et ex idem par per pro re sic via

Lowercase abbreviations Most lowercase abbreviations have periods (for example, a.m., fig., vol., e.g.), but not SI mathematical units (for example, cm, kg) and chemical symbols (for example, log, tan). 5.4 Capitalization This section outlines CFHI’s preferences and guidelines for capitalization. For more information, please see section 4 – Capitalization in The Canadian Style. 5.4.1 General Avoid capitalization where possible but do capitalize the following:

titles of major publications (The Ottawa Citizen) proper names (Maureen O’Neil) places (Ottawa, Ontario) religions, both nouns and adjectives (Catholicism, Catholic church) languages, both nouns and adjectives (Francophone, English tea) nations and ethnic groups, both nouns and adjectives (First Nations, Aboriginal

communities) days, months and holidays (Monday, July, Thanksgiving)


Note: For proper names, follow the capitalization preferred by the individual or organization, unless it affects readability. Use lowercase for most other words, including:

the names of seasons (spring, fall) centuries and decades (twentieth century), unless they have a proper name (Dirty

Thirties) general directions and points of compass (north, west, eastern provinces, prairie wildlife),

unless referring to a defined geographic region (the North, Atlantic Canada, the East Coast, the Pacific Ocean)

short forms of job titles and organizations (our manager, the organization) plurals of places, job titles and organizations (Atlantic and Pacific oceans, first ministers,

provincial governments) 5.4.2 Job and organization titles Capitalize formal titles when they refer to a specific person or when they precede and form part of a personal name:

The Assistant Deputy Minister attended the conference. According to the Leader of the Opposition, … The meeting started with an announcement from the Board Chair … Health Minister Rona Ambrose … Finance Minister Joe Oliver …

Also capitalize all titles following a personal name, including those in signature lines:

Maureen O’Neil, President of the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement Leslee Thompson, President and CEO, Kingston General Hospital

Do not capitalize a title that refers to a role rather than a person or that is used descriptively For example:

As medical director (that is, while occupying a certain position), Dr. Smith was responsible for emergency medical services.

The media relations manager will respond to all interview requests. Catherine Simpson works part-time as a health ethics consultant. Nicole Mittmann is the executive director of the HOPE Research Centre.

Do not capitalize occupations, professions or job names. For example:

Jean Bourbeau is a professor of medicine. Dr. Graeme Rocker, former respirologist at Capital Health, …


5.4.3 Government departments Government departments in English Capitalize the word ‘department’ when writing the full name of a government department (for example, Department of Health). Do not capitalize the plural form ‘departments’ (for example, the departments of Justice and National Defence). For a full list of approved titles for Government of Canada departments, as well as official abbreviations, visit the Registry of Applied Titles. Quebec government departments, and health and social service centres These titles are generally not translated into English. Follow the spelling on the English version of the department or health and social service centre website. For example:

The ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (or the MSSS) If there is no indicated English spelling, use the French spelling. For example:

Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux de l’Outaouais Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux du Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean

5.4.4 Races, languages and peoples Capitalize nouns and adjectives referring to race, tribe, nationality and language:

Aboriginals Anglophone Cree English First Nations Francophone French Inuk (plural: Inuit) Métis


5.4.5 Titles and headings CFHI uses the following format for titles and headings:

capitalize the first letter of the first word of the title/heading capitalize all ‘major’ words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and pronouns) in the

title/heading, including the second part of hyphenated words (for example, Self-Report, not Self-report)

capitalize all words of four letters or more Notes: Use lowercase for minor words of three letters or less such as conjunctions (for example, and, or, not, but), articles (for example, a, am, the) and prepositions (for example, as, at, by, for, in, of, on, per, to). Forms of the verb ‘to be’ such as ‘is’ and ‘was’ should be capitalized it titles and headings even though they are less than three letters. Sub-titles and sub-headings CFHI uses the following format for sub-titles and sub-headings:

capitalize the first letter of the first word of the sub-title/sub-heading capitalize only words that would be capitalized in a sentence (such as someone’s name) use lowercase for all other words

Examples of proper title capitalization

Title: CFHI Supports 22 Patient and Family Engagement Projects Across Canada Sub-title: Teams will bring patient voice to improving healthcare Title: Patricia O’Connor Receives Canadian College of Health Leaders Nursing Leadership Award Sub-title: Director of Nursing at McGill University Health Centre recognized for innovative leadership Title: Join Us April 1 for a new Webinar Series on Chronic Care Sub-title: New four-part webinar series Sub-title: Why it matters Sub-title: Webinar series line-up

Note: The titles and headings capitalization rules apply to CFHI email subject lines, news releases, website pages, publications, newsletters and e-blasts.


