SPMPO AGM Minutes1April 21, 2013

SPMPO AGM

Sunday April 21, 2013

Minutes

Vancouver Public Library, 350 W. Georgia St.

Vancouver BC

12:45 pm PST

Opening of Meetingat 12:50pm PST and recording of attendance

Attending in person:

SPMPO AGM Minutes1April 21, 2013

Gail Abernethy

Sarah Stranan

Cal Steel

Pansy Jang

Axel Delaplange

Don Griffis

Tony Matthews

Howard Dieno

Lyndsay Sayers

SPMPO AGM Minutes1April 21, 2013

Attending on Skype:

SPMPO AGM Minutes1April 21, 2013

Scott Lawrence

Julie Brown

Melanie Swithin-Jones

CristallinToullec

Caryn Seniscal*

Alex Evans*

SPMPO AGM Minutes1April 21, 2013

* added to call at 1:10 PST

Apologies:

SPMPO AGM Minutes1April 21, 2013

Paul Wagner

Suzanne Pineault

Imogen Wood

Paul Roberts

Dickson Wong

Cameron MoffattRichard Gibbon

Larry Jiang

Doug Markert

SPMPO AGM Minutes1April 21, 2013

  1. Adoption of Agenda
  2. previously distributed agenda is adopted by Sarah Stranan and seconded by Cal Steel,adopted unanimously
  1. Minutes of 2012 AGM
  2. Previously distributed minutes from the AGM in 2012 is read and moved by Julie Brown seconded by Pansy Jang adopted by all, one opposition Tony Matthews
  1. Report from President
  2. Gail Abernethy reads her report (see attatched)
  1. Report from Secretary
  2. 31 members
  3. New members: Francois Amigues, Axel Delaplagne, Don Griffis, Paul Roberts, AnieRodier, Kate Spurling, Andy Temple and Imogen Wood
  4. Members Leaving Kate Spurling moving to Ontario, Scott Lawrence now moved to Alberta and Carolynne Abrams left.
  1. Report from Treasurer (see attatched)
  2. Financial statements 2012
  3. Sarah Stranan presents the financial statement from 2012 explaining the breakdown of the costs.
  4. Moved by Pansy Jang and seconded by Caryn Seniscal, unanimously approved
  5. Presentation, discussion and adoption of Budget 2013
  6. Sarah Stranan presents the proposed budget for the upcoming financial year. Question of what the video section is, it is said that this would be used for the education of the public and may be something that is done in collaboration with other provincial associations as has been said at previous CFO meetings.
  7. Adoption of the budget is proposed by Howard Dieno seconded by Julie Brown unanimously adopted.
  8. There is no need for an increase in fees this year due to the current financial status and proposed budget being approved.
  9. Proposal to change banks.
  10. Sarah Stranan presents the proposal to change the SPMPO bank to CIBC as there are more branches in the province making this process more convenient. The current bank, coast[P1] capital only has branches on the island and the lower mainland which is limiting if any member outside of this area wants to be nominated as treasurer. CIBC does however have fees of $4 per month.
  11. Proposal to move from Coast Capital to CIBC moved by Sarah Stranan seconded by Don Griffis all in favour unanimously.
  12. There is a discussion of the contingency fund, a contingency fund was approved at the last AGM and over the last year it has been discovered that ongoing legal advice can be needed for Bylaw changes. Also potential with HST or profession title issues.
  13. There is a motion that a contingency fund will be kept in a savings account at CIBC. Howard raises the question of what policy would be in place for use of contingency fund. There is discussion of this that contingency means unexpected, it is suggested that approval of use of these funds could only be approved at a general meeting. It is raised that this may take too long to be approved if a quicker decision is needed, maybe an email vote may be a better idea. Or potentially a survey monkey ballot.
  14. Motion: A contingency fund to be placed into a separate savings account at CIBC with initial starting amount of $15,000. To be accessed only with member approval at a general meeting. This amendment is moved by Sarah Stranan, seconded by Cal Steel and this is unanimous.
  15. The adoption of this is moved by Howard Dienoseconded by Don Griffis and is unanimous adopted.
  1. Report on insurance issues- Julie
  2. Julie presents the insurance report (see attached)
  3. Motion: That the board form a committee to review and revise the code of conduct, and standards of practice and develop associated policy to ensure that they are upheld by members.
  4. Motion by Howard, seconded by Cal.Unanimous.

