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Constitution
Constitution

Society Constitution

Please see constitution here

BRITISH MATERNAL AND FETAL MEDICINE SOCIETY

 

CONSTITUTION

The Society

The Society shall be known as the British Maternal and Fetal Medicine Society.

Hereafter in the document it will be referred to as “The Society”.

Objects

To advance education in the subject of maternal and fetal medicine and to preserve and protect good health by encouraging improved standards of pregnancy care,

Aims

The Society aims to provide a forum where issues of relevance to Obstetricians and other professionals involved in maternity care are discussed. In particular, the Society seeks to

  • Disseminate knowledge
  • Promote research and audit
  • Establish good quality training programmes
  • Encourage development of clinical guidelines.

The ultimate goal is to encourage improved standards of maternity care.

The Society will provide a Maternal and Fetal Medicine input to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) including advice on training in obstetrics and special interest / subspecialty training in Maternal and Fetal Medicine.  The Society will also make representation to other Colleges and national bodies when appropriate, including providing relevant stakeholder feedback on relevant national documents and guidance.

The Society will develop links to other relevant professional societies with the aim of disseminating knowledge and improving standards of care for pregnant women.

Membership

Membership is open to any professional involved in maternity care.  There will be no limit to the size of membership.  To become a member, a completed application form must be submitted to the Society’s Coordinator, along with the appropriate annual subscription fee.  Subscription rates are set by the Society and revised periodically. Concessionary membership rates will be available for midwives and non-clinicians.  Continued membership involves the payment of the annual subscription fee. Membership will be terminated if there is failure to pay the annual subscription.  The Officers have the right to terminate membership under exceptional circumstances.

Society Officers and Committee Structure

The Officers are the charity trustees (the “Trustees”).

Roles of Officers

The President will:

  • Be the principal spokesperson for the Society
  • Be the named stakeholder when the Society registers involvement in discussions with other Societies or national bodies
  • Chair Officer meetings
  • Chair the Annual General Meeting
  • Be responsible for the accuracy of the minutes of meetings.

 

The Secretary will:

  • Be responsible for coordinating the activities of the Trustees
  • Be responsible for the production of the minutes of the Trustees and Annual General Meetings
  • Collaborate closely with the appointed Conference Organiser
  • Act as deputy to the President in terms of representing the Society at relevant meetings.

 

The Treasurer will:

  • Be responsible for the Society’s finances and producing an annual audit of accounts at the Annual General Meetings.
  • Advise the Trustees about financial issues e.g. when subscription rates need to be raised
  • Advise about the registration fee or any surcharge necessary for Annual Meetings of the Society, to ensure that these Meetings do not run at a financial loss and generate some income for the Society

 

There shall be a Committee which will act as an advisory body to the Trustees with delegated authority to manage and direct day to day operational matters in accordance with its Terms of Reference. The Committee will comprise of 19 members, drawn wherever possible from England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Appointment of Committee Members

  1. Notification of vacancies or new appointments to the Committee will be circulated to Society members (by email or web posting).
  2. Candidates, with their agreement, must be nominated by 2 Society members (by email return of signed nomination paper)
  3. A voting paper with details of candidates will be circulated (by email or web posting).
  4. Votes will take place via an electronic vote.
  5. Members can only vote once for each vacancy advertised.

The Society’s Officers and Committee members will be elected by the membership of the Society for a term of three years.

The President may not be re-elected, but other Officers and Committee members may be re-elected once for a second three-year term.

If a Committee member wishes to be re-elected after the first term, the post does not need to be advertised providing the re-election is supported by two other Committee members. Elections for the position of Honorary Secretary and Treasurer must be advertised.

The post must be advertised for election after the Committee member has been in the post for six years. A willing person can serve a third term, if no other candidates come forward for election.

 

The Committee reserves the right to allow flexibility in the timing of appointments, to ensure continuity within the Committees. It is anticipated that no more than four committee members will change in one year.

Committee Membership:

 

  • President
  • Honorary Secretary
  • Treasurer
  • Scientific representative
  • Trainee representative x 2
  • District General Hospital representative x 2
  • Abstract Co-ordinator
  • Prize Co-ordinator
  • Maternal Medicine representative x 2
  • Labour & Delivery representative x 2
  • Pregnancy Outcome representative x 2
  • Fetal Medicine representative x 2
  • Education and Training representative

In addition, there may be up to six ex officio members:

  • Representative of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM)
  • Representative of the British Association of Perinatal Medicine (BAPM)
  • Website co-ordinator
  • Technology co-ordinator
  • Representative of the British Intrapartum Care Society
  • Representation from MacDonald Obstetric Medicine Society (MOMS)

 

Ex-officio members representing the RCM and BAPM will be elected by their respective organisations for a period of three years but may be re-elected once for a second three-year term. The appointment of other ex-officio members is at the discretion of the Committee. Such appointments will usually be for a period of three years. 

In addition to the above, a representative of the Conference Organiser may be invited to attend Committee Meetings where appropriate.

The quorum for Committee Meetings is 12 out of 19 members, with at least 2 officers.

The Committee will meet at least twice during the year, as necessary to fulfil its functions. The functions of the Committee will be as follows:

  • Development of Maternal and Fetal Medicine special interest and subspecialty training
  • Identification / provision of BMFMS representatives for RCOG and other relevant national committees
  • Organisation of the Annual Meeting of the Society
  • Organisation of joint meetings with other Societies /Groups.

Working Groups

The Trustees may draw up small Working Groups, usually chaired by a Trustee, where an issue is identified needing consultation and discussion.  Members of these Groups will be co-opted from the Society’s wider membership. These Groups will report to the Trustees and their continued existence will be reviewed on an annual basis.

Society Coordinator

The Society will employ a Coordinator whose functions will be:

  • Keeping a full and up-to-date membership list
  • Collecting the annual subscriptions
  • Deal with the day to day financial matters pertaining to the Society
  • Keeping a permanent record of the Minutes of all Society Meetings
  • Keeping on file copies of all correspondence relevant to the Society, including Committee minutes.
  • Communicating with the Society’s members via mail, website posting or email when there are items of news to be disseminated from the Trustees or Committees, or where the members’ views need to be canvassed about a subject.
  • In liaison with the Website Coordinator, maintaining an up-to-date Society website, in liaison with any persons or company employed for that purpose

The Society Coordinator will usually be present at Trustee and Committee meetings.

Conference Organisers

The Trustees will appoint Conference Organisers to deal with the practical arrangements of their Annual Meeting (selecting conference venues, negotiating rates of hire, identifying suitable accommodation, publicity, registration, trade exhibitions etc).  The Trustees will review contracts periodically.

The Conference Organisers will participate in parts of Trustee meetings relevant to Conference Organisation and take minutes accordingly.

Change in Constitution

 

  1. Any change in the Constitution must be proposed at least 2 months in advance of the Annual General Meeting to the Trustees and have a seconder who must also be a Member of the Society.
  2. The decision on the proposal will be on the basis of a straight majority vote of those attending the Annual General Meeting.