5.4.6 Scientific and medical terms Use lowercase for most scientific and medical terms, including the names of plants, birds, animals, chemical elements and compounds (for example, sodium bicarbonate), and generic drugs (for example, acetaminophen). Do not capitalize the names of conditions, syndromes and the like, but capitalize a personal name that forms part of such a term:

diabetes Alzheimer’s disease chronic obstructive pulmonary disease cancer

5.5 Punctuation This section outlines CFHI’s guidelines for punctuation. For more information, please see section 7 – Punctuation in The Canadian Style. In general, minimize use of punctuation to keep written materials as simple as possible. 5.5.1 Spacing Follow these general rules for the spacing of punctuation:

Use only one space (not two) after a period. Avoid the use of obliques (for example, and/or) where possible. Do not use spaces before

or after the slash in an oblique. Not: and / or

Correct: and/or 5.5.2 Commas

Use commas to clarify meaning but avoid overusing them as they can break the flow of reading. Do not use a comma before the last ‘and’ or ‘or’ in a list, except for clarity.

Correct: CFHI program offerings can help you achieve measurable improvements in patient care, health outcomes and value-for-money.

Also correct: CFHI can help you implement the change you need using appropriate evidence, engaging providers, patients and families, and evaluating and measuring performance.


Notes: Never use a comma after:

hence then thus so yet

A comma usually precedes ‘which’ (for example, ‘My car, which was brand new, was involved in an accident.’) A comma usually precedes ‘including’ when a list of items follows (for example, ‘The minutes of a meeting are a record of the circumstances of the meeting, including the names of the participants, the topics discussed and the decisions reached.’) Always use a comma after an introductory word such as:

however meanwhile furthermore suddenly

Use commas to separate a series of adjectives when the order of them does not affect the meaning. Omit commas if changing the order of the adjectives does not make sense. A good test is to see if the adjectives can be separated by ‘and’ and still make sense – if they can, use commas.

Correct: a rich, kind man Also correct: a rich and kind man

5.5.3 Dashes and hyphens Dashes Use ‘en’ dashes with spaces on either side for inclusive numbers (for example, 1999 – 2000, pages 50 – 55) and to join place names (for example, the region of Ottawa – Gatineau). Also use ‘en’ dashes – with spaces on either side – for mid-sentence lists, interruptions, explanations and other strong breaks in sentences. Note: You can insert an ‘en’ dash in Word by selecting ‘Insert’, ‘Symbol’, ‘More Symbols’ and choosing the ‘en’ dash symbol. Or you can use shortcut keys – the window that appears when you click ‘More Symbols’ – to show you the shortcut for the ‘en’ dash. The common shortcut for an ‘en’ dash is ctrl+ minus/hyphen. If you click on the ‘Shortcut Key’ button, you can set your


own keyboard shortcut. Hyphens Write compound words with hyphens to provide clarity, especially when forming a new word from two separate concepts (for example, evidence-based, evidence-informed). You do not need to use hyphens when the meaning is clear without them (public sector workers). Do not insert a space on either side of a hyphen. In general, hyphenate compound adjectives and adverbs before a noun (for example, well-known actors). Note that adverbs ending in –ly are not followed by a hyphen (for example, a rapidly decreasing population). Use hyphens for ‘decision-making,’ ‘decision-maker,’ ‘policy-making’, ‘policy-maker’, ‘four-part’ [webinar series] and ‘14-month’ [EXTRA program]. See Appendix 7.1 – CFHI spellings and the Canadian Oxford Dictionary for more definitive spellings. See section 2 – Hyphenation: Compounding and Word Division in The Canadian Style for more information on using hyphens. 5.5.4 Other punctuation Ellipsis points When omitting part of a quoted passage, use three ellipsis points … with a space before and after, but no spaces in between. If the ellipsis is at the end of a sentence, put the period at the end of the sentence as normal. See section 8.09 – Omissions in The Canadian Style for more information. Parentheses Punctuation goes outside of parentheses/brackets unless it is part of the sentence or phrase in the parentheses. (Tip: If the first word of a sentence is in parentheses, the ending punctuation should be too.) Quotation marks Always use double quotation marks. Single quotations marks should only be used in the following circumstances:

when there is a quote within a quote for a concept or term that is not a direct quote to highlight a word, concept or unusual terminology