* Scott has left the meeting, minutes now recorded by J. Brown

  1. Proposal to amend code of conduct
  2. When the agenda went out, the code of conduct proposal was not attached. Though we had sent out notice regarding this proposal in Dec, 2012, it was not formally introduced with 14 days notice. As such, no vote will occur today, but we will discuss the proposed change.
  3. An Osteopathic Practitioner must maintain his or her knowledge and practice at an acceptable level of competence - by demonstrating the willingness to earn continuing professional development (CPD) credits annually. Until such time as a sufficient number of relevant CPD courses are locally available, however, there will be no stipulation as to the minimum number of these credits to be earned annually (red sentence to be removed)
  4. ADD:
  5. 18. An Osteopathic Practitioner will act with civility and courtesy towards colleagues and coworkers
  6. 19. An Osteopathic Practitioner should uphold the reputation of the profession and the SPMPO through his or her conduct. This includes maintaining the same standards of conduct in online activities (emails, blogs, social networks, websites) as would be expected elsewhere
  7. Lyndsay raises the point that we will also need to review point 16, specifically in regard to student members, and its implications regarding ethics approval for research
  8. These items will be included in the committee review, and redevelopment of the code of conduct and standards of practice document, and proposed to members for review, motion to adopt and vote at a future general meeting
  1. Proposal to include compulsory Continuing Professional Development of 50hrs over 2 years in qualification for continuing membership. Proposed timing: 6 months to establish details of program. 50 hrs. banked by end of March 2016 and every 2 years thereafter
  2. This is inline with most osteopathic associations – both regulated and unregulated
  3. GOsC 30 hours / years, Alberta 30 hours/year, Ontario 75/ 3 years
  4. Discussion:
  5. Alex asked re: will there be two criteria regarding learning with others, vs. learning alone
  6. Gail suggesting that what we need is a general consensus that this is the direction that we need to go in, and have a motion to continue with establishing the details of this program
  7. Tony: the proposed 6 months is too short
  8. Gail: we have access to other associations material, thus we are not be developing it from scratch
  9. Sarah: we are a small organization, and we need to start with a simple structure, and grow in complexity over time
  10. Pansy: TCM association has 50 hours, with a breakdown of structure between online, association contribution, journals, learning with others etc.
  11. Lyndsay: there still aren’t a lot of options for courses in Vancouver, concerned that it could be a deterrent to be a member in the association
  12. Caryn: not all the courses need to be osteopathic, and if the category is broad regarding manual courses that this increases access, and that there should be room for this in our guidelines
  1. Motion: CPD of 50 hours over 2 years in qualification for continuing membership be included in membership requirements, and to form a committee to develop this over the next 6 months. Proposed by Sarah, Seconded by: Cal

Vote: Lyndsay abstains, all others in favour

* Cal has left the meeting to catch her ferry.

