Constitution and By-Laws of the Rocky Mountain Vascular Society
Constitution
Article I: Name and Objectives
Section 1. The name of this organization shall be: The Rocky Mountain Vascular Society
Section 2. Objectives:
- To improve the quality of vascular health in the Rocky Mountain region.
- To maintain high standards in the delivery of vascular health care.
- To promote the professional development of those physicians and allied health care providers who specialize in vascular health care delivery and to encourage those practitioners who have recently entered the field.
- To provide a forum for scientific presentations and discussions.
Article II: Membership
Section 1. Membership in this Society shall be limited to physicians or allied health providers of good professional standing who have a major interest and an active practice in the diagnosis and management of vascular disease.
Section 2. Candidates for membership must be Diplomats of the American Board of Surgery, Radiology, Medicine or Podiatry. Equivalent training may be acceptable in lieu of formal certification in cases for individual consideration.
Section 3. There shall be four types of membership: Active, Senior, Honorary and Associate Member as provided in the By-Laws.
Section 4. To remain in good standing, all members must abide by the rules and regulations of the Society.
Section 5. Any numerical limit to membership will be specified in the By-Laws.
Section 6. All surgeons granted membership in 1979 and 1980 shall be considered Charter Members.
Article III: Officers, Council
Section 1. Officers of this Society shall consist of a President, a President-Elect, a Secretary-Treasurer, a Scientific Coordinator and Councilmen.
Section 2. The Officers shall be elected at the Annual Meeting of the Society in accordance with the procedures set forth in the By-Laws.
Section 3. The composition and duties of the Council shall be defined in the By-Laws.
Article IV: Meetings
Section 1. An Annual Assembly of the Society shall be held in accordance with the By-Laws.
Section 2. Special meetings of the Council may be called at the discretion of the President, provided that special meetings which are called to act on an amendment to the By-Laws are approved by the Council.
Article V: Amendments
Section 1. The Society may alter or repeal any article of this Constitution by two-third affirmation vote of members present at the Annual Assembly, plus those voting by proxy, provided that a copy of the proposed change has been delivered to each voting member 60 days in advance of the Assembly Meeting.
Section 2. Amendments to the By-Laws may be made at the Annual Meeting provided a quorum, as defined in the By-Laws, is present.
By-Laws
Article I: Election of Members
Section 1. Members shall be physicians or allied health care providers.
Section 2. Accepted qualifications for membership into the RMVS shall consist of, at least, one of the following:
- Membership in the Society of Vascular Surgery.
- Completion of an approved Vascular Surgical Fellowship or its equivalent (to be confirmed by a letter from the Fellowship Program Chairman).
- The submission of 70 consecutive, reconstructive vascular surgical cases to the Membership Committee for consideration. The cases shall be dated and their initial outcome shall be recorded.
- Certificate of Special Competence in General/Vascular Surgery.
- Non-surgical physicians whose primary area of practice involves vascular health care delivery (to be confirmed by a letter from either their hospital's Chief of Staff or Chairman of the Department).
Section 3. Membership shall be initiated by invitation only. A completed application for membership shall consist of:
- A completed membership application form signed by the applicant.
- Proof of membership in the Society for Vascular Surgery, or proof of completion of an approved Vascular Surgical Fellowship Program, or proof of Certificate of Special Competence in General/Vascular Surgery, or submission of a list of 70 consecutive reconstructive, vascular surgical cases, or evidence of clinical focus in the area of vascular health care delivery.
- A letter of recommendation from the applicant's sponsor.
- The Curriculum Vitae of the applicant.
- Completed applications shall be reviewed by the Membership Committee, which has the right to accept or reject any application. Election shall be by secret ballot, and by a three-fourths affirmative vote of the members present.
Section 4. An Active Member who reaches the age of 65 in any given year shall be elevated to Senior Member status at the next meeting of the Council. He shall be excused from paying dues and annual meeting attendance requirements shall be waived, unless he is an officer or Councilor at the time.
Section 5. Associate Member status is open to physicians whose primary area of practice is other than vascular health care delivery, as well as non-physicians who have distinguished themselves as dedicated providers in the field. Associate Members may attend the social, business and scientific functions of the Society but shall be non-voting members and shall not hold office.
Article II: Officers, Council
Section 1. The Council shall consist of the officers, the three Immediate Past Presidents, and four Councilors-at-Large; a total of eleven members, with quorum of five.
Section 2. The President and President-Elect shall be elected for terms of one year each. The Secretary-Treasurer shall be elected for a three-year term. The Scientific Coordinator shall serve a four-year term. Councilors-at-Large shall be elected for four-year terms.
