Constitution
Consitution And Rules
The Irish Cardiac Society Consitution and Rules.
Constitution
1. The Society shall be called “The Irish Cardiac Society”. Its object shall be the advancement of knowledge of Disease of the Heart and Circulation.
2. These objects shall be pursued by meetings for communications and discussions, by lectures and by any other means.
3. The rules of the Society shall not be changed unless at the Annual General Meeting two-thirds of the Ordinary Members present vote in favour of the change. Notice of the suggested change must be sent to the Secretary, who shall notify all Ordinary Members of the proposal at least one month before the meeting.
4. There shall be a President of the Society. He shall be elected for two years. He will represent the Society at home and abroad and will preside over meetings of the Council but not necessarily at the Scientific Meeting of the Society for which a local Chairman may be elected.
Membership
5. The Society shall consist of Ordinary and Extraordinary Members. They shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Ordinary Members present at the Meeting. The Annual subscription will be determined at the Annual General Meeting.
Ordinary Members
6. Ordinary Members shall be Physicians or Surgeons on the Consultant Staff of a Hospital or others whose primary interest is in the practice of Cardiology, Cardiovascular Surgery, or in research in these and allied subjects.
7. They shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Ordinary Members present at the Meeting. Every Ordinary Member is required to pay the annual subscription to the Society. A member who fails to pay the annual subscription on tow consecutive years will be deemed to have resigned from the Society.
8. New Members are proposed and seconded by current Members of the Society. A current Curriculum Vita must accompany the proposal for Membership.
Extraordinary Members
9. A Member will cease to be an Ordinary Member at the end of the academic year in which he reaches his sixty-fifth birthday. He shall automatically thereafter become an Extraordinary Member unless he should elect to retire from the Society.
10. Extraordinary Members shall receive the notices, may attend the meetings of the Society, may take part in the proceedings and may propose candidates for ordinary membership. They shall have no vote in the conduct of private business otherwise.
Honorary and Corresponding Members
11. Men or women of distinction in Medicine, at home or abroad, who have contributed to the advancement of Cardiology, may be recommended by the Council for election as Honorary Members.
Election of Members
12. Ordinary and Extraordinary Members may propose candidates from Ordinary membership and other categories of membership. Such proposals accompanied by a statement of the candidates professional status, public appointments and published works, shall be circulated to Members of Council by the Secretary before September 1st. The Council shall consider the names proposed and shall recommend the names of those thought most suitable. The list of names recommended shall be circulated to members by the Secretary at least one month before the Annual General Meeting.
13. The Society shall hold an Annual Meeting which will usually be held in conjunction with the Stokes Lecture and the Scientific Meeting. The Council may organize further meetings at its discretion.
14. The Chairman of each Meting shall be appointed by the Council.
15. An Extra-Ordinary/Special Meeting can be called when circumstances demand, by three Officers of the Council or one third of the Ordinary Members of the Society.
16. Visitors may, with the permission of the Chairman, be introduced by members. They may make contributions and take part in discussions, subject to the same rules as members.
17. Communication shall be spoken, not read, and all speakers shall conform to the time-table arranged by the Council.
18. No reporters shall be permitted to be present and no report of the meetings shall be published in journals or newspapers unless sent by the Council.
Election of Officers and Council
19. Nominations of Ordinary Members for the post of president, Treasurer, Secretary, Assistant Secretary and for Members of the Council may be made by any Ordinary Member and sent in writing, with the consent of the nominee, to the Secretary before September 1st. In the normal course of events the Assistant Secretary will succeed the Secretary. The nominations shall be made at the Annual General Meeting and those names receiving the most votes shall be declared elected. In the event of a draw for any office, the Council shall decide the member to be elected.
20. The business of the Society shall be conducted by a Council which shall arrange the programme of each meeting. The Council shall consist of a President, Secretary, Assistant Secretary, Treasurer and three Ordinary Members. In addition the President-elect shall serve as a Council Member for the year before he takes Office and the immediate past-President shall be a Council Member for one year after he vacates Office. Each ordinary member of Council shall serve for a period of three years. The Council shall have power to co-opt one or two additional members for a period of up to three years, if they think there is any special reason for it.
21. The subscription for all categories of membership shall be fixed by the Council and shall become payable by the 1st day of January. Failure to pay the subscription due within two years shall be considered equivalent to resignation.
22. The account of the Society shall be submitted to the Society by the Council at each Annual General Meeting.
Secretaries and Treasurer
23. Two Ordinary Members shall be elected in accordance with Rule 21 as Secretary and Treasurer respectively.
24. The Secretary, Assistant Secretary and Treasurer of the Society shall be appointed for a period of two years initially. A member can serve only two consecutive terms in each of these posts. To facilitate a smooth transition the post of Secretary should be generally filled by the outgoing Assistant Secretary.
25. The Secretary shall summon all meetings, circulate the programme to members at least one month before the meeting and be responsible in co-operation with the Chairman Elect for arranging the Annual General Meeting on behalf of the Council. The Secretary shall keep brief Minutes of the proceedings of the Society.
26. The Treasurer shall keep the accounts, collect subscriptions and be responsible for the expenditure of the Society.