For example:

“I was honoured to receive the award, particularly when the president said, ‘Jane is a remarkable scientist.’”


Shifting Culture, Shifting Care: From ‘Usual Care’ to Chronic Care Always place commas and periods within the closing quotation mark.

Correct: “CFHI is a not-for-profit, pan-Canadian organization,” Maureen O’Neil said. Other punctuation marks (‘en’ dashes, exclamation points, question marks, colons and semicolons) go inside the quotation marks if they belong to the quote, but outside if they belong to the rest of the sentence.

Correct: Remember to ask “How are you feeling?” when first approaching a patient. Also correct: Did you remember to say “goodbye”?

For more information, please see section 5.1.3 – Quotation and citation format. Semicolons Semicolons should only be used to join two related, independent clauses that are not already joined by a coordinating conjunction (for example, and), or to separate complicated list items with internal punctuation. However, try to reword the sentence or to separate it into two or more sentences where possible.

Correct: Obesity in children is increasing rapidly; over 30 percent of Canadian children are overweight. Also correct: The council assists with program creation, implementation and promotion; ongoing strategic advice and direction for program development; and monitoring, enforcement and evaluation activities.

Colons Colons should only be used after statements that are complete sentences. Never use a colon after a sentence fragment.

Correct: CFHI has two new On Call webinars: self-management for chronic disease and single-entry models for improved access to care. Also correct: The new CFHI webinars are on the following topics: self-management for chronic disease and single-entry models for improved access to care.

Insert a colon after a phrase such as ‘the following’, ‘as follows’ or to introduce a vertical list. For example: CFHI’s healthcare improvement goals are as follows:

healthcare efficiency


coordinated healthcare patient- and family-centred care

5.6 Numbers This section outlines CFHI’s guidelines for using numbers. For more information, please see section 5.3.4 – Abbreviations of numbers. 5.6.1 General In the body of the text, write out one-digit numbers (one through nine) and use numerals for 10 and up. Similarly, write out ‘first’ through ‘ninth’, and use figures for 10 and up (10th). Note: Do not use superscript for the ‘th’ with numbers (for example, 100th). Use numerals for percentages, money, math symbols, charts and graphs. Also use them for consistency when there are many numbers in the same passage of text. Also write out a number that is the first word of a sentence (for example, ‘Twenty teams are participating in the CFHI collaborative.’) Use commas for numbers of 1,000 or more (except years, addresses, phone and serial numbers). Use this phone number format: 613-492-5662. 5.6.2 Dates and time (See section 5.3.4 – Numbers for information on abbreviating dates and time.) Dates Avoid writing ‘today,’ ‘tomorrow’ or ‘last year’ because they quickly become outdated. Instead, provide context by writing the date (for example, ‘In July 2014, CFHI launched a new collaborative.’). Use alphanumeric format for dates in the body of the text (for example, Sunday, August 4, 2009). If words follow the year, add another comma (for example, ‘On August 4, 2009, CFHI presented an award.’). Use international numeric format (year/month/day) only in calendars, charts and tables (2009/08/22).

When writing the month and day only, use the cardinal format (for example, May 12, not May 12th).


Time In the body of the text, use the 12-hour clock time (for example, 8 p.m., 8:00 p.m.). Use the 24-hour clock time (20:00) only for French and bilingual documents, calendars and tables. Note: Do not write ‘a.m.’ or ‘p.m.’ when using the 24-hour clock time. Use the proper time zone, indicating Eastern Standard Time (EST) or Eastern Daylight Saving Time (EDT).

