By Laws

Constitution and Rules of the Pakistan Cardiac Society

Constitution and Rules of

the Pakistan Cardiac Society

(Registered under Act XXI OF 1860)

(Approved November 2015)

The name of the society is “PAKISTAN CARDIAC SOCIETY”.

Objectives:

The objectives for which the society is established are as under:

To promote and propagate the causes of cardiovascular sciences and for that purpose hold meeting, symposia, seminars, lectures and clinical demonstrations.
To publish scientific material on topics related to cardiovascular sciences.
To carry out and promote research in cardiovascular sciences and to award research fellowships and scholarships.
To spread modern concepts of preventive and clinical cardiovascular medicine and health education among the public and health care provider.
To advocate and influence policy makers and implementers in creating conducive environment for cardiovascular disease prevention and management.
To develop and implement credentialing and quality standards in all aspects of cardiovascular health care.
To seek co-operation of, and /or affiliation with, other national medical bodies.
To establish contacts and co-operations with associations, societies and bodies in other countries having objectives wholly or partly similar to those of this association.
To accept any bequest, gift, donation and subscription towards or to accumulate and provide a fund for all or any of the objectives of the association.
To do all such other things as may be found necessary or proper for the achievement of the above objectives or any of them.

Membership:

The society shall consist of founder members, full members, life members, associate members and honorary members.

Founder Members:

All full members enrolled before the inauguration of the society shall be deemed as founder members.

Full Members:

Full members shall be Physicians or Surgeons holding a major post graduate qualification in the field of cardiovascular medicine/surgery or allied subjects or others who as associate members have demonstrated commitment and dedication towards the objectives of the society.

Life Members:

A full member in good standing shall be eligible to apply for Life membership on payment of onetime fee of Rs. Twenty five thousand only as lump sum. The life member will then not be liable to annual membership fee.

Associate Members:

Associate member shall be elected form physicians with minor post graduate qualification or medical graduates undergoing training in various disciplines of cardiovascular medicine/surgery. Associate members shall be elected for a period of three years. At the end of three years associate members may be re-elected or their status changed to full membership at the discretion of the council.Associate members may take part in the scientific activities and may attend but not take part in the private business of the society.

Honorary Members:

Honorary members shall be those persons who having played a significant role in promoting and advancing the cause of cardiovascular sciences in Pakistan and are elected as honorary members by the council. The affirmative votes of two thirds of the Members voting shall be necessary for election. Honorary member shall not pay admission or membership fee.

Election of Full/ Associate Members:

Full members may propose and second a candidate for Full/Associate Membership. Such proposals, accompanied by a statement of the candidate’s professional status, appointments and published work, shall be sent to the secretary for election purpose.

Membership Subscription:

The subscription shall be rupees two thousand five hundred only per year for full membership and rupees one thousand only per year for associate membership. A onetime admission fee of rupees two thousand five hundred only will be applicable for full membership and rupees one thousand only for associate membership. Annual subscription will include subscription to the Pakistan Heart Journal and a special registration fee for the annual scientific conferences.A member shall cease to be a member of the Society, if he/she fails to pay his/her subscription for consecutive two years. He/she will then have to be readmitted as a new member if an application for the same is received..

Corporate Affiliates:

Corporate affiliates will be approved annually by the council from pharmaceutical and device industry that have applied for the same and have agreed to the terms and conditions of this association as decided by the council.This association will in no way be considered endorsement for the company or any of its products. The affiliate will not be entitled to use the name and/or logo of the society for promotion/ advertisement of any of their products

Annual Scientific Conferences

Annual Scientific Conference (CARDIOCON) will be held near the end of each year along with the general body meeting at an appropriate venue approved by the general body. Convener of the annual conference will also be approved by the general body. Bids to hold the conference will be submitted to the council through secretary at least one month before the general body meeting. Venue of the conference and the convener will be decided two years before the expected date.
Other scientific conferences may be held during the year at appropriate venues as approved by the general body. Convener of these conferences shall be nominated by the council and approved by the general body.
The conveners of the scientific conferences with support from the council will arrange funds as needed for this purpose. They may use the central account or a subaccount of the society. This account will be audited by the auditor appointed by the council for this purpose and submitted to treasurer within the same financial year.

Annual General Body Meeting:

An Annual General Body Meeting shall be held at the time of annual scientific conference and additional General meetings may be arranged at the discretion of the Council.
The general body meeting will be chaired by the President, his nominee or any other member appointed by the general body.
One third of the total members of the Society shall form the quorum at all meetings of the General Body. If within 15 minutes form the time appointed for the general body meeting a quorum is not formed, the meeting shall stand adjourned to be fixed at the meeting of which due notice shall be given. No quorum shall be necessary at such an adjourned meeting.
The accounts of the Society shall be submitted to the general body on annual basis.

