Avera Style Guide

Introduction

Avera Style Guide

The goal of the Avera Style Guide is to provide a reference document that will help communicators across Avera to adopt a style that is consistent and appropriate for use with both external and internal audiences. Although the guide addresses some of the most frequently troublesome issues, it is not intended to be comprehensive.

This editorial guide is designed to help you follow a uniform style in the organization’s written materials. Following the guidelines in this manual will help ensure clarity and consistency in any type of document you write, including:

• Letters
• Memos
• Newsletter articles
• Marketing brochures
• Training materials
• Presentations
• E-mails
• Web content
• Any other business documents

Avera adheres to the writing conventions of The Associated Press Stylebook, which is used by most newspapers, journalists and communicators. Writers in the organization can order a current online or hardcopy through the Associated Press: http://apstylebook.com.

Our documents represent Avera best when written with a consistent editorial style. If you are unsure of how to capitalize, punctuate or refer to someone, or for other questions about editorial style, call the Avera Health Marketing Department at (605) 322-4700, or contact the Marketing Department at your Avera regional center. We welcome the dialogue and want to find solutions that work Avera-wide. For items not covered in this style guide, the default document is The Associated Press Stylebook.

Please note that when writing for academic or professional publications, documents should reflect the editorial style preferred by the publication.

[top]

   

Organizational and Departmental Names

Avera Entities

When providing the name of an Avera entity, always refer to the listing in the most recent Avera map brochure. This brochure is updated frequently to provide the most brand-consistent names of facilities and entities across Avera.

When listing the names of more than one Avera entity, list facilities in alphabetical order by city of location, separated by a semicolon:

Avera St. Luke’s, Aberdeen, S.D.; Avera Marshall Regional Medical Center, Marshall, Minn.; Avera Queen of Peace, Mitchell, S.D.; . . .

The exception would be to list the Avera facility for which you write ahead of those others listed.

 

Avera regional centers include:           

Avera St. Luke’s, Aberdeen, S.D.*
Avera  Marshall Regional Medical Center , Marshall , Minn.
Avera Queen of Peace Health Services, Mitchell , S.D. *
Avera  McKennan Hospital & University Health Center , Sioux Falls , S.D. *
Avera Sacred Heart Health Services, Yankton, S.D.*

Seven Avera partner facilities are sponsored by the Benedictine and Presentation Sisters. In addition to the four regional centers marked (*) above, these include Avera Holy Family Health, Estherville, Iowa; Avera St. Benedict, Parkston, S.D.; and Avera St. Anthony’s, O’Neill, Neb.

Title usage for the Avera Health Central Office, and Avera regional and sponsored facilities is:

Avera St. Luke’s: The only usage options are “Avera St. Luke’s” or “Avera St. Luke’s Hospital.” The full title should always be used when referring specifically to the hospital as a building or location, or in official writing (news releases, memos, etc.). “Avera St.  Luke’s” is acceptable in most other situations.

Avera Holy Family: The only options are “Avera Holy Family Health” or “Avera Holy Family.” The full title should be used as the first referring reference in most circumstances, with “Avera Holy Family” acceptable in succeeding references or for more informal circumstances.

Avera Marshall:  The only options are “Avera Marshall  Regional Medical Center ” or “Avera Marshall.” The nursing home can be referred to as Morningside Heights Care Center or Morningside Heights .

Avera Queen of Peace: The only options are “Avera Queen of Peace Health Services,” “Avera Queen of Peace  Hospital ,” and “Avera Queen of Peace.” The full title, “Avera Queen of Peace Health Services,” should always be used when referring to all entities in the region (i.e., Avera Brady Health and Rehab, Avera Queen of Peace Hospital , Avera Weskota Memorial Medical Center , etc.). When referring to the hospital as a building or location, use “Avera Queen of Peace Hospital .” In most cases, once the full title has been used, it is permissible to use “Avera Queen of Peace.”

Avera St. Anthony’s: The only options are “Avera St. Anthony’s Hospital” or “Avera St. Anthony’s.” The full title should always be used when referring specifically to the hospital as a building or location, or in official writing (news releases, etc.) “Avera St  . Anthony’s” is acceptable in most other situations.

Avera Health:  Use “Avera Health” when referring to the central office building only. All other references to Avera as a system should say “Avera” only.

Avera McKennan: The only options are “Avera  McKennan Hospital & University Health Center ” (first reference) or “Avera McKennan” (second and subsequent references). The full title should always be used when referring specifically to the hospital as a building or location, or in official writing (news releases, etc.). “Avera McKennan” is acceptable in most other situations.

Avera Sacred Heart: Avera  Sacred Heart Hospital : The only options are “Avera Sacred Heart Hospital ” (first reference) or “Avera Sacred Heart” (second and subsequent references). The full title should always be used when referring specifically to the hospital as a building or location, or in official writing (news releases, etc.). “Avera Sacred Heart” is acceptable in most other situations.

Note: for other facilities such as long-term care facilities, the cancer center, etc., the full name should also be used. For example: Avera Sister James Care Center , Avera Sacred Heart Cancer Center , Avera Yankton Care Center .

Acronyms for Avera entities are never appropriate in official writing. The only exception would be usage in charts and tables.