Not: At 12 p.m. ET Correct: At 12 p.m. EST or 12:00 p.m. EDT

Time Zones and Abbreviations

Time Zone Standard Time Daylight Saving Time

Newfoundland NST NDT Atlantic AST ADT Eastern EST EDT Central CST CDT Mountain MST MDT Pacific PST PDT

Notes: Daylight Saving Time in Ontario starts on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November.

March 8 – November 1, 2015 = Daylight Saving Time November 2, 2015 – March 12, 2016 = Standard Time March 13 – November 6, 2016 = Daylight Saving Time November 7, 2016 – March 11, 2017 = Standard Time March 12 – November 5, 2017 = Daylight Saving Time

For Canadian time zones, see the National Research Council of Canada’s website at http://www.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/eng/services/time/time_zones.html. 5.6.3 Measurements Decimals Use a consistent number of decimal spaces in a document (for example, use two decimal spaces, such as 1.10, throughout the text). No number should begin with a decimal; add a ‘0’ before the decimal (for example, 0.05, not .05).


Fractions

Fractions should be spelled out and hyphenated (for example, ‘One-tenth of the pie was left.’). Otherwise, use numerals with no ‘th’ (for example, 1/10). Percentages Spell out ‘percent’ (one word) in writing (for example, 100 percent). In media where space is at a premium, such as the newsletter and website, and tables in reports, it is acceptable to use the percent symbol (%) with no space in between (for example, 100%). Money Use numerals for sums of money (for example, $6.05), unless referring to round or indefinite amounts (for example, a few thousand dollars). Use Canadian currency, unless writing for a U.S. audience or listing multiple currencies. Use International Monetary Fund (IMF) abbreviations: C$ for Canadian dollars (for example, C$20.00) and US$ for American dollars (for example, US$20.00), etc. 5.7 Word usage This section outlines common word usage mistakes. For more information, see section 12 – Usage in The Canadian Style. affect and effect

Affect is used as a verb and means ‘influence.’

Budgetary constraints have seriously affected our grants and contributions program.

Effect is usually used as a noun and means ‘result’ or ‘impact.’

The Supreme Court ruling will have a lasting effect on official languages services. When used as a verb, effect means ‘bring about’ (but it is better to reword the sentence instead).

Governments can mobilize the political will and resources to effect change when they choose to.

comprise, compose, constitute, include

Comprise means ‘consist of’ and implies all of something. Avoid writing ‘is comprised of.’


The book comprises six chapters.

Include, like comprise, means ‘consist of,’ but implies part of something.

The book includes a chapter on finances.

Constitute and compose both mean ‘make up, account for, form.’ Women constitute 65 percent of our employee population.

The city of Kanata is composed of five small communities. fewer and less

If you are referring to nouns in the plural, use fewer.

People these days are buying fewer cars.

If you are referring to something in the singular, or to numbers on their own or in expressions of measurement or time, use less.

People want to spend less time in traffic. The building is less than four miles away.

pan-Canadian and national

Where appropriate, it is preferable to use pan-Canadian or across Canada/across the country rather than national.

CFHI hosted a pan-Canadian dialogue on healthcare policy. The roundtables took place across the country.

National is often interpreted as federal, which can be contentious in a domain such as healthcare, which falls primarily under provincial-territorial jurisdiction. In addition, most of our texts are translated, and Quebec uses national to refer to provincial matters (for example, L’Assemblée nationale).


However, national is appropriate in some cases. It was a national day of mourning. Please check with a member of the communications team if you have any questions.

its and it’s

Its is the possessive form of ‘it.’ CFHI promoted its innovations work in the September 2015 newsletter. It’s is a contraction of ‘it is’ or ‘it has.’ It’s great to see you again. that and which That is used when the clause following it is essential to the noun it modifies.

The car that was involved in the accident was towed. Which is used to add a non-essential reason or new idea, and usually comes after a comma.

My car, which was brand new, was involved in an accident. who and whom Who is the subject of a verb. Use who when it stands for he, she or they.

Jeff hired a manager who was known for her communication skills. (She was known for her communication skills.)

Whom is the object of a verb. Use whom when it stands for him, her or them.

