Constitution of the AMH

ASSOCIATION FOR MEDICAL HUMANITIES CONSTITUTION

(As amended at the Annual General Meeting held on 20 July 2004)

1. NAME The organisation shall be known as THE ASSOCIATION FOR MEDICAL HUMANITIES (hereafter referred to as "The Association").

2. AIMS The aims of the Association shall be, within the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, to promote the medical humanities in education, healthcare and research. The Association shall organise an Annual Conference.

3. MEMBERSHIP There shall be two forms of membership:

(a) Individual; and

(b) Corporate, who shall be Higher Education Institutions, NHS Trusts and other bona fide organisations, approved by the Council and committed to the aims of the Association. Each shall pay a subscription that shall be determined from time to time by the Annual General Meeting (hereafter referred to as the "AGM").

4. OFFICERS

4.1 The officers of the Association shall be:

(a) The President;

(b) The Secretary and

4.2 The officers shall be elected by secret ballot conducted at the AGM from amongst the members of the Association, and who shall take up office on the following 1 January. The terms of office of the President and the Treasurer shall be for three years and the Secretary four years. They shall not be eligible for immediate re-election into that position for two years. The succeeding President also may not come from the University or institution of his or her predecessor. Only one office may be held at any one time. The Secretary shall seek nominations for the post of President, Secretary and Treasurer at least two months before the AGM. Each nomination shall be made on the prescribed form as provided by the Secretary, and shall be accompanied by the signature of a proposer and two seconders, who shall be individual members of the Association. 4.3 If any officer is unable to continue in office, for whatever reason, the Council shall appoint one of its members to complete that term of office until the next AGM.

5. COUNCIL

5.1 The Council shall consist of the following:

(a) The Officers (ex-officio);

(b) The Editor or Representative Editor of Medical Humanities (ex-officio);

(c) Nine other elected members, all of whom shall be individual members of the Association. Six elected members shall form a quorum at a meeting. The Council shall be chaired by the President, who shall have a casting vote. In the absence of the President, the Council shall appoint one of its members present to take the chair for the duration of that meeting, who also shall have a casting vote.

5.2 Members of the Council as defined above (Section 5.1), who are not ex-officio members, shall be elected by secret ballot conducted at the AGM from amongst the members of the Association. Their term of office shall be three years, three retiring in rotation. They shall not normally be eligible for re-election until one year has elapsed. The Secretary shall seek nominations for the post of Member of Council at least two months before the AGM. Each nomination shall be made on the prescribed form as provided by the Secretary, and shall be accompanied by the signature of a proposer and two seconders, who shall be individual members of the Association. Every effort shall be made to ensure that all centres of medical humanities within the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland are represented in some form on Council. The Council shall have the right to co-opt additional members as they see fit.

5.3 The Council may devolve their work to Sub-Committees, which shall report directly to it. The Council may grant powers of co-option to membership of Sub-Committees. The continued existence of each Sub-Committee shall be subject to annual review.

6. BRANCHES The Association may form local or regional branches in order to facilitate its aims. Each branch shall elect its own officers, may form a Branch Committee and may collect a local subscription. Members of branches must be members of the Association. Each branch shall submit a report of its activities and a certified copy of its accounts to the Secretary as soon as possible after the 31 December of each year.

7. FINANCES

7.1 The finances of the Association shall be administered by the Treasurer and held in a bank account or appropriately invested, as approved by Council. The financial year of the Association shall run from 1 January to 31 December and the Treasurer shall produce audited accounts to the following AGM.

7.2 Two lay auditors, elected by the AGM, shall audit the accounts and shall report to the AGM. They shall serve for a period of three years and shall be eligible for re-election. The Secretary shall seek nominations for the post of Auditor at least two months before the AGM. Each nomination shall be accompanied by the signature of a proposer and two seconders, who shall be individual members of the Association.

8. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

8.1 Subject to Clause 11 below, the AGM of the Association shall normally be held at the time of the Annual Conference. All individual members in good standing and one representative of each corporate member in good standing shall be entitled to attend and vote. Good standing shall mean that the membership subscriptions are fully paid up for that current financial year. The Secretary shall give at least one month's notice in writing to all members. The AGM shall be presided over by the President, who shall have a casting vote as necessary. The quorum of an AGM shall be ten members.

8.2 The AGM shall conduct the following business:

(a) Receive the Report of the Secretary (which shall cover the activities and work of the Council and the Association as a whole since the last AGM);

(b) Receive the Accounts and the Report of the Auditors;

4.2 and 5.2);

(e) Elect the Auditors (in accordance with Section 7.2);

(f) Conduct any other business as so determined by the Council or at the demand of at least ten individual or corporate members in writing to the Secretary at least one month before the due date of the AGM.

9. EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETINGS The Secretary shall convene an Extraordinary General Meeting (hereafter referred to as an "EGM") at the request of the Council or upon the written request of at least one third of members of the Association. All individual members in good standing and one representative of each corporate member in good standing shall be entitled to attend and vote. Such a request shall state the purpose for which the meeting is to be held. The Secretary shall give at least one month's notice in writing to all members of an EGM of the time, venue and business to be transacted. An EGM shall be presided over by the President, who shall have a casting vote as necessary. The quorum of an EGM shall be ten members.

10. AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION This constitution may only be amended at a regular AGM or an EGM especially convened for this purpose. Proposals to amend the constitution shall be made either by the Council or by any individual member of the Association, which has the proposition duly seconded by two other individual members of the Association. All amendments to the constitution shall be adopted only if the proposal to do so at an AGM or an EGM is carried by two-thirds of those present and voting. In the event of the Association achieving charitable status, no amendment to the constitution may be made that has bearing upon that charitable status without first obtaining approval of the Charity Commissioners.