Council:

The affairs of the society shall be managed by the Council consisting of President, immediate past President, President elect, Vice President, secretary, immediate past secretary, joint secretary, treasurer, and chief editor of Pakistan Heart Journal. One or two chairpersons of the scientific councils and/or local chapter coordinators may be co-opted by the Council, as and when necessary.
The council shall be elected by the General Body every year except Secretary General, treasurer and Chief Editor Pakistan Heart Journal who will have a term of two years. Every council shall work till the next election or beginning of the calendar year whichever is earlier. A member of the Council shall be eligible for re-election in the next elections.
The Council shall have the power to fill up all casual vacancies in its membership and every member or office bearer so appointed by the Council shall hold office till the next election of the Council.
One third of the total members including office bearers shall form a quorum at the meetings of the Council. Meetings adjourned for want of quorum, can be conducted subsequently without a quorum provided that the usual notice of the adjourned meeting is given. There will be a minimum of three meeting in one calendar year.

The President:

The President shall be head of the Society. He/she or the nominee will represent the society at home and abroad and, shall preside over meetings of the council. The President shall have a casing vote, if need be.

President – Elect:

President –Elect shall be elected at the annual general body meeting. The candidates for the post will be proposed and seconded by members of good standing. The candidate should be of reputable standing and integrity and should be member of the society for at least ten years. President – Elect shall exercise such powers as may from time to time be delegated and assigned by the President. He/she shall function as President in the absence of the President and Vice President.

Vice President:

Vice President shall be elected at the annual general body meeting. He/she shall exercise such powers as may from time to time be delegated or assigned by the President. He/she shall also function as president in the absence of later.

Secretary:

The Secretary shall be elected at the annual general body meeting for a period of two years. He/she shall summon all meetings, circulate agenda to the members, and be responsible in co-operation with the convener of the annual scientific conference for arranging the annual general body meeting of the Society and holding elections. The Secretary shall brief minutes of the proceedings of the Society and circulate these to the members within four weeks of the meeting.

Joint Secretary:

Joint Secretary shall be elected at the annual general body meeting. He/she shall perform such duties as may from time to time be allotted by the president and function as secretary in the absence of later.

Treasurer:

The Treasurer shall keep accounts, collect subscriptions and be responsible for maintaining and proper audit of the accounts of the society. He/she will also ensure compliance with the national rules and regulations concerning the financial matters of the society. For this purpose, he/she will be assisted by an auditor and tax lawyer as appointed by the council.

Office of the Society:

Society will have a permanent office with secretarial staff as deemed necessary for smooth running of its administrative functions. An administrative officer shall be appointed by the council who will be responsible to oversee all the administrative functions including regular communication among the local chapters, scientific councils and member at large. He/ she will also be responsible for arrangements of all the business meetings of the council. He /she will also assist the conveners in arrangements of the scientific conferences. He/she shall also be responsible to maintain the official website of the society.

General:

The official year of the society shall be the calendar year for purpose of account and elections and change of Council.
Decisions at all meetings shall be made by a majority of votes taken by show of hands or ballot as agreed by the general body. In case of ballot, chairman will have the discretion to decide on the form of the ballot.
The Rules of the Society shall not be changed unless, at the annual general body meeting, two-third of the members present vote in favor of such a change. Notice of the suggested change must be given in writing, at least one month before the meeting to the secretary of the council, who shall notify all members of the proposal at least one week before the meeting.
All movable and immovable property acquired by the society shall belong to and vest in the society.
The Society shall not be dissolved unless 80 percent of all the members of the Society vote for its dissolution. If, for reasons, the Society shall be dissolved, all the property and funds of the society after all its liabilities have been discharged, shall be handed over to a society or institution with similar objectives which shall be determined by then existing general body.

Scientific Councils:

Pakistan Cardiac Society shall have scientific councils in various disciplines of cardiovascular sciences as deemed necessary by the council.

A chairperson of each scientific council will be nominated by the council for a period of one year.
Chairperson in consultation with the council will select appropriate number of members from across the country with expertise in the relevant field.
Chairpersons on behalf of their scientific councils will submit to the council a plan of action for their tenure within one month of accepting the nomination.
The function of the scientific councils shall be to effectively implement the objectives of Pakistan Cardiac Society at a national level with particular emphasis on practice guidelines and roadmaps for disease prevention.
The scientific council shall hold at least three meetings per year to achieve its objectives.

Local Chapters:

Pakistan Cardiac Society shall have chapters in all cities with sizeable presence of its members.

These chapters shall comprise of members of the Pakistan Cardiac Society in these cities.
A Coordinator for local chapter will be nominated by the Council for a period of one year who will then form a working group from among the members in that city.
The function of the local chapters shall be to effectively implement the objectives of Pakistan Cardiac Society.
The local chapter shall hold at least three meetings per year for the purpose of continuing education.
The coordinator shall keep the account of the Local Chapter and present to the Pakistan Cardiac Society its audited account every year