Dana gave the key to a friend whom she trusted. (Dana trusted her.) 5.7.1 Terminology: Inuit, Métis, First Nations and Aboriginal Because there is no single term to describe indigenous peoples in Canada, if you are unsure about names and terms, contact the person or organization that you are writing about to determine the preferred name(s)/term(s). Indigenous ‘Indigenous’ is a term used to encompass a variety of Aboriginal groups. It is most frequently


used in an international, transnational or global context. In Canada, among organizations who represent First Nations, Métis and Inuit, indigenous is often used instead of Aboriginal. This is the most inclusive and commonly used term to refer to indigenous people in Canada. Avoid describing indigenous people as ‘belonging’ to Canada. Not: Canada’s indigenous people

Correct: Indigenous people in Canada

First Nation(s) Although the term ‘First Nations’ is widely used, no legal definition of it exists. It is rarely used as a synonym for Aboriginal peoples because it usually does not include Inuit or Métis. The singular ‘First Nation’ can refer to a band, a reserve-based community, or a larger tribal grouping and the status individuals who live in them. Aboriginal The term ‘Aboriginal’ (always capitalized) refers to the first inhabitants of Canada, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. This term came into popular usage in Canadian contexts after 1982 when Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution defined the term as such. Health vs. Wellness Many indigenous persons believe that well-being is made up of mental, physical, spiritual and emotional elements. The term ‘wellness’ is often used as a synonym for ‘health’ (for example, the Assembly of First Nations Mental Wellness Continuum Framework). Cultural Competency, Safety and Humility CFHI and the First Nations Health Authority (in British Columbia) use the terminology ‘cultural competency, safety and humility’ to refer to the appropriateness in the provision of health services to indigenous people.


6.0 REFERENCES For simplicity and readability, CFHI uses endnotes (a list of sequential references cited in the text) organized at the end of a report/publication, following the list of complete references. The format of the endnotes follows American Psychological Association (APA) style. According to APA style, endnotes should be listed on a designated page following the reference or bibliography. 6.1 Endnotes and footnotes For endnotes, insert superscripted numbers in the text. They should be numbered sequentially in the order in which they first appear. It is possible to cite more than one reference within one sentence by using a superscript sequence of numbers, like this.1, 2 The endnotes are then listed numerically at the end of the report/publication, following a list of complete references. They should appear in the same sequential order as the citations in the text. Footnotes (references at the bottom of the same page where the citation appears) may be used for substantive notes that clarify/elaborate/add to a reader’s understanding, though they should be used sparingly. 6.2 References and bibliographies A list of references is a list of your sequentially numbered citations in a text (for example, endnotes). A bibliography is a list of references consulted, but not necessarily cited (organized alphabetically by the last name of the first author for each work). CFHI uses the American Psychological Association (APA) style to format references and bibliographies. The APA style can be accessed free of charge through the Purdue Online Writing Lab at https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/. 6.3 In-text citations CFHI generally does not use in-text citations, however, there will be cases where it is prudent to refer to the author by name. If it is important to reference authors within the body of the text, try to include their names in the sentence and then use an endnote for the reference.

When Smith and Parker looked into this trend in 2002, they found something entirely different.

1


6.4 General rules

Titles of major works such as books and journals, are written in title case (first letter of each word is capitalized) with italics.

Titles of smaller works such as chapters, articles and web pages, are written in sentence case (first letter of the first word is capitalized) with no italics or quotation marks.

Author names are inverted (last name first, then the author’s initials) A period is inserted at the end of the citation (except Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs)

and web pages). Single author Two or more works by the same author are listed chronologically (with the earliest date listed first):

Jiang, H. J. (2008). Board engagement in quality: Findings of a survey of hospital and system leaders. Journal of Healthcare Management, 53(2), 121–134. Jiang, H. J. (2009). Board oversight of quality: Any differences in process of care and mortality? Journal of Healthcare Management, 54(1), 15–29.

Organization as author:

Health Quality Council. (2007). Quality of surgical care in Saskatchewan: A look at eight complex procedures. Saskatoon, SK: Health Quality Council.

If the author’s name is unknown, list the reference alphabetically by title. Multiple authors Use last names and initials, with commas separating each author and an ampersand between the last two authors in the list:

Alexander, J. A., Weiner, B. J. & Bogue, R. J. (2001). Changes in the structure, composition, and activity of hospital governing boards, 1989–1997: Evidence from two national surveys. Milbank Quarterly, 79(2), 253–279.