When listing the address of an Avera entity in a publication or on a website (in address form):

• Spell out “street,” “avenue,” etc.
• Abbreviate direction without a period
• Direction abbreviations are one letter only, i.e. N, S, E, W
• Separate by commas
• Place suite numbers on the end of the first address line
• Use the full name of the facility
• Put directional information in parentheses
• Use ZIP code format for state
• Use ZIP code + four whenever possible to ensure faster, more accurate delivery

Midland Campus of Avera St. Luke’s
Meeting Rooms A and B (Use Door #1)
1400 15^th Avenue NW (North on HWY 281), Aberdeen, SD
Physicians  Plaza
201 S Lloyd Street, Suite W240
Aberdeen, SD 57401

Avera System-Wide Initiatives or Awards

Always reference the system-level nature of the award/initiative first, followed by the entity reference as appropriate. For example:

Avera (not “Avera Entity”) is the nation’s only health network to earn eight consecutive “Most Wired” and three consecutive “Most Wireless” Awards.

Avera (not “Avera Entity”) is implementing Avera HealtheCARE™, the region’s most fully interoperable electronic medical record. “Avera Entity” has ___ employees contributing to the development of the process, which will go live in the “Avera Entity” region on (date).

Avera eICU^® CARE, an Avera-wide intensive-care monitoring system, is live at ____ sites throughout the region. The system-wide Avera eICU^® CARE control center is located on the Avera McKennan campus.

No one Avera region should overstate ownership of a system-wide initiative. In the case of some awards, the legal claim on credit must be quoted accurately as designated by the grantor of the award.

Note: Take care to follow trademark, registered mark and style guidelines that are associated with initiatives and awards (i.e., Avera HealtheCARE™, Avera eICU^® CARE, “Most Wired”). When unaware or uncertain about the proper citation, contact the Avera Health Marketing Department.

Sponsorship

The correct citation of Avera’s sponsors is:

            Sponsored by the Benedictine and Presentation Sisters
              NOT: Sponsored by the Presentation and Benedictine Sisters

Locations of the sponsoring communities can be added in text, in which case “Sisters” follows the name of both congregations:

            Sponsored by the Benedictine Sisters of Yankton, S.D., and the Presentation
            Sisters of Aberdeen , S.D.

Avera-Specific Terms

Refer to Avera-specific terms as follows, noting capitalization, trademark, registration, italics, bold, etc.:

             Avera eICU^® CARE – usage must be accompanied by footnote: “eICU^® is a registered trademark of VISICU, Inc.
            SmartAlert^® - usage must be accompanied by a footnote: SmartAlert^® is a registered trademarke of VISICU, Inc.
            Avera HealtheCARE™ (the “e” is lower case, bold, italic)
            CareFlight

Departments

Always capitalize when referring to a structure with a proper name and use the full name during first use.

A fundraiser is planned from 2 – 3 p.m., Friday, Oct. 5, in the main lobby of Avera Sacred Heart Hospital .  This will be the third fundraiser  at Avera Sacred Heart this fall.  The hospital is hoping to raise $30,000 for needed renovations.

Capitalize the names of departments even when the names are flip-flopped:  Pediatrics, Radiology, Department of Radiology, Radiology Department. The word department is never abbreviated. “Department” may be eliminated when it follows a person’s name and title:  Sue King, RN, director, Pediatrics. Do not capitalize “department” when it is preceded or followed by two or more proper nouns:  the Information Technology and Radiology departments.

Maintain consistency in titles:  Do not refer to the Human Resources Department in one citation and the Department of Human Resources in another.

Check with the Marketing Department at your Avera facility for department-specific listings.

[top]

Industry Terms

Some organizations write health care, others health-care, and still others, healthcare. Our style is to write it as two words: health care.

Avera is committed to delivering quality health care to children.

Follow an organization’s spelling of its name if it differs from our standard.

Institute for Healthcare Improvement

Here are examples of Avera’s style on other health care industry terms:

co-pay, co-payment
health maintenance organizations (HMOs) - Use HMOs on second reference.
long-term care (Note the hyphen)
managed care - Hyphenate only if the phrase is used as an adjective: the
             managed-care industry
payor – Although some organizations prefer payer, Avera uses this widely
              accepted industry spelling.
rehabilitation therapy - The term rehab therapy may be used for variety, but only after the full term has appeared at least once.

At Avera Queen of Peace, patients, families and physicians find a new level of pediatric therapy and rehabilitation care. The center is designed to handle the specialized rehab needs of infants through young adults.

subspecialty (no hyphen)

Treat names of infectious microorganisms as you would biological terms: italicize the genus and species designation but not English derivations of the word.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis
tuberculosis

Do not capitalize the names of diseases, syndromes, tests and other medical terms, except for proper nouns that are part of the names.

influenza 
Down syndrome

When referring to specific vitamins, capitalize only the letter representing the vitamin.

             vitamin C (not Vitamin C)
             vitamin B-12/vitamin B12

HDL cholesterol—No hyphen. HDL cholesterol can be used on first reference. HDL stands for high-density lipoprotein, the “good” cholesterol.

LDL cholesterol—No hyphen. LDL cholesterol can be used on first reference. LDL stands for low-density lipoprotein, the “bad” cholesterol.

[top]

updated 7/12/07