  1. Proposal to allow non-voting student members
  2. Paul Wagner sends his regrets, otherwise he would speak to this
  3. We (SPMPO) have addressed this in past, with concerns regarding thesis writers practicing without properly identifying themselves as students, and not osteopathic practitioners
  4. We (the current board) feel that if they are members, we can support them to understand the importance of properly identifying themselves
  5. Discussion, key points
  6. We need to increase our numbers for several reasons
  7. Having 5th year and thesis writer students are most applicable, and will benefit from being part of the community and being welcomed to the society they will be part of when they are eligible for full membership
  8. They will be able to contribute to discussions, and share their perspectives, but will not be able to vote until they are full members
  9. We cannot have more non-voting members than voting members, however we can apply for an exception to this if the situation arises, the BC Societies have advised us that we can apply for this exception as the need arises, and we do not have to do this in advance
  10. This will require bylaw changes
  11. Howard: does not have an objection, provided there are proper definitions of how they may engage, that they may participate in the discussion, but not have a say in the direction that society goes
  12. If this proposal is accepted, the board will work on the details in consultation with our lawyer, and bring the policy back for a vote at a general meeting
  13. Motion to allow non-voting student members in the SPMPO, to develop bylaws for the conditions of their participation. Moved by Don, Sarah seconds. Vote: unanimous
  1. Announcement of Nominations to Board of Directors 2013:
  1. The current board resigns at every AGM, the term is one year. Thus, the nominations which were received in accordance with the bylaws are listed below.
  1. The nominations are:
  1. President: Gail Abernethy
  2. Vice President: Julie Brown
  3. Treasurer: Sarah Stranan
  4. Secretary: Pansy Jang
  5. Director: CristallinToullec
  6. Director: Lyndsay Sayers
  7. Director: Imogen Wood
  1. As the nominations did not have more than one person per position, the board is acclaimed as follows:
  1. President: Gail Abernethy
  2. Vice President: Julie Brown
  3. Treasurer: Sarah Stranan
  4. Secretary: Pansy Jang
  5. Director: CristallinToullec
  6. Director: Lyndsay Sayers
  7. Director: Imogen Wood
  1. Canadian Federation of Osteopaths (CFO) report, including HST/GST update
  2. Amalgamation of the ROQ and ADOQ to form the Osteopathie Quebec.
  3. Because of our large numbers, the CFO is now investigating the possibility of having a specific insurance policy underwritten for osteopathy
  4. HST/GST
  5. No news. Our file remains with the same lawyer, and our file has been moved to the finance department.
  6. Our lawyer does not know when the attention will return to our file, but in the meantime we remain exempt because it is on hold, and we have a file number to cite
  7. The lawyer recommends that we not change our hst/gst status while our file is under review
  8. Lyndsay & Pansy: are both registered for HST, due to their other qualifications.
  9. Website upgrade
  10. We have some money allocated for a facelift, front end and backend
  11. We are working to link this site, so that it is higher profile
  12. If people have requests for content, or suggestions, please forward them to Julie
  13. Affiliation with other organizations
  14. Associate with the European Association of Osteopaths
  15. Strengthening of our worldwide networks
  16. Membership Committee
  17. Working to encourage membership in all provinces, and to secure title protection in all provinces where we are not represented
  18. Manitoba, New Brunswick & Saskatchewan are under development
  19. National Academy of Osteopathy (NAO), and the Canadian Manaual Osteopathy Examinig Board (CMOEMB)
  20. This is of great concern, the Osteophic International Alliance (OIA) is handling this in the countries where there is regulation
  1. OIA report.
  2. The Canadian Osteopathic Association (COA) is no longer a member [The COA is the association of Osteopathic Physicians in Canada]
  3. They are aware of the NAO, and are dealing with it where there are regulations
  4. Next AGM in Austin Texas in January, Osteopathy a Global Presence
  5. CFO president went to OIA conference in Orlando, and she continued work on work the policy document regarding the Osteopath title in all of North America; Previous, a document produced by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) had asserted that the title Osteopath was reserved for use by Osteopathic Physicians throughout North America. The CFO had requested in writing that they change their position on this, as they do not have jurisdiction outside the USA. The AOA agreed to change the document. However, this does not affect the legal right for the use of the title Osteopath in Canada, as that is regulated by the College of Physicians and Surgeons in three provinces (BC, AB, ON).
  6. The implication of this is only that the COA does not have the AOA support in shunningthe two streams any longer
  7. Howard: not only does the COA fail to affirm that there are two streams, but on their website they reject the WHO benchmarks because they recognize two streams. Why wasn’t this addressed by the OIA?
  8. Gail answers: it was, the OIA sent a letter to the COA stating that they needed to affirm their recognition of the two streams, and they have since ceased to be members of the OIA
  1. Annual membership renewal form
  2. We have revised our initial membership application, and we have developed annual renewal forms that we will make available on the website.
  3. Question: will the initial application still require a GP/Osteopath report? No. We will require a resume, government issued ID, copy of degrees/diplomas etc
  1. Website update
  2. Member login section
  3. Forms for application renewal
  4. Update
  5. Changing your personal contact info
  6. Archives of the newsletters
  7. Locums and jobs section
  8. Newsletter comes out from the website
  9. Course information
  1. Any other business
  2. Brochures: Lyndsay
  3. The photos that were taken didn’t work out
  4. Looking at the possibility of stock photos
  5. The layout, content and concept is all looking good
  6. Is there a specific resolution that is required? Can we ask members if they have any photos that could be used?
  7. Lyndsay will ask the designer for these specifics, and will then send them to the membership
  8. Voluntary Registration Body: Howard
  9. It is possible to make some changes with the government, and he feels that now is a good time to lobby for support of the government, on the basis of protection of the public, for the long term goal of a regulatory body
  1. Closing Remarks
  2. Gail: Thank you everyone for your time today, and we hope that you will contribute your time, energy and intelligence towards the development of Osteopathy as a profession and the SPMPO. I agree with Howard that we need to continue our work in establishing strong standards, and toward regulation.

Meeting adjourned 4:30 PST

[P1]Coast Capital (should be capitalized