CFHI does not place an upper limit on the number of authors in a reference list. Books The location and publisher should be separated with a colon:

Coffey, A., & P. Atkinson. (1996). Making Sense of Qualitative Data: Complimentary Research Strategies. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

For subsequent editions, add the edition number after the book title (in parentheses):


Coffey, A., & P. Atkinson. (1996). Making Sense of Qualitative Data: Complimentary Research Strategies (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

For an article or chapter in an edited book, use ‘p.’ (singular) or ‘pp.’ (plural) before the specific page numbers:

Johnson, T. (2003). The way things were. In A. G. Turner (Ed.), A New Vision for Healthcare (pp. 15–31). New York, NY: Penguin.

Periodical articles For (print) journal articles, include the volume, issue (in brackets if available) and specific page numbers referenced.

Prybil, L. D. (2006). Size, composition and culture of high performing hospital boards. American Journal of Medical Quality, 21(4), 224–229.

Magazine articles are the same as journal articles, except that the issue date is also listed.

Munro, S. A. (2001, June 10). Unravelling bureaucracy. Time, 112, 20–21.

Newspaper articles are the same as magazine articles, except there is no issue number and ‘p.’ or ‘pp.’ precedes the page numbers.

Allen, K. L. (2010, March 3). Eating organics. The Ottawa Citizen, p. 10A. Encyclopedia entries

For references from an encyclopedia, follow this style:

Waltham, P. G. (1997). Vaccines. In The New Encyclopedia Britannica (Vol. 23, pp. 301–308). Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica.

Electronic sources Articles from online periodicals follow the same rules as for print periodicals, except that Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) and web addresses (URLs) are listed at the end (DOIs are preferred when available because, unlike URLs, they do not change when web content is moved). There is no period at the end of DOIs and URLs.

Prybil, L. D. (2006). Size, composition and culture of high performing hospital boards. American Journal of Medical Quality, 21(4). doi:10.1108/03090560710821161

For online book chapters, list the chapter number (in parentheses), followed by the DOI or web address:

Bruce, S., & Prior, H. (2006). Application of patient safety indicators in Manitoba: A


first look. In Manitoba Healthcare (5). Retrieved from http://mchp-appserv.cpe.umanitoba.ca/reference/patient.safety.pdf

For online encyclopedias and dictionaries, move the entry name to the front if no author is available and use (n.d.) if there is no date of publication:

Diabetes mellitus. (n.d.). In Encyclopedia Britannica online. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/160921/diabetes-mellitus

Insert a retrieval date when the source material may change over time (for example, a Wikipedia entry).

Psychology. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved October 14, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychology

For non-periodical web documents, pages or reports, list as much information as is available:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication). Title of article. Title of Online Periodical, volume number (issue number if available). Retrieved from http://www.someaddress.com/full/url/

Notes:

link to the reference directly (not to the website’s home page) best practice is to include a date of retrieval do not include periods at the end of DOIs or URLs

Secondary sources It is best to reference the original source of information where possible. If you cannot read the original source, name the original work in your text but cite the secondary source.

In McIntyre and Stewart’s study on ADHD (as cited by Smith and Jones in 2002),

1 etc. List the secondary source that you read (where the original work was discussed) in your endnotes.

1Smith, B. & Jones, P. (2002). Your child’s mental health. In Psychology Today, 102, 89–

108.


7.0 APPENDICES 7.1 CFHI spellings Use these spellings for common Canadian, healthcare and CFHI words. A Aboriginal people, Aboriginal Peoples academic coordinator acknowledgement advance care planning (not advanced care planning) advisor aging (not ageing) among (not amongst) analyze, analyzes, analyzed, analyzing B benefit, benefits, benefited, benefiting benefit-cost [analysis] board meeting, board of directors C Canadian Harkness Fellow centre, centres, centred, centring CFHI Improvement Model chair, board of directors child care (but hyphenate before a noun: child-care worker) coach, coaches cohort collaboration (but capitalized in formal title: Atlantic Healthcare Collaboration) collaborative (but capitalized in formal title: IHI Triple Aim Collaboratives) colour coordinator, coordination co-operate, co-operation cost-benefit [analysis] cost sharing counsel, counselled, counselling, counsellor D decision-maker, decision-making defence, defensive