Section 3. The President shall preside at Council meetings and the Annual Assembly, prepare and present an address at the Annual Assembly, and appoint the members of all standing and ad hoc committees.
Section 4. The President-Elect shall perform the duties of the President in his absence or incapacity.
Section 5. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep minutes of the annual business meetings, receive and care for all records, conduct the correspondence of the Society, receive all moneys and funds, pay all bills, render bills for dues and assessments, and report to the Council and Membership at the Annual Assembly meeting.
Section 6. The Scientific Coordinator shall make an annual report to the Society on coordinated, cooperative research and shall be the primary organizing physician for cooperative scientific research within the Society.
Article III: Committees
Section 1. Committees of the Society shall consist of a Membership Committee, a Nominating Committee, a Program Committee, a Committee on Arrangements for the Annual Assembly, and an Auditing Committee.
Section 2. The Membership Committee shall consist of the Senior Councilman, the Secretary-Treasurer as Chairman, and the President-Elect of the Society.
Section 3. The Nominating Committee shall be composed of the most recent Immediate Past President and second and third year Councilors-at-Large.
Section 4. The Program Committee, the Committee on Arrangements for the Annual Assembly, and the Auditing Committee shall be appointed each year by the incoming President.
Section 5. Other committees may be designated by the President with the advice of the Council.
Section 6. All committees shall be chaired by a member appointed by the President with the advice of the Council.
Article IV: Meetings
Section 1. An Annual Assembly of the Society shall be held at the time and place to be determined by the Council.
Section 2. During the Annual Assembly, there shall be an Executive Session of the membership. Officers of the Society and Councilors-at-Large shall be elected by a majority vote of the Active, Senior, Corresponding, and Non-Resident Membership present, provided a quorum is present.
Section 3. Any Active or Associate Member who is absent from three consecutive Annual Assembly Meetings without excusable cause accepted by Council shall be dropped from membership.
Section 4. Unless otherwise determined by Council, any member of the Society may invite one practicing vascular health care provider to attend the Annual Assembly. Additional attendance by residents and/or vascular surgical fellows shall be encouraged and not limited.
Article V: Fees, Dues
Section 1. Initiation fees, dues and assessments shall be levied by the Council and approved by the membership at the Annual Assembly.
Section 2. An Active Member whose dues remain unpaid for a period of one year shall be dropped from membership, provided that notification of such lapse be given at least three months prior to its effective date.
Section 3. Senior Members and Honorary Members shall be exempt from dues.
Article VI: Resignation, Expulsions
Section 1. Resignation of members otherwise in good standing shall be accepted by the majority vote of the Council.
Section 2. Charges of unprofessional or unethical conduct must be specific, proffered in writing, and submitted to the Council. Concurrence of two-thirds or more Council members with the charges shall result in expulsion.
Article VII: Quorum
Section 1. A minimum one-third of, jointly, all Active and Senior Members shall constitute a quorum at the Annual Assembly to effect changes in the Constitution and By-Laws, make assessments, authorize appropriations, elect officers and members, and expel members.
Section 2. For the transaction of business, the members present at any Annual Assembly shall constitute a quorum.
Article VIII: Alterations, Repeal
These By-Laws may be altered or repealed at the Annual Assembly by a two-thirds affirmative vote of members present, provided a quorum exists.
Article IX: Procedure
Proceedings of the Society shall be conducted in accordance with the current edition of Roberts' Rules of Order, Newly Revised.
Scientific Program Format
Objective: The purpose of the scientific portion of the annual meeting is to educate each other in an enjoyable and painless way, involving members in discussion to solicit the wide personal experience of the members and guests. Meetings will be informal with no efforts to present manuscripts for publication.
1. Topic Discussion: A currently controversial topic will be selected by the program chairman and a topic moderator will be chosen. The moderator may give a 2–3 minute introduction. After a 5-minute argument by each panelist, the discussion will be open to the membership. A discussion topic should last 30–45 minutes.
2. Case Presentations: A moderator is chosen who will solicit interesting case material from members weeks or months before the meeting. After the case is presented in 2–3 minutes, either a pre-selected panel or the general membership will discuss the case.
3. Lecture: This should be the least used method of presentation since it involves the audience the least. The main use of a lecture is to present new material that cannot be effectively presented any other way.
The special guest lecturer will be chosen yearly by the President and will be asked to give a 30–40 minute presentation of new material, followed by a discussion led by the President.
Originally approved April 19, 1985 · Amended July 25, 2011