E e-blast e-collaborative email embedded in (not embedded into) emergency department end-of-life care e-newsletter enroll, enrolled, enrolling, enrolment e-signature evidence-based evidence-informed experience-based [co-design] Executive Training (EXTRA) program EXTRA coach, EXTRA faculty, EXTRA fellow F face-to-face meeting faculty favour First Nations focus, focuses, focused, focusing forums (not fora) front line (but hyphenate before a noun: front-line worker) fulfill, fulfills, fulfilled, fulfilling, fulfillment fundraising G grey (not gray) H healthcare (except: mental health care) high-quality care home care I inpatient care in person [meeting] install, installed, installing, instalment Internet interprofessional J judgment


K L label, labelled, labelling labour Lean (not LEAN when referring to the Lean approach to managing and delivering care) level, levelled, levelling line-up [webinars] long term (as a modified noun: in the long term) long-term (as an adjective: a long-term objective except: long term care) M measurable (not measureable) medicare mental health care model, modelled, modelling Montreal (no accent in English) N not-for-profit organization nurse practitioner-led clinics O off-line off-site On Call [webinar] online on-site (when before a noun: on-site location) organize, organized, organizing, organization outpatient [care] P patient- and family-centred care patient-centred care panel, panellists part time (when a modified noun: They work part time.) part-time (when an adjective: They do part-time work.) pediatric percent (but generally use the % symbol) policy-maker, policy-making postnatal (not post-natal) prenatal (not pre-natal) privatize problem-solving


program (not programme) provincial-territorial (use hyphen, not /) Q Quebec (no accent in English) R recognize re-examine roundtable S skeptical system-level T target, targets, targeted, targeting timeframe timeline total, totals, totalled, totalling travel, travels, travelled, travelling U V value-for-money W [the] web web browser webcast web page website well-being workforce workplace X Y


Z


7.2 Editing checklist Use this checklist when editing to help you catch the most common spelling and grammar mistakes. Spelling

Always check spelling using the spell check tool in Word, but review each suggested change individually instead of accepting all. Be sure the language is set to Canadian English. (See section 5.2 – Spelling.) Also verify spelling using Appendix 7.1 – CFHI spellings.

Numbering

Make sure you have spelled out numbers one through nine and used numerals for 10 and up. Spell out percent when writing, except where space is at a premium, such as the newsletter and website, use numerals and the percent sign (6%) for percentages. Use commas for numbers of 1,000 and more. (See section 5.6 – Numbers.)

Abbreviations

Make sure acronyms and initialisms are spelled out when first being referenced. Avoid using periods or spaces for most abbreviations. (See section 5.3 – Abbreviations.)

Capitalization

Use full capitalization (first letter of each word is capitalized) for the titles of major publications and proper names. Use sentence capitalization (first letter of the first word is capitalized) for headings and sub-headings. (See sections 5.4 – Capitalization and 5.4.5 – Titles and headings.)

Punctuation

Do a ‘find and replace’ to replace double spaces after periods with single spaces and remove spaces before and after obliques (and/or).

Remove the final comma before ‘and’ or ‘or’ in a list, unless needed for clarity. (See section 5.5 – Punctuation.)

Clear writing

Check to make sure you have conveyed your message logically, using plain, concise language. (See section 3 – Importance of clear writing.)

Simple writing

Check to make sure you have used common words, short sentences and paragraphs, and clear headings and sub-headings. (See section 3.2 – Express ideas simply and concisely.)


Sentence structure

As much as possible, use active sentence structure by making sure the subject is the doer of the action and is close to the start of the sentence (use subject-verb-object order). (See section 3.3 – Use a positive, direct tone.)

Consistency

Make sure you use consistent spelling, abbreviations, capitalization, numbers and punctuation throughout your communications materials. (See section 3.5 – Be consistent.)

Lists

Make sure you have used CFHI list format. (See section 5.1.2 – List format.) Visual presentation

Be sure to use tables, figures and other graphics to explain and reinforce information. (See section 3.4 – Make information visually appealing.)

References

Make sure you have used CFHI reference format. (See section 6 – References.)

clarity. simplicity. consistency

Documents